Does Tallow Clog Pores​?

Clogged pores are a skin-health bane for many of us, and not just teenagers. This skin issue is a common concern at any age in both men and women, affecting approximately 50 million people per year.

Clear pores are critical to healthy skin, helping to release sweat and toxins, regulate temperature, and keep skin clean and hydrated. A clogged pore is one that has been blocked by dead skin cells, dirt or oils and is thus unable to function in its optimal way. In turn, clogged pores can lead to even worse skin afflictions, including blackheads, pimples, acne and more.

Sounds like avoiding clogged pores should be a key factor when selecting skincare products! Fortunately, there are ways to determine whether a product or ingredient is likely to clog your pores.

So what about tallow? It offers many benefits for the skin, but could it complicate skincare for acne-prone or blemished skin?

Let’s dive in and examine a bit more about clogged pores – what causes them, skincare ingredients that help or hinder your efforts to resolve them, and where tallow fits into the clogged pore puzzle.

Not All Skincare Products Are Created Equal

Store shelves and websites are filled with products promising beautiful skin. Whether the jars and bottles are pretty or plain, it’s what’s in them that counts. With so many items to choose from, it becomes mind-boggling to figure out which skincare solutions are right for you. And they certainly aren’t all created equal.

Do they contain formulas and ingredients that promote healthy skin function, or might they actually clog pores – and how do we find out? Fortunately, there is a scale to reference when answering this question, called the comedogenic rating.

When a product or ingredient is likely to cause clogged pores, it is called “comedogenic.” Conversely, if it is not likely to clog pores, it is considered “non-comedogenic.” All skincare formulations, including tallow-based skincare, will fall within a range of these two extremes, so let’s take a deeper look at each of these important skincare properties.

Comedogenic

The word comedogenic comes from the term comedones, the plural of comedo. The most common type of acne, comedones are blocked pores on the skin that can cause a bumpy or uneven appearance, whiteheads, blackheads or even cysts.

While acne and other skin problems may be a teenager’s nightmare, we have mentioned that these skin conditions can strike men and women alike and at any age. Several factors can cause or exacerbate these blockages of your pores, including bacteria, dirt, oils, dead skin cells as well as topical lotions and creams

Comedogenicity refers to the likelihood that a product or ingredient will clog your pores.

In short…if a product is comedogenic, it is not ideal for the health of your skin.

Every time you apply makeup or oils, use suntan lotion, wash with certain soaps, or become grimy with dirt and sweat from working out or playing sports, you’re adding components that can potentially block your pores.

A healthy skincare routine that includes regular cleansing, exfoliating and hydrating will help you avoid clogged pores and comedones, but it is also critical that the skincare products you use in that routine don’t actually clog pores themselves. Because some of them certainly can, it’s important to know whether the ingredients they contain could either help or hurt your skin.

Non-Comedogenic

Given that comedogenic refers to ingredients that can lead to clogged pores, it’s no surprise that non-comedogenic means the opposite. In other words, a product that is non-comedogenic is not likely to block pores.

With the multiple pore-clogging elements skin is exposed to every day, it’s clear that choosing skincare products with little or no chance of clogging pores is a priority for healthy skin, so let’s consider how comedogenicity is determined and measured.

The Pore-Clogging Comedogenic Grade Range

Realizing the importance of comedogenicity, the Society of Cosmetic Chemists developed a scale to streamline the process of identifying which ingredients are more likely to cause clogged pores. The resulting chart, abbreviated below, assigns a grade range to skincare ingredients or products based on the comedogenic effect on skin. The higher the comedogenic grade of a formula or ingredient, the more your skin can become impacted and irritated by it.

More specifically, the chart below details the visible effects on the skin aligned with each grade.

While this scale is an incredibly useful guide, the grades indicate likelihood of comedogenicity and irritation as opposed to certainty. It should be noted that every person is unique and reacts differently to various skincare products. In addition, how comedogenic a product or ingredient is can also be affected by other ingredients it is formulated with.

In other words, comedogenicity shouldn’t be looked at in a vacuum: ingredients and formulas should be considered holistically with regard to their effects on your skin. Still, this scale provides a large step forward toward understanding how skincare can impact your pores.

Pore-Clogging Traits of Common Skincare Ingredients

Now you know what comedogenic and non-comedogenic mean. You’re also versed in the grading system used by skincare professionals and formulators to identify the pore-clogging probability of each ingredient. So let’s consider a few familiar ingredients commonly found in skincare products to see how they compare on the comedogenic grading scale.

Natural Oils

Natural isn’t always better. There are natural oils that rate quite high on the comedogenic scale. For example, cocoa butter and coconut butter are both rated as a grade 4, while sesame, avocado, and mink oils rate grade 3 on the scale.

However, other natural oils have very low comedogenic ratings, such as skin-beneficial oils like jojoba, which scores a 2 on the scale. Castor is a natural oil with a grade 1 rating, while sunflower oil comes in at 0 on the scale.

Tallow and Other Animal Oils

Where do tallow and other pure animal fats and oils fit on the comedogenic scale? Natural animal-derived oils rate low on the comedogenic scale, with beeswax at 2 and tallow generally considered to be around 2.

When combined with its many benefits for the skin like natural healing, skin protecting, antibacterial and antimicrobial properties, tallow makes a first-rate choice for a healthy skincare regimen.

Other Natural and Synthetic Skincare Ingredients

Many other types of ingredients are used for their thickening, drying, or antibacterial effects in skincare remedies. Both natural and synthetic ingredients can have high or low comedogenic scores.

When in doubt, do your research. There are many reputable sources online to find the comedogenic rating of various ingredients, or you might ask a skincare professional or your dermatologist. If your skin is particularly sensitive, consider a patch test on the inside of your arm to see if you’re reactive to a certain ingredient or product. And you can always reach out to a brand or product manufacturer or retailer directly.

Tallow Does Not Clog Pores

So will tallow clog pores? With its low comedogenic rating and many advantages for skin health, NYC Dermatologist Dr. Michele Green says “tallow, thick yet noncomedogenic, is ideally suited to dry and aging skin but gentle enough for sensitive skin”. Tallow makes a beneficial part of a natural skincare approach, especially a healthy skincare routine that includes proper cleansing, exfoliation and moisturizing.

High-quality natural tallow-based skincare will put you on the right track for healthy, clear, and vibrant skin – without the worry of clogged pores, no matter your age.