Retinol, Having launched my office last year, a year and a half ago, and the skincare line a year ago, I’m trying to figure out how to wear all of these hats and do it all at once.
This week I thought what better way to start the year than to give you guys my five golden rules on incorporating a retinoid into your skincare routine? And why is this fitting? Because today is my birthday and with every year that passes, I’m not one who gets depressed. I honestly am just grateful that I made it another year as we survived.
And if we can survive while having better-looking skin as we get wiser in life. Pokwapa one of those ingredients that allow our skin to look better as we age are retinoids. Let us jump in.
Contents
How To Start?
Starting with rule number one, and this is the most important rule for anybody, whether you are a beginner or a veteran. Go low and go slow. Meaning it’s not just about the percentage when I’m talking about go low, it’s about the type of retinoid that you’re incorporating into your routine.
So if you are a beginner, a moderate, or an advanced user, this applies to all of you.
Different Types Of Retinoids
But briefly, retinoids are the class, okay? It’s the class of vitamin A that helps your skin renew itself and be stronger and better for you in the long run. But they’re not all created equal.
Tretinoin is that prescription is that active form of retinoid that makes a difference in your skin. Retinol is what people know retinoids as and that gets converted into retinol, which then gets converted into that retinoic acid tretinoin that’s already active in your skin. But there’s a whole series of events in between and even before the retinol.
So starting from lightest, we have retinol esters, and those are retinol propionate, retinol palmitate, retinol acetate, and they are the least effective forms of retinoids, but they’re also a good entry point for people who are either very sensitive or do not know how to start. Then the retinol esters become retinol.
Also Read:
Is Gluten Free Actually Good For You?
20 Healthy Foods You May Not Have Considered
Melatonin: 7 Anti-Aging Superfood That Helps with Weight Loss, Insomnia, and Energy
10 HEALTHY HABITS For Women To Live A HEALTHIER Life
And that’s what you guys are so marketed, basically on the grand scheme of things, beauty companies, beauty markets, retinol, and you will hear this is 0.3% pure retinol, like Glorial or skin medical or skin suitable, because retinol has become the mainstream synonym of retinoids. But retinol is not active when they’re applied to the skin.
They have to get converted into retinol and then that gets converted into retinoic acid, which is the active form, aka the prescription. So retinol is 10 to 20% less potent than retinoic acid. Again, they’re good if you are a beginner, and if you’re super sensitive and you want to go past the retinol ester stage, look for an encapsulated form of retinol.
Encapsulated simply means it has a little capsule around it that slowly breaks off throughout the day or whatever the timeline is. So the retinol gets slowly introduced to your skin. So it’s a slow release. Then retinol is a step above the retinol. Like I just said, it’s a good alternative if you’re looking for more efficacy, but you’re just not ready to take the plunge into retinoic acid.
It’s more stable and it is a gentle vitamin A derivative. But there is a better version than retinol now, which is also known as retinoic acid esters. And this is the cousin, it’s also known as hydroxypinocolone retinoate or granactive retinoid from the ordinary. And this has been around now for a few years. It is the cousin form of retinoic acid, but it is less irritating.
So if you are somebody who you think can take the plunge, you’re ready to start a prescription, but you tend to be sensitive. This one’s for you. If you’re too scared to do a prescription, this one’s for you.
And if you can only tolerate a prescription once a week, but you want to have something more consistent in your routine, I would strongly suggest that you look for a retinoic acid esterid, also known as hydroxypinocoline retinoid. And then last we have retinoic acid, aka tretinoin, aka prescription that you need from a doctor, aka the most effective one.
But you do not need to go wrong and be strong from the beginning. So go low, meaning go low on the type of retinol and go slow, meaning slowly incorporate it. Start by using it one to two times.
Week only for a few weeks and slowly add a night three times a week for a few weeks and slowly add a night four times a week for a few weeks until you can use it every night. Now, there are some people out there who can use a prescription only once a week, and they tell me that all I can do is use retinoid once a week because I can only tolerate the prescription once a week.
There are six other nights a week in which you can use a less strong version of the retinoid. As I just mentioned, retinol or even the retinoic acid ester on those other nights of the week without getting any irritations. So I want you guys to be adventurous in how you’re playing with retinol and how you’re viewing them as a longer-term part of your skincare routine.
