The truth about retinol

Thought you were using top performing (& top dollar) anti-aging products, maybe it’s time to think again….

A commonly used ingredient in skincare products, specifically anti-aging ones is retinol. Retinol is a vitamin A derivative and is “naturally” derived but yet what you thought was helping prevent fine lines and wrinkles, may actually be harming your health. This is why. 

When retinol is used on the skin it converts to retinoic acid. Studies show that retinoic acid can have harmful side effects including being a skin irritant and making the skin sensitive to the sun’s damaging rays. Retinol is actually on Health Canada’s “hot list” as an ingredient that should be restricted in cosmetic products & is not pregnancy or nursing friendly (1). Yet, there is currently no mandatory testing where companies must validate the ingredients used and compare it to Health Canada’s Hot List- therefore, companies get away with deceiving people.

Additionally, research has linked retinol developmental and reproductive complications such as birth defects, developmental delay in children, infertility and abnormal cell mutations (4). Now I get it-we all want firm, bright skin. But if we could find products that are safe and work then we have nothing to worry about. 

After doing some research, I discovered Bakuchiol. Bakuchiol is a plant-derived compound from the Psoralea corylifolia that functionally performs the same as retinol (2). Research shows that this phytochemical demonstrates anti-aging effects without short-term and long-term negative health consequences (3). 

Bakuchiol vs. Retinol

Bakuchiol can be found in a variety of products nowadays but that does not mean they are all safe. It is important to look at all the ingredients and the testing the company does to ensure the product is safe. With that being said, here are some products that I would recommend: 

1. Beautycounter’s Countertime Collection: https://www.beautycounter.com/en-ca/maiyaahluwalia?goto=/products/skin-care&filters=shop-by-countertime
2. Biossance Squalane Phyto-Retinol Serum: https://biossance.com/products/squalane-phyto-retinol-serum
3. {save}: https://saveskincare.com/products/rejuvenating-moisturizer

Looking to learn more about clean beauty, why it matters and to find products that work for you, send me an email: [email protected]. 

Sources:

1. https://www.canada.ca/en/health-canada/services/consumer-product-safety/cosmetics/cosmetic-ingredient-hotlist-prohibited-restricted-ingredients/hotlist.html#t1r
2. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/24471735
3. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/29947134
4. https://www.ewg.org/skindeep/ingredients/706889-retinol_(vitamin_a)/