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Retinol

Paula’s Choice employs many techniques to ensure that our retinol products are stable and do not face ingredient degradation to ensure that skin experiences the transformative anti-ageing and skin-restoring benefits that this molecule has to offer. However, and this is true for any retinol product, this ingredient will break down and begin losing potency over time despite the best formulary and packaging efforts to prevent this.

Our retinol and retinoid offerings always include specific vitamin A (retinol) stability-boosting ingredients and technologies. For example, the CLINICAL 1% Retinol Treatment couples retinol with vitamin C and other research-proven retinol stabilisers to ensure this potent treatment delivers.

Retinol and retinoids, like many other antioxidants, can become unstable and quickly deteriorate when in product packaging that exposes the formula to light and air. It’s for this reason that all Paula’s Choice retinol offerings are housed in airtight, opaque packaging.

If you have any questions about the shelf life of your Paula’s Choice retinol product, visit our Help Centre Guide.

Yes, you can use multiple retinol products but whether or not you should depends on many factors, such as if you’re new to using retinol, what your skin type and concerns are and what other types of skin care products you’re using.

If you’re brand-new to retinol or have extra-sensitive skin, we recommend using one retinol product to start and once you see how your skin responds, you can add in additional retinol products as you see fit.

If you’ve already been using retinol and are happy with your results, you may decide not to add another retinol product to your routine. You can also alternate, layer and experiment with different textures, retinol strengths or product types.

Paula’s Choice retinol products can last anywhere from several weeks to several months depending on the product type and how often and how much you use. For example, when applied all over your face twice per day, a retinol serum product generally lasts for approximately two months. When used once daily, however, a retinol cream product will last approximately three months. Learn more about how long skin care products last.

There are many different retinoids, each with distinct and overlapping benefits. The retinoids most commonly found in over-the-counter skin care products are pure retinol, retinaldehyde, retinyl palmitate and retinyl propionate.