What Does Retinol Do? 5 Reasons It’s The No1 Anti-Aging Ingredient

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Are fine lines, wrinkles, and age spots making you look 5, 10, or even 15 years older than you are? If so, you’ll definitely want to act sooner rather than later. It is never too late to improve the look, texture, and feel of your skin with retinol cream and a healthy skin regimen.

The longer you wait to practice a healthy skincare routine, the more time you are allowing for more damage, wrinkles, and fine lines to crop up on your face – taking you further and further from your ideal skin appearance.

Nearly every woman craves bright, healthy, younger-looking skin. With retinol-based products, this is within your grasp. Just make sure to use them sooner rather than later to get the best results and incorporate it into your regular skincare routine!

Contents

Tried and True

For over 40 years, women have used retinol-based creams and serums to give their skin a renewed, fresher look. Originally approved by the FDA for the treatment of moderate to severe acne, it wasn’t long before physicians found the exciting side effects of retinol treatments – the reduction of fine lines, wrinkles, and age spots. And what woman isn’t looking for that?

So, the question is, do you want to look 5, 10, or even 15 years younger? Here are the top 5 reasons every woman should include a retinol cream in their daily skincare routines.

1. Retinol is proven to minimize the appearance of wrinkles

Woman from the side

Yes. Proven. There are literally hundreds of peer-reviewed medical studies that indicate the safety and efficacy of retinol for diminishing fine lines and improving the appearance of wrinkles. A study 2001 study conducted at Boston University’s School of Medicine Department of Dermatology found that 7 days of retinol application is effective in the treatment of aging and photoaging. With this in mind, it’s no wonder why so many women trust the application of these products to improve the health of their skin.

2. Retinol creams stimulate the production of new collagen to keep skin soft, supple, and healthy

Collagen is one of the most important elements to keeping skin from aging prematurely and preventing fine lines and wrinkles. If you have spent years in the sun, with or without proper sunscreen, chances are you have some photodamage. This occurs naturally when the skin is exposed to UV light. The result is premature aging causing unsightly wrinkles, hyperpigmentation, and degeneration of the collagen in your skin. When your body isn’t able to produce enough collagen on its own, products like retinol can aid in healthy collagen production to make you look younger.

3. Retinol can improve and even reverse damage caused by the sun

Retinol creams work to restore and refresh skin by encouraging a turnover in the top layers of the skin while allowing for new cell growth. When the weathered skin is removed, the younger-looking skin that lies beneath has fewer fine lines, hyperpigmentation, age spots, and even wrinkles. While some individuals may experience mild to moderate irritation as the retinol cream begins to turn over the surface skin, retinol is typically well-tolerated by most people and usually doesn’t cause any significant issues in most users.

4. Retinol brightens skin and corrects dark age spots

Dark, dry patches on your face and neck, cause you to look older than your years. To lighten these offending patches, retinol cream works by actually fading the dark spots, making them less visible or even indiscernible. As retinol creams can cause dryness, it is imperative that you select one rich with natural moisturizers for a complete anti-aging skin solution. Jojoba oil, shea butter, aloe vera, sunflower oil, and vitamins A, E, and B5 are all a vital part of making skin renewed and look fantastic. Many retinol products come with ingredients like these included already to help combat the drying effect that the retinol gives off.

5. Retinol diminishes frown lines and smile lines effectively

No one has ever gone through life without smiling and frowning. The result of years of showing our emotions contributes to the development of fine lines on our foreheads, the corners of our eyes, and on the cheeks. These lines cause us to look older than our years but thankfully, moisturizing retinol creams do diminish the appearance of these lines too – helping us to hold on to our youth for a little bit longer and be able to smile freely without fear of wrinkles!

Additional Benefits

The benefits of this popular ingredient are endless. It’s no surprise that it’s found in makeup and quality skincare products. Whether you’re a teenager with acne or a middle-aged woman who’s noticing signs of aging, retinol is a great ingredient to throw into your skincare routine.

