In any pharmacy or online store you’ll see many products labeled as anti aging or anti wrinkle with a very wide difference in their costs. They can vary from around $10 to more than $100. Do they work and are the more expensive products worth their high price tag?
In this article we’ll look at the ingredients in these creams and see which ones are effective and which are a waste of money. if you are going to buy a cream to reduce wrinkles and lines than you should choose one that contains ingredients that have been shown in properly conducted, independent clinical trials to be effective. Included in this list is retinol, copper peptides and CoEnzyme Q10.
Retinol is the most popular of these ingredients with copper peptides and CoEnzyme Q10 often included in products with retinol to boost its effectiveness. Retinol is a Vitamin A derivative that works to reduce lines and wrinkles because it is small enough to penetrate the epidermis and reach down to the lower levels of the skin. Once it has penetrated to this level it can repair both the collagen, which provides support, and elastin, which keeps the skin elastic. These are both damaged as we age or from exposure to environmental factors such as UV light from the sun or smoking and this causes the skin to sag and wrinkle.
Copper peptides are also small molecules which perform a healing function and CoEnzyme Q10 is a good radical scavenger so helps prevents further damage.
Over the counter retinol products have concentrations of retinol from 0.3% to 1% or more but you should start with a lower concentration at first. It takes some time for your skin to become accustomed to the products and you may experience some redness and tingling at first, even with the lower concentrations. Once you have used a low concentration products for a while and your skin does not react then you can progress to a higher concentration if you are not getting the results you are looking for. You should also always use a good sunscreen when using a retinol product as your skin will be more sensitive to the UV light from the sun.
One thing you should be aware of if you are using a retinol product for the first time is that your wrinkles will not disappear immediately but it may take two or three months before you see any visible improvement, It takes time to repair the damage that has been done over the years! Also, if you stop using retinol your skin will slowly return to its pre-treatment condition and you lines will come back.
In conclusion we can say that anti wrinkle retinol products are effective as long as you choose one with the ingredients highlighted here. With patience you will see a reduction of your lines and wrinkles and a more youthful looking skin.