You don’t have to use the same one every single day and you can go low and go slow to incorporate. But once you’ve reached your maximum sort of tolerance level for a certain type of retinoid, you can go back and go to a lighter version that basically fills in the gaps on the other nights of the week. So that is the golden rule, rule roll numero uno.
Exfoliation And Retinoids
Number two, should we exfoliate when we are using a retinoid on the same night? Absolutely not.
If you are a beginner, this is something that I do not recommend for all of the newbies out there. People get very excited. They want to start exfoliating. They want to start using retinol, they want to start doing all the good stuff on their face. Their face blows up, they get redness inflamed skin barriers, and they freak out.
They no longer know how to approach the whole situation. So I would rather you guys see the gains slowly and get excited by the gains slowly than try to do it all at once. So exfoliate two to three times a week, and I prefer exfoliating only at night and on the other night to use the retinoids that you’re choosing to use.
Now, for the more advanced user, can you exfoliate while using a retinoid?
Absolutely, I have been able to tolerate both for years, but it’s not something that I developed overnight. So if you are incorporating a retinoid, do not exfoliate on the same night. Your skin will thank you for it. That is the beauty of skincare. You have to experiment and get to know your skin and see how your skin responds.
Buffering
Number three, if you are a sensitive soul buffer, now, what do I mean by buffer? Two years ago, the Moisture Sandwich became a thing that basically was serum retinol moisturizer. I just thought it was stupid because I don’t like stupid terms that basically I don’t know, it’s a marketing term. But genuinely, what does buffer mean? It means putting a layer of something basic underneath.
Put a layer of moisturizer underneath, depending on how sensitive you are, and then use the retinal last. So if you’re very sensitive, you would put and I will show you guys. You’d use the serum first, right? You would use this. You would get that on your face.
You use the moisturizer on top, right? I’m demoing it for you guys. This is for the sensitive ones or the ones who are too scared. And then you get your retinol right here, I have the boreal. You use this one last, but you’re going to tell me, but the retinol is a serum shereen.
How are you using that last? I don’t care. Because you’re sensitive. Where’s the camera? Because you’re sensitive.
I’d rather you use the serum than the moisturizer than the retinol so that the retinol is not going directly on your skin, increasing your risk of irritation. Now, if you are a tank and you can bulldoze your way through the skincare, you take the retinol, put that one first. Okay. Go to town, rub it in, and then use your serum, right? And then use your moisturizer.
That is how I approach buffering versus not buffering. The other thing I would say is around the eyes. When you are buffering, this is where I use a thicker cream. I am not prone so much. Tumellia.
I get them very rarely. I’ll use Vaseline. I will put the Vaseline underneath my eyes, right? And then I will go and take a dab of the retinal and put it on top. Vaseline is a thick ointment.
It’s harder for things to get through it. But that is a really good way to buffer as well if you are not prone to mileage.
Areas To Avoid
Now, number four when starting, and honestly, even for the more advanced users, including myself, I do not put the retinol over here. Why? Because I shed like a snake.
I constantly get irritated around my mouth. It is an area that is notorious among people and patients that they cannot tolerate vitamin A’s around their mouth, and they tend to get really flaky and really red. And being in a state of chronic inflammation is the worst thing you can do for your skin. So I avoid this area, or I use a much lesser what’s the word I’m looking for? Lesser strong, less intense retinoid.
Meaning I go for the like I mentioned to you at the very beginning, the retinol esters or even over-the-counter retinol. Can you buffer around your mouth? Sure, you can buffer around your mouth as well. But personally, I do not love using Vaseline around here because I get clogged.
Sunscreen
And rule number five, you need to follow it the next day with sunscreen. And I’m not a sunscreen. Militant, kind of. But you really do have to protect your skin. What is the point of taking all of this time to invest in your skin, build a stronger foundation, and have better-looking skin if you are not protecting it? Useless. Absurdimal, in, useless.
Product Recommendations
So let’s quickly jump into product recommendations, starting with, quote-unquote, retinol alternatives. Now, is this a true alternative to retinol? No. But does it have some merit in the field of collagen production and stimulation?
Yes. And that is Bacusial if you are pregnant. This is what I personally used. ULA Henriksen, indeed, Labs also has Bacuccial pads. I love this one because it is a beautiful purple hue and it just goes on seamlessly.
