Retinol All Year-Around, Even in Summer? You bet.
Retinol All Year-Around, Even in Summer? You bet.
When you’re a star, rumor mills love you. And Retinol, the miracle ingredient dermatologists and skincare junkies adore, is oscar-worthy. Known to work wonders for everything-skin, it’s puzzling why so many retinol myths are still out there. But herein are truths to put one or two of them to rest.
For starters: Retinol, derived from Vitamin A, stakes its reputation on being a cell-communicating ingredient, essentially directing cells to be on their best behavior, develop normally and leave imperfect cells out of it – all the way down to the lower layers of the skin.
Closer to the surface, retinol works by telling older cells to die away which allows newer, healthier cells to come forward for an amped-up turnover rate. All good – no, great – happenings.
Though you’ve likely heard:
- You cannot use a retinol product during the day because it increases the risk of sunburn. It’s not true. What is true is that retinol can diminish the skin’s protective function but using proper sun protection, like SILC SHEER 2.0 or EVERYDAY FACIAL FLUID takes care of that on contact. And that is backed by studies that have shown retinoids do not lower the MED — or minimal erythemal dose — of human skin, which is the amount of UV light you can tolerate before the skin burns.
- You should avoid retinol products in the summer. It’s not true either. And, in fact, it may be good to do so. Summer humidity pumps a natural moisturization into the skin and that means this extra dose of hydration, reduces dryness and flaking often associated with retinol use.
- All ‘R’ ingredients (Retinol and Retinoic Acid) do pretty much the same thing. They do sort of, but with retinol it may take longer to see results. It’s retinoic acid that’s the magical one, because it binds directly to the retinoid receptors of the skin cells and doesn’t need to be converted at the cellular level to start its work. And it does it all without irritation too.
That’s big reason we’re so taken with Hydroxypinacolone-Retinoate (HPR), a trans retinoic acid ester and why we use it in CELL RENEWAL, DUAL MATRIX and RETINOL RAPID TX.
So there you have it. It's completely safe to continue using your vitamin A’s throughout the summer, as long as you’re using them with super healthy doses of sunscreen.
