All about retinol

Retinol is the go to ingredient for antiaging. But what is it? Retinol is a derivative of vitamin A. Since its an antioxidant, it helps to neutralize the free radical damage in the skin. Which means you can prevent and help treat aged skin. It's a cell communicating ingredient, this means it tells the skin cells to act like newer, healthier, and younger cells. Retinol is also proven to help with acne, age spots, and wrinkles.

There are Retinoids, and tretinoids. The retinoids are the kind that you can get over the counter. You do not have to have a prescription for these. However these are not as strong as the kind that you get a prescription, so you will see results after around 4 weeks of continual use. Some people might not see a difference in their skin with the retinoids because not every over the counter retinol is a good product, alot of them are not strong enough to do anything. Tretinoids are prescription only. These are more strong, but more effective. These ones are definitely going to help with acne, age spots, and wrinkles

The biggest misconception that many people have is that retinol is an exfoliant. It does NOT exfoliate the skin. You can combine retinol, glycolic acid and vitamin c together. Using retinol by itself is not going to benefit your skin as much as a combination of different products would. One product can't change your skin, its the right products used in conjunction with one another that give the skin the best results. The best ingredients to combine with retinol is sunscreen, vitamin c, and glycolic/lactic/salicylic acid.

Some important things when buying a retinol are the packaging. The packaging of retinol has to be in a dark packaging that allows as little air as possible to enter. If you are using a jar, I recommend that you find a new product, because the air breaks down the beneficial ingredients. Another thing is to only apply retinol at night. If you apply it during the day, it becomes unstable. I recommend applying it at night and you must wear a sunscreen every day. This prevents the new cells from getting damage caused by the sun.