Confused about what form of Vitamin A is right for your skin? Likely the correct active ingredient you’ve been looking for is hidden amongst plenty of other derivatives that claim to be the best, although they’re not necessarily stable or will do all the things that they promise. We’ve done the research and broken it down for you, so you can rest assured you know what you’re putting on your skin. Retinyl Palmitate has no supporting evidence for anti-aging benefits, are in fact a Vitamin A ester derivative and are considered one of the least effective topical retinoids. Retinaldehyde is more active than retinol but very difficult to formulate and is very unstable. Retinoic Acid has a lot of evidence for anti-aging benefits and is an active form of Vitamin A in the body. It is prescription only however, and can cause severe irritation and dryness. Retinol is the purest form of Vitamin A, the biologically available precursor to retinoic acid, and has scientific evidence to support anti-aging benefits. No skincare regime should be without retinol, one of the most effective ingredients for improving the signs of ageing. As a pure form of Vitamin A, retinol helps to reduce fine lines and wrinkles, acne, sun damage and age spots. Retinol also induces the skin’s natural production of hyaluronic acid; an essential component of the dermal matrix (along with collagen and elastin) helping plump and soften the appearance of fine lines and wrinkles on the skin’s surface. Working to increase your skin’s cell turnover, retinol will helping the skin’s surface to appear smoother and more refined.
