{"product_id":"retinol-night-cream","title":"Retinol Night Cream","description":"\u003cp class=\"q-lead\"\u003eA 50 g night cream with retinol, ProXylane and hyaluronic acid, for facial skin\nonly. It does nothing for hair, and it is worth saying that first, because it sits in a hair loss\nrange for a plainer reason. Men who use topical minoxidil end up with a face routine whether they\nwanted one or not, and once you own a routine, retinol is one of the few cosmetic actives with a\nreal body of trial evidence behind it. It is also the one most likely to make an already dry hairline\nworse, so the instructions below matter more than usual.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003ch3\u003eWhat is in it\u003c\/h3\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eRetinol.\u003c\/strong\u003e A vitamin A derivative, and the cosmetic relative of prescription\ntretinoin. Skin converts it in two steps, retinol to retinaldehyde to retinoic acid, and it loses\npotency at each step, which is why a retinol cream is slower and gentler than a prescription\nretinoid doing the same job. The evidence behind it is genuinely good by cosmetic standards.\nRandomised, vehicle-controlled trials on photoaged facial skin report improvements in roughness,\nfine lines and uneven pigmentation over courses of twelve weeks and longer, and that body of work\ncovers facial skin quality and nothing else. European cosmetic rules set a maximum retinol\nconcentration for leave-on face products, and this cream is formulated to stay inside that limit.\nWe are not quoting a percentage here, because a figure on its own tells you very little. The\nfrequency you can actually keep up matters more, and a bigger number mostly buys more irritation.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eProXylane.\u003c\/strong\u003e The trade name for hydroxypropyl tetrahydropyrantriol, a synthetic\nmolecule built from xylose, a sugar taken from beech wood. In laboratory work it is reported to\nraise the production of glycosaminoglycans, the water-holding molecules in the dermis, and that is\nthe whole basis of the claims made for it. The human evidence is thin and almost all of it comes\nfrom the company that developed and patented the ingredient. Treat it as a supporting ingredient\nwith a plausible mechanism rather than as a second active. It is nowhere near retinol's record.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eHyaluronic acid.\u003c\/strong\u003e A humectant that holds many times its own weight in water and\nsits mainly in the upper layers of the skin. A double-blind trial in older adults with dry skin\nfound that it raised measured skin hydration against a vehicle, while none of the groups showed any\nchange in water loss through the barrier. Its job in this formula is comfort, and it is there to\noffset the dryness retinol causes in the first month.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003ch3\u003eWhy it belongs here\u003c\/h3\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThe scalp and the face are one piece of skin and the hairline is the join, which is why this\nrange carries face products at all. Topical minoxidil is carried in alcohol with propylene glycol,\nand the \u003ca href=\"\/products\/minoxidil-signature-spray\"\u003eMinoxidil Signature Spray\u003c\/a\u003e adds tretinoin\non top of that. This cream is for the man whose skin has already settled down on treatment and who\nwants to work on texture and lines at night, on the face, away from the treated area.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eIt is the wrong product for the first months of a minoxidil course, and the wrong product for\nanyone whose hairline is currently red, flaky or sore. If that is where you are, the\n\u003ca href=\"\/products\/face-cleanser\"\u003eFace Cleanser\u003c\/a\u003e and the\n\u003ca href=\"\/products\/ceramide-barrier-cream\"\u003eCeramide Barrier Cream\u003c\/a\u003e are the pair that fixes it,\nand this jar can wait a few months. If you already use the Signature Spray, you have a retinoid on\nthat skin, and adding a second one raises the irritation without buying you more benefit. On a normal night this follows\nthe cleanser and goes under the \u003ca href=\"\/products\/face-hydration-cream\"\u003eFace Hydration Cream\u003c\/a\u003e or\nthe Ceramide Barrier Cream.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003ch3\u003eHow to use it\u003c\/h3\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eUse a pea-sized amount at night only, twice a week to start with, building up over a\nmonth to a maximum of once a night.\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003col\u003e\n  \u003cli\u003eWash with the \u003ca href=\"\/products\/face-cleanser\"\u003eFace Cleanser\u003c\/a\u003e, then pat dry and wait five\n    minutes. Retinol goes on completely dry skin, because damp skin drives more of it in and\n    irritation is the usual result.\u003c\/li\u003e\n  \u003cli\u003eTake a pea-sized amount, which is enough for the whole face. Use clean, dry fingers, since\n    this is a jar and wet fingers shorten its life.