Milium grains appear as small white pimples on the surface skin.
Usually they appear on the face.
They are localized in the areas around the eyes, on the cheeks, nose, forehead and chin.
But they can also appear elsewhere on the body.
Fortunately, there are natural and effective treatments to remove them quickly.
Here are the 16 remedies to eliminate and remove milium grains under the eyes . Watch:
Milia develop when dead sebum cells (keratin) become trapped under the skin.
This forms whitish or yellowish microcysts that clog the pores of the epidermis.
Even if they are unsightly, be aware that milium grains present no danger and are completely benign .
Anyone can get milia, but babies are often prone to them.
Moreover, it is for this reason that milium grains are also called "infant acne".
According to one study, milium grains appear in 40 to 50% of newborns (Source 1).
But again, anyone can have milium seeds:including children, teenagers and adults.
Women are generally more affected than men.
This is particularly due to the use of cosmetics that are too aggressive on the skin.
By dint of using them, they end up irritating the skin and milium grains appear.
In most cases, they eventually disappear after several weeks or even months.
Thus, in newborns, they are allowed to disappear spontaneously and without treatment.
But in adults, because of their unsightly appearance, we often try to extract them or get rid of them.
Here are 16 effective treatments to get rid of milium grains, but also prevent their appearance. Watch:
Milium seeds can irritate the skin on your face or that of your child.
But even when this is the case, avoid at all costs crushing the affected areas .
If you try to tear or puncture them, the kernels may bleed.
As a result, the lesions will scab over and may leave scars.
Scratching the skin also risks introducing bacteria into the lesions, which can lead to infection.
Thus, in babies under 6 months, the best treatment is to simply do nothing.
Just let the milium grains disappear spontaneously.
If in doubt about the eruption of milia, consult your child's pediatrician.
Every day, clean impurities from your face using a mild, paraben-free soap.
If your cleanser isn't gentle enough, it can remove oil and upset the skin's delicate balance.
After removing impurities from the face, do not air dry it.
Instead, dab dry your face using a towel.
This will help you avoid irritating and drying out the delicate facial skin.
A steam bath cleanses the skin gently and thoroughly.
The hot steam will gently dilate the pores to dislodge impurities and excess sebum.
What you need:
- 1 liter of water
- a clean, heat-resistant container
- a large towel
How to:
- Bring the water to a boil and pour it into the large bowl.
- Cover your head with the towel and lean your face about 30 cm above the bowl.
Note: if the steam seems too hot, wait a bit before starting the steam bath.
- Inhale through your nose and exhale through your mouth for 5-10 minutes.
After your steam bath, follow with a gentle face scrub.
Do this treatment once a day for optimal results.
A gentle exfoliant can help you get rid of milium spots faster.
And by regularly exfoliating the skin of the face, you will also prevent them from reappearing .
Indeed, some exfoliating products prevent dead cells from remaining trapped under the surface of the skin (Source 2).
Dermatologists advise using exfoliants based on salicylic acid, citric acid or glycolic acid.
However, avoid exfoliating your skin too often, at the risk of causing irritation.
First start by exfoliating the skin once a week .
Then, determine if it helps to speed up the disappearance of the milium grains.
Use a gentle exfoliating treatment, like this one.
Peeling masks that contain exfoliating products can accelerate the disappearance of milium grains .
But use them with caution!
If it is too powerful, a peeling treatment can have the opposite effect.
Indeed, according to studies, peeling treatments that are too powerful can appear even more milium grains (Source 3).
Are peeling masks already part of your beauty routine?
Then you can probably continue to use them safely.
It might even help make the milia disappear faster.
If possible, choose peeling treatments with gentle formulas, based on salicylic acid or glycolic acid (Source 4, Source 5).
What if peeling treatments are not part of your beauty routine?
So, for now, avoid them as a treatment to get rid of milia.
Indeed, if your skin is not used to the peeling ingredients, it may be irritated.
And it can aggravate the extent of milium grains.
Many dermatologists also recommend using retinoid-based treatments to remove milium grains (Source 6).
In cream or serum form, retinoid-based treatments have a high vitamin A content.
This vitamin is essential for good skin health.
Treatments based on retinoids (or retinol, its less potent form) are applied once a day.
Apply when your face is cleansed and well dried.
When using a retinoid or retinol-based treatment, don't forget to put on your sunscreen!
Indeed, retinoids increase the sensitivity of the skin to the sun.
Some dermatologists advise putting on sunscreen every day to protect facial skin from UV rays.
But there is another benefit to wearing the right sunscreen.
This prevents skin irritation which can lead to the appearance of milium grains.
Put on a sunscreen specially designed for the face, with a minimum index of 30.
If your skin is particularly sensitive to the sun, opt for an SPF 100 sunscreen instead.
Know that the sunscreens best suited to the skin are based on mineral oil .
Other sunscreens contain fatty oils. As a result, they leave greasy residue.
These residues come to be stored under the pores and can aggravate the eruption of grains of milium.
Likewise, be careful about the sunscreen you put on your skin.
Make sure they don't contain anything you're allergic or sensitive to.
Click here for the homemade sunscreen recipe.
As mentioned earlier, research has proven that retinoid skincare can eliminate milia (Source 7).
Retinol and retinoids are derivatives of vitamin A.
This vitamin is essential for the production of new cells, which promotes proper hydration of the skin (Source 8).
Thus, it is recommended to regularly consume foods rich in vitamin A .
