Review: Futurederm’s Time Release Retinol 0.5%

I love Futurederm’s approach to skin care. They create skin care based on effective ingredients proven scientifically to make a different to your skin. It sounds like a no brainer, but often skin care brands want to use new ingredients which sound like they are going to work. Skin care should not only help you deal with your complexion issues, it should help prevent problems – no matter how young you are. Retinol is one of those ‘wonder’ ingredients that actually works. It’s used both for mild acne control and skin repair (be it skin texture issues or fine lines and wrinkles). The only problem is, that creams with a higher retinol percentage can irritate your skin quite a bit, so many creams you buy off the shelf don’t contain enough of the stuff to be really effective (companies don’t want their customers to experience any irritation whilst using their products). When I used to visit my dermatologist regularly, she used to give me prescriptions for retinol, but I could never use them for a long period of time as they made my skin super irritated, dry and in the beginning, break out even more (I used to visit the dermatologist for my acne, luckily it was always under control thanks to my dermatologist). Unfortunately, very often when using these prescription retinols (or different forms of vitamin A), the skin irritation I was experiencing wouldn’t subside and I would have to stop using them after a few weeks. These types of irritation are common but should pass relatively quickly after your skin becomes familiar and accustomed to retinol.

So what makes this particular retinol amazing? It’s micro-encapsulated suspended in a gel formula (I’ve never come across another another product containing retinol/vitamin A, suspended in a gel formula) which sinks into your skin almost instantaneously. Most of the prescription forms of retinol that I’ve tried are suspended in a quite thick cream base (think sorbolene cream). This is because most retinols can also dry the skin and their light exfoliating action can cause flakiness in the beginning. The Futurederm retinol gel doesn’t irritate your skin like regular retinol creams do, because the gel doesn’t sit on top of your skin. The retinol slowly releases itself in the deeper levels of the epidermis for up to 8 hours after application because it is micro-encapsulated, lessening the likelihood of irritation. The capsule containing the retinol inside works by dissolving slowly in your skin, releasing the retinol steadily and slowly so that it is effective for longer. Micro-encapsulating retinol protects the retinol from light, air and air degradation. Not only that, Nicki the creater of the product also added aloe vera and witch hazel into the formula to ease irritation even more. While I still introduced the Time Release Retinol into my skin care routine gradually, I didn’t experience any irritation. That to me is amazing!

So will it still be effective? Yes, because 0.5% is enough to reduce fine lines and wrinkles by 30% within two weeks of use (that’s a fact!). Retinol helps to regulate sebum and works to lightly exfoliate the skin, so it unclogs pores. For this reason, you shouldn’t use it together with AHAs or BHAs (they do not mix well together and you may lightly burn your skin), or salicylic acid and benzoyl peroxide. When you use retinol long term, it will also start working to help even out your skin tone and tighten your skin. It works on so many fronts, that it will benefit everyone.

So how do I use it? I use it only at night (because it also can make your skin extra sensitive to UV rays) and every second night, alternating with a AHA/BHA serum (which also helps keep my acne at bay, but works in a different way). I use it as a ‘serum’, so underneath moisturiser. The texture as I mentioned is a gel, but it’s semi opaque in colour and it doesn’t feel like a traditional gel (which is almost jelly like) but it is still incredibly light. It’s not slimy or tooo slippery. It’s really a joy to use. I learnt recently that retinols cause transepidermal water loss because of the retinol’s exfoliating action. An occlussive moisturiser won’t help hydrate your skin in this case, because you need to use a a moisturiser which adds moisture back into your skin (occlusive moisturisers work by sealing in whatever moisturiser is in your skin). This means it’s a great idea to use a moisturiser which contains hyaluronic acid (a humectant – humectants capture moisture from the surrounding environment and put it back into your skin), ceramides (emollients) or niacinamide over the top of your retinol gel.  Oh and the pump bottle, makes sure that air and light doesn’t weaken the structure of the formula. Perfect 🙂

You can find the Futuerderm’s retinol cream in their official online shop here. The pump bottle contains 30ml of product and sells for $55 US buckaroos. Oh and they ship worldwide of course 🙂

Have you ever used a retinol cream? Have you tried any Futurederm products before?

Oh and happy May beauties! <3

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Catch ya next time!

Beauty Bee~

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