Does Your Skin Get Used to Retinol? The Truth About Skincare “Resistance”

Here’s what’s actually going on when your discernible skin responses change/stop:

Resistance is utile

Or rather, it’s actually tolerance.

Tolerance vs resistance: your skin can become acclimated to the irritation and side effects of an ingredient without becoming resistant to its biological effects, so reduced dryness, peeling, or sensitivity with a topical retinoid doesn’t mean the retinoid has stopped working.

On the other hand, sometimes adverse changes can show up that had stopped or just generally weren’t present previously, and that’s because acne severity can change throughout life because of hormonal and other factors, while retinoids can improve signs of aging without stopping the underlying aging process, so new breakouts, wrinkles, or pigmentation also don’t necessarily indicate that the retinoid has stopped working.

Sometimes a plateau occurs, and that one usually is real. But even then, a plateau of visible improvement still doesn’t necessarily mean the ingredient has stopped working, and higher concentrations or different retinoids don’t automatically provide greater benefits, although particular acne situations can sometimes respond better to a different retinoid or concentration.

With the caveat that the following advice comes from a professional dermatologist who has a financial incentive to get people to see a dermatologist (and even points out that this can be telehealth, so viewers don’t need to be near her), she does say that when a previously controlled skin condition returns or changes, determining why it happened is more useful than automatically adding or increasing skincare products, and prescription-treatment changes are best addressed with a dermatologist.

For more on all of this, enjoy:

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Take care!