Enhancing Retin A Cream with Skin-Strengthening Ingredients

It's a great idea to customize your Retin A cream to reduce potential irritation while maintaining its anti-aging benefits. Retin A (Tretinoin) is a highly effective ingredient for treating acne and reducing wrinkles by stimulating skin cell turnover and collagen production. However, it can cause sensitivity, redness, and peeling.

To counteract these side effects and strengthen your skin barrier, incorporating certain ingredients is beneficial. Based on the discussion, here is a recommended approach:

Recommended Ingredients

• Vitamin E (Tocopheryl Acetate): Helps nourish and strengthen the skin.
• Bisabolol: Known for its soothing and anti-irritant properties, helping to calm skin sensitivity.
• Vitamin B3 (Niacinamide): Supports the skin barrier function, reduces redness, and offers various anti-aging benefits.
• Vitamin B5 (Panthenol): Acts as a humectant, attracting and retaining moisture, which helps improve skin hydration and elasticity.
• Glycine Soja Protein (Tryptic-Soy™): Can help improve skin's resilience.

Note: Alpha Lipoic Acid (ALA) is generally not recommended to be mixed with Retin A as it can increase skin sensitivity and irritation.

Suggested Formulation (for 100g)

This formulation aims to dilute a higher concentration of Retin A while adding beneficial ingredients. Using Retin A 0.10% allows you to achieve a lower effective concentration (like 0.025%) in the final mixture, which is often sufficient for anti-wrinkle effects with fewer side effects.

• Retin A 0.10% cream: 25g
• Vitamin E Acetate: 2g
• Bisabolol: 1g
• Vitamin B3 (Niacinamide): 4g
• Vitamin B5 (Panthenol): 5g
• Glycine Soja Protein (Tryptic-Soy™): 5g
• Light Cream Maker™: 0.8g
• Purified Water: 57.2g

Mixing Instructions

1. Dispense the Retin A cream into a container suitable for mixing.
2. Add Vitamin E Acetate, Bisabolol, Vitamin B3, Vitamin B5, and Glycine Soja Protein.
3. Add the purified water and stir gently until the ingredients are dispersed. The mixture may become liquid and have a light yellow color from the Retin A cream and potentially the Vitamin E.
4. Add the Light Cream Maker™ and stir continuously for about 5 minutes until the cream maker forms a cream texture.

Packaging and Storage

It is crucial to store the final cream in packaging that protects it from light and air to maintain the stability and effectiveness of Retin A and other active ingredients. Opaque pump bottles or airless bottles are recommended. Store the finished product in the refrigerator.

By following this approach, you can create a customized Retin A cream that is more gentle on the skin while still providing significant anti-aging benefits.