This will not only eliminate the milium grains, but also prevent them from appearing.
Foods high in vitamin A include carrots, avocados, and almonds, among others.
Click here to find out which foods contain the most vitamin A.
Lemon has powerful anti-inflammatory properties.
This makes it an effective remedy for removing milium spots by drying them out quickly (Source 9).
Lemon is also a natural astringent, which means it helps tighten pores of the skin (Source 10).
How to:
- Cut a lemon in half.
- Gently rub the affected areas of the face with the pulp of one of the lemon halves.
- Leave the lemon juice on for 30 to 40 minutes.
- Rinse with lukewarm water.
You can also mix a pinch of salt with freshly squeezed lemon juice.
Apply this mixture directly on the grains of milium.
This honey comes from the manuka tree, a shrub that grows in New Zealand and Australia.
Manuka honey is scientifically recognized for its natural antibacterial, antimicrobial and anti-inflammatory properties (Source 11).
Therefore, this honey is an effective remedy to soothe skin irritations due to grains of milium.
In addition, manuka honey also helps prevent the risk of infection (Source 12).
What you need:
- half a spoonful of manuka honey
How to:
- Apply the manuka honey to the face, in an even layer.
- Leave on for 30 minutes.
- Rinse with clear water.
For best results, repeat this treatment once a day.
You can also use this technique with a mixture of manuka honey and cinnamon hydrosol.
Regularly exfoliating your skin with a gentle scrub is an essential treatment.
This helps to avoid the accumulation of dead skin which can clog pores.
Over time, gentle scrubs can also overcome recurrent rashes of milia.
What you need:
- the juice of a freshly squeezed lemon
- 1 teaspoon of coconut oil
- 2 tablespoons of powdered sugar
How to:
- In a clean bowl, mix the lemon juice, coconut oil and sugar.
- Continue until the sugar is partially dissolved.
- Apply this mixture to the affected areas.
- Using your fingertips, rub very gently for 3 to 5 minutes.
- Leave on for 20 minutes and rinse with lukewarm water.
Repeat this treatment at least 3 to 4 times a week.
Like lemon juice, apple cider vinegar is a natural astringent.
By tightening the pores, apple cider vinegar helps to remove impurities stuck under the skin.
It is this action that allows the grains of milia to disappear (Source 13).
What you need:
- a tablespoon of cider vinegar
- a tablespoon of water
- a piece of clean cotton
How to:
- In a clean container, mix the cider vinegar and water.
- Use the cotton ball to apply this mixture to areas affected by milia.
- Leave on for 30 minutes and rinse with lukewarm water.
Thanks to its emollient and anti-inflammatory properties, castor oil has powerful benefits for the skin.
Castor oil is also an effective and natural remedy to fight milium rashes (Source 14).
What you need:
- a gentle facial cleanser
- half a teaspoon of cold-pressed castor oil
How to:
- Cleanse your face with a suitable mild cleanser.
- Pat your face dry with a towel.
- Massage the affected areas with castor oil.
- Leave on for at least 30 minutes then rinse with lukewarm water.
For best results, repeat this treatment once a day.
Coconut oil is not only recognized for its exceptional moisturizing properties, but also its anti-inflammatory properties.
Thus, coconut oil is an excellent natural treatment to hydrate and repair the skin , and also reduce inflammation (Source 15).
Studies have also proven coconut oil to be an effective remedy for soothing milia (Source 16).
What you need:
- a tablespoon of 100% virgin coconut oil
How to:
- Melt the coconut oil in the palm of your hand.
- Apply the oil to the affected areas.
- Gently massage the milium grains with your fingertips.
- Leave on for 30 minutes, then cleanse your face with a suitable gentle cleanser.
Repeat this treatment twice a day.
Rose water contains rose oil, not mineral oils like most treatments.
Rose oil is also renowned for its natural anti-inflammatory properties , effective against milium grains (Source 17).
What you need:
- rose water
- small spray bottle
How to:
- Put the rose water in the spray bottle.
- Spray the rose water on the affected areas of the face, taking care to avoid the eye area.
For best results, repeat this treatment at least 2 or 3 times a day.
Repeat this natural treatment once a day to remove impurities and accumulations of dead skin that clog pores.
This will greatly reduce milium rashes (Source 18).
What you need:
- 1 tablespoon sandalwood powder
- rose water
How to:
- Mix a little rose water with the sandalwood powder, until you get a smooth and thick paste.
- Apply this paste on the affected areas of the skin.
- Leave on for 30 minutes then rinse with cold water.
Do you regularly have milia rashes?
Here are some precautions to take to avoid their appearance:
- Remember to always remove your make-up carefully before going to bed.
- Exfoliate the skin of the face regularly with a gentle scrub (2 to 3 times a week).
- Use a retinol cream to prevent the build-up of dead cells (avoid the eyelids).
- Use suitable products and avoid creams that are too rich around areas prone to milia.
- Avoid overly aggressive cosmetics and treatments.
- Protect your skin from the sun with a sun factor of at least 15 (including in winter).
- Avoid overexposure to the sun.
In most cases, the milium grains disappear spontaneously after a few weeks, especially in babies.
But this is not always the case in adults.
In case of frequent and recurring eruptions, or if the milia do not disappear, consult a dermatologist.
Sometimes the dermatologist may choose to pierce the skin with a very fine needle to extract the milium grains.
But rest assured, this type of intervention is quick and painless.
