You might be amazed by what you'd uncover in your pores - M. Alejandra Perotti episode artwork

EPISODE · Aug 9, 2026 · 8 MIN

You might be amazed by what you'd uncover in your pores - M. Alejandra Perotti

from TED-Ed · host TED-Ed

Meet the microscopic arachnids that live on your face, and find out why Demodex mites are part of the human microbiome.--Two species of Demodex mites specifically inhabit human follicles. And not just some people’s— nearly everyone is thought to host mites. One person’s face might harbor hundreds or even thousands of individual mites. On any given day, these microscopic arachnids are probably eating, mating, and laying eggs inside your pores. So, is this… okay? M. Alejandra Perotti investigates.Lesson by M. Alejandra Perotti, directed by Caitlin McCarthy.Support Our Non-Profit Mission----------------------------------------------Support us on Patreon: http://bit.ly/TEDEdPatreonCheck out our merch: http://bit.ly/TEDEDShop----------------------------------------------Connect With Us----------------------------------------------Sign up for our newsletter: http://bit.ly/TEDEdNewsletterFollow us on Facebook: http://bit.ly/TEDEdFacebookFind us on Twitter: http://bit.ly/TEDEdTwitterPeep us on Instagram: http://bit.ly/TEDEdInstagram----------------------------------------------Keep Learning----------------------------------------------View full lesson: https://ed.ted.com/lessons/yes-tiny-mites-live-on-your-face-but-is-that-a-bad-thing-m-alejandra-perottiDig deeper with additional resources: https://ed.ted.com/lessons/yes-tiny-mites-live-on-your-face-but-is-that-a-bad-thing-m-alejandra-perotti/digdeeperAnimator's website: https://c8l.in----------------------------------------------Thank you so much to our patrons for your support! Without you this video would not be possible! Ovidiu Mrd, paul g mohney, Steven Razey, Nathan Giusti, Helen Lee, Anthony Benedict, Karthik Balsubramanian, Annastasshia Ames, Amy Lopez, Vinh-Thuy Nguyen, Liz Candee, Ugur Doga Sezgin, Karmi Nguyen, John C. Vesey, Yelena Baykova, Nick Johnson, Carlos H. Costa, Jennifer Kurkoski, Ryan B Harvey, Akinola Emmanuel, Jose Arcadio Valdes Franco, Sebastiaan Vleugels, Karl Laius, JY Kang, Abhishek Goel, Heidi Stolt, Nicole Sund, Karlee Finch, Mario Mejia, Denise A Pitts, Doug Henry, Keven Webb, Mihai Sandu, Deepak Iyer, Javid Gozalov, Kyanta Yap, Rebecca Reineke, William Biersdorf, Patricia Alves Panagides, Yvette Mocete, Cyrus Garay, Samuel Barbas, LadyGeek, Marin Kovachev, Penelope Misquitta, Hans Peng, Gaurav Mathur, Erik Biemans, Tony, Michelle, Katie and Josh Pedretti, and Hoai Nam Tran. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

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You might be amazed by what you'd uncover in your pores - M. Alejandra Perotti

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