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Retinaldehyde vs Retinol for acne and wrinkles: What do we know?

What is Retinaldehyde?

Retinaldehyde is a vitamin A stabilised formula, just like other members of the retinoid family, retinoic acid and retinol which is the most popular nowadays.

Retinaldehyde is believed to be much easier to use and is non-sensitive to sun if compared to retinol. Regardless of that, I’d definitely recommend to use sunscreen in both cases.

In addition, you might want to decrease use of retinoic acid to retinaldehyde if you have problems with thyroid. Retin-A can interfere with the uptake of vitamin A to the brain, endocrine glands, liver and kidneys.

I have used 2 products to fight acne (Avene Diacnel and Avene Triacneal). The first one has been discontinued because it had retinol 0,1% mixed with 6% of glycolic acid. The last one with the changed formula contains retinaldehyde.

Both formulas are great for acne, however, retinol has been reported as a severe tool that is dangerous for sensitive and dry skin types.

I regret a lot that Avene decided to discontinue the retinol formula, because it worked wonders to my skin especially during the winter season. So, dear child, if you have bad acne, you might want to consult your doctor about trying retinol and glycolic acid formula. This is what I could find with that ingredient contents:

If you have mild acne and you just want to get rid of it without checking up with your doctor, you can safely use the TriAcnéal. The waiting period might take from 3 to 14 days (in my case).

Beneficial Ingredients in TriAcnéal

It also contains glycolic acid which can be helpful as an anti-aging tool. Works great with the Avéne Thermale Face Wash.

What else you need to know about Retinol

Most of the times people think retinol can only be used to fight fine lines and wrinkles, but retinol is also amazing at making pores shrink. It smoothes out skin texture by boosting collagen production.

What age should I use retinol at?

Retinol is normally recommended for people in their 30’s and older. This is because our cell turnover begins to get lazy after a certain age. As you age, you normally get slower cell turnover, which means your skin is producing new skin cells and pushing them to the surface at slower rate.

Retinol boosts the skin’s cell turnover process, which is why anyone reaching their 30s should take it into consideration.

Why can Retinol be irritating to your skin

Retinol can also cause redness, tightness, dryness and flakiness depending on the percentage of the ingredient used.

For retinol newbies, it is better to get a retinol product with a low concentration of retinol in it like 0,1+%. Test it out by applying it only one time per week at night for the next 14 days and check how your skin reacts to it.

In time, your skin will start tolerating higher percentage with much frequent use of retinol. Just be gentle to your skin and do not overdo it.

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