Beyond reducing the signs of aging, retinol boasts additional benefits. It’s fast-acting, has great value for the price, and treats a host of other skin issues.

Fast Results

One of the most exciting benefits that we found in our review is that it offers fast results. These results are available to anyone over the age of 25. There are strong prescription options that produce results in as little as 4 weeks. And for nearly all creams, in as little as 12 weeks, you’ll see the difference in appearance!

How long do benefits last? This is a good question – they will last for as long as you keep up your retinol routine.

Small Amounts Go A Long Way

Your skin doesn’t need to be lathered in retinol for you to see results. In fact, putting too much of this cream on your face will only waste your supply. In some cases, excess use can cause redness, irritation, or dryness. Users only need a pea-sized to cover their entire face. It means more value for your buck!

Treats Skin Issues

This product is great even for individuals who aren’t concerned with anti-aging treatments. It treats a whole host of skin issues. Individuals who struggle with skincare problems will be relieved to find that retinol can be a lifesaver! This product helps with warts and psoriasis.

For example, in psoriasis, retinol will slow down cell growth. This helps to reduce the appearance and painful effects of this condition. As for warts, retinol kills the cell growth of warts and prevents their growth.

What is Retinol?

Retinol is a form of vitamin A, a fat-soluble vitamin-rich with powerful antioxidant properties. Consuming foods high in vitamin A helps the body fight inflammation, supports the immune system, improves eye health, and supports skin health and cell growth.

As you can see, you get a lot of benefits out of this one ingredient – all of which are very helpful in caring for your skin and overall health! Retinol creams specifically work in much the same way externally as vitamin A does internally, providing cells a fresh canvas to heal and flourish. This is how the ingredient is able to help fight aging and keep your skin glowing, healthy, and young-looking for many years!

How To Use A Retinoid Product

To get your skin used to a retinoid product, you want to use this cream every other day. Give your skin time to adjust to products that contain higher concentrations of retinol. If your skin responds well to this ingredient, you may use it once a day. Preferably, you want to do this in the evenings before going to bed.

You may use retinoid products under your eyes. However, do not use this product on your eyelids as this is a sensitive area. If your skin responds negatively to this product and becomes irritated, stop use immediately or reduce the frequency of use. For best results, pair this product with other skincare products that contain antioxidants and skin-repairing ingredients.

What Reviews Are Saying

Browsing through retinol cream reviews is a great way to learn more about this ingredient and how it can benefit your skin. Everyone has their tips and tricks to having young, radiant-looking skin. If using retinol is not on your list, it should be!

This ingredient is a must-try and highly recommended by experts on their retinol cream reviews. Not only this, but retinol has reams of scientific support behind it. It’s a substance that offers several benefits to the skin. There’s a reason that dermatologists highly recommend this product.

Dermatologists will always tell you that the number 1 way to take care of your skin is by using retinoids (after SPF). This is a substance that derives from vitamin A that boosts collagen production, consequently reducing wrinkles and fine lines. Retinoids also speed up cell turnover, which evens out skin discoloration while brightening skin tone.

You’ll also notice that most reviews comment on how retinol unclogs pores, makes them look smaller, and reduces acne. Women who use retinoids have healthy skin, and it shows! They have a fresh face that looks dewy and like they just had a facial.

Whether you are 30, 40, 50, 60, 70, or 80, you can start to see the difference in your skin in just a few weeks. Reveal your beautiful skin that lies beneath the wrinkles, fine lines, age spots, and sun damage.

References for this information:
1 Yaar M, Gilchrest BA. Skin Aging: Postulated mechanisms and consequent changes in the structure and function. Clin Ger med. 2001;17:617-30.
2 Edgar, Julie. Retinoids for Anti-Aging Skin: What prescription or nonprescription retinoids can do and what to know before you use them. WebMD. Retrieved: https://www.webmd.com/beauty/features/retinoids-for-aging-skin#1

Avatar for Alina Jumabhoy
About Alina Jumabhoy

With almost 10 years of experience writing for the skincare industry, Alina brings her unique perspective into all of the in-depth reviews and articles she writes.