Tretinoin and lactic acid
Keep them apart
Use them on alternate nights because combining them causes irritation. Both ingredients increase cell turnover, which can make skin red and peel when used together. The shopper can use a gentler strength or leave more time between applications.
Retinoids: a journey from the molecular structures and mechanisms of action to clinical uses in dermatology and adverse effectsWhy Topical Retinoids Are Mainstay of Therapy for Acne
Tretinoin products
- Retin-A Cream
-
Tri-Luma
Cream
AED 81.95
- Musely The Spot Cream
- Obagi Tretinoin Cream 0.05%
- Taro Tretinoin Cream
- Mylan Tretinoin
- Curology Formula
- Menarini A-Ret Gel
Lactic acid products
-
Medicube
Zero Pore Pad
AED 41.99
-
First Aid Beauty
KP Bump Eraser Body Scrub
AED 99.00
-
EltaMD
UV Clear Broad-Spectrum SPF 46
AED 202.40
-
First Aid Beauty
Facial Radiance Pads
AED 89.21
- CeraVe SA Lotion for Rough & Bumpy Skin
- CeraVe Renewing SA Cream
- The Ordinary Alpha Arbutin 2% + HA
- The Ordinary Retinal 0.2% Emulsion
-
Kate Somerville
ExfoliKate Intensive Exfoliating Treatment
AED 194.99
-
Dr. Dennis Gross
Alpha Beta Universal Daily Peel
AED 397.98
- The Ordinary Lactic Acid 5% + HA
-
Good Molecules
Overnight Exfoliating Treatment
AED 44.50
Questions and answers
Can you use tretinoin and lactic acid together?
No, you should keep tretinoin and lactic acid apart because combining them may cause irritation or barrier disruption. Instead, use lactic acid in the morning or on alternate evenings and tretinoin on your other nights.
Which goes first, tretinoin or lactic acid?
Keep tretinoin and lactic acid apart by using them on alternate evenings to help avoid irritation and barrier disruption.
Are tretinoin and lactic acid good for sensitive skin?
Tretinoin and lactic acid are not recommended for direct overlap on sensitive skin because combining them may cause irritation or barrier disruption. Instead, alternate their use by applying lactic acid in the morning or on separate evenings from tretinoin.
Research on tretinoin and lactic acid
Behind this pairing advice
Lovi checks every pairing with brand-independent rules our dermatologists and cosmetic chemists build and review, and personalizes every pick with AI trained on the real results of millions of users. Lovi trains its fit score models on a proprietary dataset built from more than 10,000 expert-labeled products and more than 100,000 simulated examples, following an internally consistent methodology presented at Cosmoprof, AMWC, and Skin of Color Update.
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Co-founder, Medical Director
Cosmetic chemist, cosmetologist, aesthetic products developer
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Co-founder, CEO and CTO
PhD in computer science, 3x US patent holder, ex-Google, ex-Yandex
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Dr. Sof铆a Perea P茅rez, MD, MSc
Medical Board
Aesthetic medicine practitioner, MSc in Longevity and Anti-Aging Medicine
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Medical Board
Specialist dermatologist, MBBS, MD, IFAAD
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Medical Board
Cosmetic chemist, SCS, IFSCC member
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Medical Board, Medical Advisor
Dermatology MD
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Elina Nazarenko, MD
Medical Board
Dermatology and diagnostic consultant
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Victoria Derkova, MS
Medical Board
Cosmetic chemist, cosmetic development technologist
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