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Tretinoin is one of a category of medications called retinoids. It’s a form of vitamin A that acts on the skin by increasing skin cell production and turnover. Tretinoin boosts the exfoliation process, causing your skin cells to slough off and regenerate more quickly.
Topical tretinoin has a variety of uses in skin care products. Because it acts to increase cell production and slough off the outermost layer of skin cells, tretinoin is great for revealing an overall healthier complexion and more youthful skin with an even complexion.
Tretinoin specifically can reduce the appearance of dark spots, liver spots, melasma, and hyperpigmentation. It is useful in treating sun damage in general to the face and neck and gives the skin a brighter, more uniform, and youthful color.
It is also used to treat acne by expelling comedones or clogged and infected pores. Rough, irritated skin flakes off and a healthier complexion is left in its place.
Because tretinoin promotes skin cell regeneration, it's also one of the best anti-aging ingredients out there.
Tretinoin comes with many skincare benefits, but it also has many drawbacks.
Because tretinoin works by sloughing off skin cells and regenerating new ones quickly, when you first start using it, you will likely have patches of redness, irritation, and flaky skin. If you have acne, it may look and feel worse for a week or two because there have been blemishes and pore blockages forming in the deepest layers of your skin that are coming to the surface. People with skin sensitivities can experience severe irritation, redness, inflammation, and burning. It may take up to 8-12 weeks before your skin starts to look more healthy and youthful.
Another drawback to tretinoin is that it makes your skin more sensitive to sunlight and sunburn. Tretinoin is also not approved for use in anyone under 18 or for women who are pregnant or breast-feeding.
Because of the many drawbacks of tretinoin, it's only available via dermatologists' prescription or telemedicine brands, making it harder to get.
Dry skin, also called xerosis, is when the outer most layer of skin, or epidermis, isn’t retaining sufficient moisture. The epidermis is partially made up of epidermal proteins and fats, or lipids, which help to retain moisture. If the proper amount of these proteins or lipids are lacking, moisture will evaporate more quickly and dry skin will ensue.
Also, external and environmental factors, such as weather, cold air, hot and excessive showers and harsh soaps, are notorious for either causing or exacerbating dry skin.
Rosehip oil enhances the appearance of dry or damaged skin by reducing flaking and restoring the overall vitality of the skin. Jojoba oil is also good for keeping in moisture for healthier skin. Hyaluronic acid is another great ingredient for retaining moisture in dry skin.
Acne-prone dry skin is the hardest to treat because anti-acne ingredients like salicylic acid, glycolic acid, retinoid, etc tend to be drying. Instead of avoiding these effective ingredients, you can combine these ingredients with moisturizing ingredients to counter effect the dryness of these ingredients.
tretinoin may be effective for dry skin, but there are many other factors that may affect whether this ingredient would work on your skin or if there are better ingredients that may work for you. Take this skin quiz to find the best ingredients for your skin and build your skincare routine.
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