It does give your skin a little bit of a glow. And it’s a really, really pretty product. It retails for $60. It has, like I said, bacutial. It also has a little bit of glycolic acid and lactic acid, which is fine to use if you’re pregnant.
And this is an exception to rule number two, which I told you guys was never exfoliate, and use a Retinoid on the same night because it is actually a retinoid alternative. Now, a Retinal derivative, before even talking about retinol esters, is a very light hybrid of Ardenol. This is extremely for beginners or very sensitive skin people. Universal pro retinol by Glacier. Things I hate.
I hate that they call it a pro-Retinol because it is misleading in a marketing term. It is actually not a pro-retinol at all. It has retinol sunflower rates, which are composed of sunflower fatty acids and retinol. But it’s not actually any form of pure Retinol at all. But it’s great for beginners.
It is priced at $35. It probably will not irritate your skin, and at least it’s something for you guys to start off with if you are nervous and if you do not know exactly where to start. When it comes to retinol esters, everyone talks about this French one, the A three one three. I’ve been talking about it for years. The reason I think it has such a cult following is that it gives the skin instant gratification the next day.
That all comes down to formulation. But when you look at the actual composition of the A three one three, it is a light version of Retinoids. It is actually retinol, a mix of retinol esters, actually retinol acetate, retinol palmitate, and retinol propylenetes. It has a very silky and ointment-like texture when you actually see it. And I will say I still get occasionally itchy when I use this again, formulation.
But my skin the next day looks extremely smooth and like an ice skating rink. I can’t explain it, it’s almost like it filters your skin overnight. So that is all formulation. I don’t think the Retinal is working that fast, but I like the instant gratification of that product.
Now, when you’re talking about Pure Retinols, a very easy one for you guys to get at any sort of Dwayne Reid, CVS, or Walgreens is Lureal L’Oreal 0.3% pure Retinol.
You guys can also try Skin suitable, they have 0.30.5 and 1.0. But I will say that more of my patients get irritated using the skin suici versus this one, the Revital Lift by L’Oreal 0.3. And I think it’s because this has more of an encapsulated technology. So if you are more sensitive, I’d pick this. If you’re ready to go a little bit stronger, I’d go for skin suuticles.
Easily accessible, and easy to find. For you guys. Skin suiticles retail at 70 $80, whereas the L’Oreal is around $39 to $40 or so. I do hate the dropper. I don’t think I need to keep saying that, but I’m back in 2023 hate the dropper.
This cancer at least comes in a squeeze tube. Now, Retinaldehyde, which is the step before retinoic acid aven, is a great one. They have their Retinal 0.1 at $74. It is a 0.1% retinal cream, yellow-tinted, and it also has its thermal spring water, which is supposedly helpful for any sort of redness that you may or may not have.
And last but not least are the retinoic acid esters, the cousin of retinoic acid, the hydroxypinocoline retinoate, also known as granactive retinoid. You have the ordinary one that a lot of people are used to seeing and we’re talking about a lot during the pandemic.
But more recently, Caroline Hiring launched her Retinoid One and Two by skin rocks. And they are hydroxypinocoline retinoate. This retinoid one is at 0.2%, so it’s entry-level.
I have the two and this one is mixed with Retinow. So it will definitely be more irritating than the retinoid one. But they are interesting products to try, especially if you want to jump in. And from the readings of the reviews, people are not getting that much irritation from them. So they seem to be doing great for people who are scared to take the plunge and go stronger or who are ready to go a little bit more than retinol but don’t want a prescription yet.
And then last are prescriptions so different from what used to be a prescription up until a few years ago. It is now available over the counter. Do not use this if you are pregnant. Do not use this if you are pregnant. Do not use this if you are pregnant.
It is a synthetic retinoid. It is also known as adaplene and it is the cousin version of this is a very old tube, Tretinoin, which is the prescription format. And this is the one that you get from your local board-certified dermatologist. It comes with various strengths. You also can get them to encapsulate, you can also get them in micro versions.
It comes in different types of formulations now, but this is the classic old-school try-to-know that you can get as a prescription. And there you have it, my little nerds. Happy Saturday morning. Five golden rules. I hope you enjoyed this article.
Let me know if you have any questions or comments below.