\u003c\/li\u003e\n  \u003cli\u003eWarm it between your fingertips and press it over the cheeks, forehead, chin and jaw. Keep it\n    off the eyelids, the lips, and the creases at the corners of the nose and mouth, which are where\n    people get sore first.\u003c\/li\u003e\n  \u003cli\u003eStop about a centimetre short of the hairline if you apply minoxidil there. That strip is\n    already taking a daily dose of alcohol and propylene glycol and does not need a retinoid as\n    well.\u003c\/li\u003e\n  \u003cli\u003eLeave it on. Wait two or three minutes, then apply your moisturiser on top if your skin feels\n    tight. If you are sensitive, put the moisturiser on first and the retinol over it, which slows\n    absorption and takes the edge off the first fortnight.\u003c\/li\u003e\n  \u003cli\u003eBuild up in stages. Twice a week for two weeks, then every other night for two weeks, then\n    nightly if your skin is comfortable. A great many people do best at three or four nights a week\n    and stay there.\u003c\/li\u003e\n  \u003cli\u003eWear sunscreen the following morning, every morning, all year.\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003c\/ol\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eThe common mistake is stacking actives on one night.\u003c\/strong\u003e Keep this away from\nexfoliating acids, vitamin C, a prescription retinoid, and your evening minoxidil dose. If you use\nthe \u003ca href=\"\/products\/dermaroller-0-5mm\"\u003eDermaroller 0.5 mm\u003c\/a\u003e, skip the cream entirely on rolling\nnight and leave at least twenty four hours for the skin to close before it goes back on. Doubling\nthe frequency to catch up after a missed week is the other reliable way to end up abandoning it.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003ch3\u003eWhat to expect\u003c\/h3\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThe first two to four weeks are the unpleasant part. Dryness, tightness, some fine flaking and\nmild redness are normal while skin adjusts to a retinoid. They are worst around the nose and mouth,\nand they are the reason most people give up. Going slowly is what gets you through it, and dropping\nback to every third night for a week is the sensible response when your skin is complaining.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eSmoother texture and a more even surface show up somewhere around eight to twelve weeks. Changes\nin fine lines and tone take three to six months and are modest when they come. The effect is\nmaintenance, so it holds for as long as you keep using it and fades over months once you stop.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eNothing here will change your hair. If your hairline looks better in six months, the credit\nbelongs to whatever regrowth treatment you are using, and it is worth being clear about that.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003ch3\u003eWarnings\u003c\/h3\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eFor external use only. Avoid the eye area and rinse with cool water if it gets in. Patch test on\nthe inner forearm and leave it twenty four hours before the first full application. Do not use it on\nthe scalp, on broken, inflamed or infected skin, or on skin that is sunburnt or freshly rolled.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eRetinoids make skin more sensitive to sunlight, so this is a night product and daily sunscreen\ngoes with it. Do not use it alongside a prescription retinoid such as tretinoin, adapalene or oral\nisotretinoin, and speak to your prescriber before combining it with anything else medicated on the\nface. Stop using it if redness, stinging or peeling persists beyond the first month or gets worse\nrather than better.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eTopical vitamin A derivatives are routinely avoided in pregnancy, so this cream should not be\nused by anyone who is pregnant, planning a pregnancy or breastfeeding. European rules also require a\nvitamin A statement on the pack, because retinol from cosmetics adds to what you already take in\nfrom food and supplements. Keep it out of reach of children.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThis is a cosmetic product. It has no medicinal licence anywhere, and it does not treat, cure or\nprevent hair loss.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003eStore below 25 degrees Celsius with the lid closed and out of direct sunlight. Retinol\ndegrades in light and air, so keep the jar shut and off the windowsill.\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Quintéa","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":57981150036350,"sku":"QN-RETINOLNIGHTCREAM","price":83.99,"currency_code":"RON","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/1019\/9849\/4078\/files\/retinol-night-cream.png?v=1790587748","url":"https:\/\/quintea.eu\/products\/retinol-night-cream","provider":"Quintéa","version":"1.0","type":"link"}