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Retinoids & Skin Lightening Part 6: Getting The Most Out Of Buffering & Mixing

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Friday, January 7, 2011

Retinoids & Skin Lightening Part 6: Getting The Most Out Of Buffering & Mixing

Photo Credit: DailyMail
In part 4 of my Retinoids & Skin Lightening series, I dedicated the segment to mixing and buffering retinoids. Since so many people cannot tolerate retinoid application straight on (I am referring to rx retinoids) buffering a retinoid with a skin lightener is an excellent way to get both exfoliation and melanin suppression at the same time.

I have been using rx retinoids for over 5 years now! Retin-A gel is my favorite and seems to do the job at clearing up my pores and keeping my skin healthy. But every time around this year, my skin becomes too dry for me to even think of using Retin-A gel alone on my skin at night. I need to buffer or mix it with some type of emollient product. This year, I am using Lantomi’s Skin Lightening Cream.

The point of this post is that I’ve learned in the last couple of years that mixing and buffering retinoids do slightly decrease the efficacy of the retinoid itself. When you dilute the retinoid, it’s obviously not going to be as potent as an undiluted application. 

Knowing this, I used to apply my skin lightening product first, waited for a small duration of time and then applied my retinoid on top. I’ve learned that there are 2 little issues with this:

1)      1) Not all products work well together. Sometimes applying gel-type products (especially Retin-A gel) can be problematic and hard to spread on top of certain emollient creams

2)      2) Applying the retinoid AFTER the skin lightener really doesn’t give the retinoid a chance to penetrate the epidermis.

So what I’ve been doing is applying my Retin-A gel first on clean, bare skin. This allows the retinoic acid a greater chance to enter the skin.  For those who use Retin-A gel, you know how quickly it absorbs within the skin so I only give it a few minutes. Applying the retinoid undiluted allows you to reap the many amazing benefits of retinoid use far more than applying it after a skin lightener or serum.

I then follow up with my Lantomi Skin Lightening Cream and have no problems of balling up etc.

Other parts to Retinoids & Skin Lightening:

Part 1
Part 2: Common Questions
Part 3: Purging Stage
Part 4: Mixing & Buffering A Retinoid
Part 5: The Skin Lightening Aspect

Source:
http://www.911skin.com/anti-aging-important-skin-care-products.html

Labels: ,

posted by Mileena at 4:43 PM

9 Comments:

Anonymous Anonymous said...

Happy New Year!

Excellent blog, love all the information. I have a couple of questions:

1. Is it necessary to use Retin A, while skin lightening. I mean are the results better then when it's not used?

2. Have you ever used BLISS Peeling Groovy Serum? I recently received a sample of it and I started using it at night before applying P&J. I noticed that it clears my face of pimples and scars too. (FYI, today was my first day using P&J)

Thanks!
Hana

3.

January 7, 2011 at 5:17 PM  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

Forgot to post the last question...lol!

3. Does sunblock make your skin lighter? I've been reading reviews about sunblock usage online and many people commented (even I felt that it did to some extent) that it did lighten their complexion.

Thanks!
Hana

January 7, 2011 at 5:21 PM  
Blogger Mileena said...

Hi Hana.

Thanks for the compliment on the blog. I very much appreciate it :)

To answer your questions..

1) No. Retinoids are by no means a necessity when skin lightening. They are just great for the skin (preventing wrinkles, helping with sun damage, and of course clearing up acne). They exfoliate very well.

I made a series about them because a lot of people use them at night to treat their acne or to help with skin aging issues. Skin lighteners are proven to work well with ANY type of effective exfoliant. These posts are mainly for people who use retinoids and want to create a skin lightening 'synergy' (exfoliant + lightener = deeper penetration of lightener). By no means do I expect everyone to use it.

2) I have not heard of the BLISS Peeling Groovy Serum. But that is awesome it cleared up your acne. I gotta look into it. Thanks for letting me know! ;)

3) If a lot of what you are trying to lighten is a tan or fairly new sun damage - yes sunscreen can lighten the skin. But it's not the sunscreen itself lightening it's the fact that you are protecting your skin from further darkening and allowing your skin to repair itself. Sunscreen also protects (to a degree) from free radical damage (which also can trigger pigmentation issues).

Good luck with the Paul & Joe btw!
<3

January 7, 2011 at 6:47 PM  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

Thanks Mileena, your're simply awesome! :) Taking time out of your busy schedule to reply to each and every question. Will look forward to what you have to say about the Bliss product. All the best with your future endeavors.

January 7, 2011 at 7:34 PM  
Blogger Mileena said...

Thank you! =D

January 8, 2011 at 6:59 AM  
Blogger wickedkewl said...

hey =]
so i got generic retin a from alldaychemist yesterday. i read somewhere that i should wait 20 minutes after washing my face to apply the gel, which i get. and i was wondering how long should i wait to apply PnJ on my face after the retinoid?
thank you ^__^

January 19, 2011 at 12:17 PM  
Blogger Mileena said...

Awesome! Though I don't personally like any other retinoid unless it's the real thing - the prescription kind since it's the most safe ingredient wise for acne prone skin. Hopefully the ADC versions works out great.

You only need about 5 mins before applying anything on top. Especially if the retinoid is alcohol based.

January 19, 2011 at 3:31 PM  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

Do I have to leave the Retin A Gel on overnight or can I wash it off after a couple of hours? I'm worried about too much of it getting absorbed into my bloodstream.

February 11, 2011 at 9:50 PM  
Blogger Mileena said...

This is actually an issue that I've learned is not to be worried about. Considering the very little amount of tretinoin that is being applied to the skin, it won't cause any damage. There hasn't been any documented cases of harm with topical usage of retinoids.

Women who are nursing or pregnant however should not use it.

But if you are that concerned, then you can leave it on for a few hours and rinse off but it won't have that strong of an effect. There is a term for this - short contact therapy. Google it and you'll find tons of information. The only studies I've read regarding the effectiveness of this method is with synthetic rx retinoids like Tazorac gel.

<333

February 12, 2011 at 12:09 PM  

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