If you are looking for a skin care product, it is usually advised that you go for one that contains retinol as one of the ingredients. It is a well-known fact that retinol is a leading component in the world of skin care and beauty products. But, what exactly is it and how does it work?

Retinol is one of the forms of vitamin A. It is naturally found in foods such as eggs, liver and dairy products such as butter. This explains why using an egg mask on your face produces a glowing skin. The Food and Drug Administration recognizes it as a drug safe enough to be sold over the counter in form of skin creams.

How Does It Work?

When you buy a skin whitening cream that contains retinol and apply it on your skin, it converts to retinoic acid. This is the more potent form of the vitamin A. Since it is an antioxidant, the retinoic acid neutralizes any free radicals that may exist on your skin. In simple terms, it heals your skin and gets rid of any signs of aging such as age spots.

Further, the retinoic acid penetrates your skin and stimulates the production of new skin cells. When new skin cells are produced rapidly, it means that you can easily get rid of the dry and old skin cells to expose the younger and beautiful skin underneath.

Retinoic acid also stimulates collagen production. As you grown older, your skin’s production of collagen slows down. This explains why you may have to deal with wrinkles and loose skin. Increased production of collagen means that your skin becomes firmer and more elastic, allowing you to say a much anticipated goodbye to your wrinkles.

You may be wondering why you should go through the trouble of buying a skin whitening cream that contains this form of vitamin A. If the retinol later converts to retinoic acid, why not buy the retinoic acid in the first place; will it not save time? The truth is that there are certain products that contain retinoic acid, but these have to be gotten on prescription. This is because retinoic acid is quite strong and your dermatologist needs to advise you first.

Sufferers of acne can also benefit from retinol as it opens clogged skin pores which are responsible for acne. The way it does this is by penetrating the sebaceous glands and moderating sebum production. Excess sebum production leads to clogged pores which result to acne.

When used together with skin products that contain hydroquinone, retinol will lead to a firmer, younger and lighter skin; definitely something that may people dream of. However, it is advisable that you seek your dermatologist’s opinion first before using combination products.

If you have always aspired to have a skin that reflects just how beautiful you are on the inside, you need not fret. All you need to do is look for that special skin care product that is formulated with you in mind.