Qwerty asks… Is OTC retinol as good as prescription? Are they effective in the same way RX retinol is? What OTC retinol has the most effective % of retinol in the ingredients list?
The Right Brains responds:
This is a great question because “retinol” is easily confused with “retinoic acid,” a similar chemical that goes by a couple of different names. They both belong to a family of chemicals known as retinoids. Here’s the scoop on how to keep them straight.
Not all retinoids are the same
Retinoic acid (also known as Retin-A, tretinoin and sometimes by brand names like Accutane) is a prescription drug used to treat acne. While it is primarily known for its anti-acne properties, dermatologists noticed that it can also even out complexion and reduce fine lines and wrinkles. This makes it one of the most valuable anti-aging ingredients. However, retinoic acid is not available in any cosmetic. It can only be purchased with a prescription from your doctor.
Retinol is NOT a prescription drug. It is the alcohol form of retinoic acid. That means it’s chemically related, and does have some similar skin refining properties, however it is not nearly as effective as the acid.
Another problem with retinol is that it is not very stable and is easily oxidized. That means that exposure to oxygen, light, or even other ingredients in the same formula can render this ingredient even less effective.
How much retinol should I look for in cosmetic products?
You asked which over-the-counter product has the most retinol. Actually a better question to ask is which cosmetic product has done the best job of stabilizing retinol in their formula. In the last few years new technologies have been developed to allow formulators to stabilize retinol by encapsulating it with inert materials. If a product uses this kind of technology their product will be more effective: a product with 2% retinol that is not encapsulated may be less effective than a product with 0.5% retinol that is encapsulated.
The Beauty Brains bottom line
Do your homework before spending a lot of money on a retinol containing face cream. Look for some reassurance that the product uses encapsulating technology to protect its precious ingredient. If you have any specific products you’d like us to look at just leave a comment below.
References:
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmedhealth/PMH0000683/
http://m.vogue.com/vogue-daily/article/the-return-to-retinol/
Image credit: http://4.bp.blogspot.com/
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How about neutrogena rapid wrinkle repair eye cream? What ingredients are supposed to be brightening my dark circled?
FutureDerm Time-Release Retinol 0.5 is microencapsulated:
http://shop.futurederm.com
I would love to know your opinion on the Sunday Riley products, particularly Good Genes or Stimulant II/III.
First off let me say thank you for the excellent and very informative blog. When I originally asked the question I guess I thought retinol was Retinoic acid therefore I thought there were forms of Retinoic acid that were OTC. It is so helpful to understand the difference in the two. Can Retinoic acid at any level be purchased OTC in any product that is stable and effective or is this only available through a prescription?
I’m with Nicki, can you look into the futurederm retinol?
Based on what we’ve seen Futurederm’s retinol is encapsulated so it should work as well as can be expected. Nicki if you read this feel free to add any technical details that you care to share about your formula.
That’s what I was thinking, thank you for following up with me on that, retinol stability can be so hard to figure out, and I wouldn’t have even known about that if you didn’t write about it. So glad you did!
Re futurederm (Nicki) – so self promotion is allowed? Boy, do I have some deals for you…
Hi there,
Sorry if this comes across as self-promotion! Definitely don’t want to clutter one of my favorite beauty sites with self-promotion.
But since thebeautybrains said I could add details:
1.) Yes, the retinol is time-release and microencapsulated. Works in the skin for up to 8 hours.
2.) The formula is a lightweight gel, so it can be used alone (for oily skin) or in conjunction with your favorite moisturizer (for dry skin). Combination types often find they can apply it alone to the T-zone and chin, but with moisturizer on the cheeks.
3.) It’s a lot like the difference between Retin-A Micro and Retin-A: a lightweight, microencapsulated gel formula.
Please let me know if you need more details! It’s available at shop.futurederm.com and other fine retailers.
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