What is it?

To bring it back to the basics, retinol—alongside other retinoids, such as retinoic acid and retinyl palmitate—is essentially a derivative of vitamin A, which is one of the body's key nutrients for boosting cell turnover. Retinol can also aid in treating acne, blackheads, and clogged pores by reducing the stickiness of the cells that clog the pores, as well as speeding up the rate at which the skin turns over and regenerates itself. Due to this, they are ideal for improving your skin's overall texture, minimizing fine lines and wrinkles, evening out skin tone, and decreasing pore size.

For those new to the world of Retinols! Retinol makes your skin more delicate and sensitive to the sun, so you should use a high SPF and avoid sun exposure (or tanning beds). It is recommended to only use it in your night time skincare routine.

As we have mentioned previously, there are a couple of different types of retinoids you'll find in your face cream, eye cream and serums. Retinol and retinyl palmitate are over-the-counter retinoids, and when comparing the two, retinol is stronger and more effective. By looking at your ingredients list you can find out what form of retinol is in your product. These are both more mild than prescription versions including tretinoin, tazarotene, and adapelene, which also has an over-the-counter version. Over-the-counter retinoids are available in almost every product form imaginable, while most prescription forms are a cream or gel, besides isotretinoin (commonly known as Accutane), which is taken orally.

Benefits:

• It can increase cell turnover and stimulate collagen and elastin production.

• It can increase the appearance of firmness by plumping up fine lines and wrinkles.

• It can improve uneven skin tone, treat pigmentation and smooth the surface of skin.

• It can even help with cystic acne and blemishes.

It is important to note that you need to first build tolerance to retinol products, but once you do, you will reap the amazing benefits of retinol. You should start off with the lowest %, and with time slowly increase after your skin builds tolerance.

If you have any questions on what products to start with, or want to know more information regarding retinol, feel free to contact us and book a free consultation!