Popping pimples in a certain area of your face could lead to infection and blood clots

Poping pimples on your face can be lead to infection and blood clotsPhoto byJakayla ToneyonUnsplash

Popping pimples is typical but can have consequences

Dermatologists have long warned that popping pimples could scar skin or cause infection but who really listened? In the 1970s when Noxema medicated skin cream and Clearasil medicated pads did not work the next recourse for teens in Southwest Virginia was to pop pimples with their fingers or get a friend to do it. Sometimes older adults in the home would do the honors.

Recently, for a Chinese teen popping a pimple was potentially deadly. The 19-year-old developed a blood clot because she popped a pimple in a part of her face known as the "Triangle of Death." This is the area, between the nose and just past the corners of the mouth. Blood vessels in this part of the face connect to parts of the skull, which is why infections starting there can quickly spread.

If the skin in the "Triangle of Death" is broken, bacteria can get in and rapidly reach your brain. It's why many doctors warn people not to pop pimples, especially there.

Be careful with DIY skin carePhoto byCheyenne DoigonUnsplash

Did you live through DIY skin remedies?

If you are squeamish you might want to skip this part of the story. I think back to when my grandmother burned tweezers and a sewing needle with a match to sanitize them and removed a painful callus just below my right big toe. She opened the skin and squeezed out the pus and it hurt but in a few days, I was as good as new.

My oldest son survived his dad squeezing razor bumps on his chin and the back of his neck to try to get rid of them on several occasions. If you lived through DIY pimple removal or any type of self-care to the skin or Southwest Virginia home remedy you were blessed because infections can happen anywhere on the body. Now that we know how deadly poping facial pimples really can be let us spread the word.