Vitamin A - Our Favourite Skincare Ingredient

This wonder ingredient is a firm favourite in salon because of it's amazing anti-ageing properties, and funnily enough this is what makes it a client favourite too.

But why do we love it so much?

Well, Vitamin A improves the signs of photo-ageing and is able to stimulate Collagen turnover which means it pushes fresh healthy skin cells to the surface leaving you with a youthful-looking complexion and as an added bonus it also helps unclog blocked pores.

Enhanced Collagen production targets fine lines and wrinkles and helps block the formation of pigment meaning you have a much more even-toned complexion.

The Science Bit!

There are many forms of Vitamin A and it's useful to understand the conversion process the Vitamin A molecules go through so that it can used on the skin.

The only form of Vitamin A that makes any direct changes to the skin is RETINOIC ACID which acts on the cellular DNA. All forms of Vitamin A go through a process that transforms them to Retinoic Acid.

The natural pathway for this conversion process is:

Retinyl Palmitate to Retinol, then

Retinol to Retinal and finally

Retinal to Retinoic Acid.

Have you used a Vitamin A or Retinol products before and it's irritated your skin?

If so, this is called the Retinoid Effect which basically means your skin has been exposed to high levels of Vitamin A without becoming acclimatised to the product which leads to dryness, flakiness, redness, inflammation, puffiness and sometimes, itchy red spots.

The irritation happens because the skin cells start to renew themselves too quickly which leads to an impaired skin barrier. The key to avoiding this is to slowly and gently introduce your skin to this type of product. In salon we will always start you off on a low percentage Vitamin A serum/cream which you slowly introduce into your skincare routine to avoid these 'reactions'.

What do we recommend?

In order to understand whether a Vitamin A product is right for you, we would always advise to first have a Consultation so we can talk about what issues you have with your skin and them work out what the best products would be to help you address these.