Why Dr. Pimple Popper Wants You to Get Rid of Your Magnifying Mirrors ASAP

Looking at your face up close in a magnifying mirror can be either terrifying or satisfying depending on how you (literally) look at it. But no matter how it makes you feel, dermatologist Sandra Lee, MD – also known to most of the internet as Dr. Pimple Popper – thinks that if you have one of these mirrors in your home or bathroom, you should probably get rid of it ASAP.

In a Facebook Live session recorded with POPSUGAR’s Real Reviews Facebook group on July 9, Lee explained to viewers why magnifying mirrors might be doing more harm than good. According to her, there’s no reason you should ever be looking at your skin that closely, and doing so can cause dysmorphia and make you more likely to pick at your skin.

The subject came up when a viewer asked for tips on how to get rid of blackheads and whiteheads on their chin and nose. “I bet you’re using a magnifying mirror,” she said. “Try not to stare in that magnifying mirror. It shows you things that no one that’s looking at you face to face can see and it tends to cause a lot of problems with us that are looking in it because we tend to start to obsess about certain things.”

Lee continued, explaining that blackheads and whiteheads are normal, and nothing you do – from exfoliating to doing peels to getting laser treatments – can do anything to eliminate your pores and make blackheads nonexistent. “If you clean them out, they’re going to come back again because we have pores in our skin,” she said. “Try to focus your energy on other things and know that you’re doing all the right kinds of things.”

Head over to the POPSUGAR Beauty Facebook page to watch the full live video and to see Dr. Pimple Popper answer more skin-care questions.