Medik8 Crystal Retinal 1 for acne-prone skin

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Questions and answers

What the research says

• Concurrent treatment with 3-O-ethyl ascorbic acid and cannabigerol in UVB-irradiated human keratinocytes prevents membrane structure alterations, promotes cell survival, enhances antioxidant enzyme activity and GSH- and Trx-dependent systems, reduces lipid and protein oxidative modifications, and exerts anti-inflammatory effects.

  Free Radical Biology & Medicine, 2025

• Dissolving microneedles loaded with 3-O-ethyl ascorbic acid and acetyl hexapeptide-8 achieved higher cumulative transdermal delivery than aqueous solutions and significantly reduced photoaging signs while restoring oxidative balance in a UV/D-galactose-induced mouse model.

  International Journal of Biological Macromolecules, 2026

• Liposomal formulation of 3-O-ethyl-L-ascorbic acid enhanced skin retention and reduced UV-induced extracellular matrix degradation in skin explants compared to free EAA.

  Journal of Liposome Research, 2025

• Twice daily application of retinaldehyde 0.1% and 0.05% creams for 3 months improved skin texture and hydration and reduced transepidermal water loss in 40 female Korean volunteers, with only the 0.1% cream significantly improving the melanin index.

  Journal of Cosmetic Dermatology, 2018

• Topical retinaldehyde demonstrated significant antibacterial activity against gram-positive bacteria both in vitro and in vivo, leading to decreased bacterial counts without inducing resistance.

  Dermatology, 2002

• Topical 0.05% retinaldehyde applied over 1 year significantly increased epidermal thickness of the temple and cutaneous elasticity compared to an emollient control group in 40 aging skin patients.

  Dermatology, 1999

• Topical application of 0.1% hyaluronic acid formulations of different molecular weights led to significant improvements in skin hydration and elasticity, with low-molecular-weight formulations also significantly reducing wrinkle depth in seventy-six female subjects compared to a vehicle control.

  Journal of Drugs in Dermatology, 2011

• Topical application of hyaluronic acid in conjunction with free gingival graft significantly reduced donor site postoperative pain until day 7 compared to normal saline, with no significant differences in graft dimensions or patient satisfaction.

  Clinical Oral Investigations, 2022

• Treatment with a hyaluronic acid-containing mouth rinse or topical gel led to significant lesion reduction, pain relief, and normalization of lesion color in adult patients with minor recurrent aphthous stomatitis, with the gel formulation showing an earlier healing onset at 3 days.

  BMC Oral Health, 2019

• Topical application of 5% vitamin C cream significantly improved global clinical scores, increased skin microrelief density, and induced elastic tissue repair in photoaged skin compared to excipient control in healthy female volunteers.

  Experimental Dermatology, 2003

• Ascorbic acid 2-glucoside gel significantly reduced gingival melanin pigmentation after 4 weeks compared to placebo in 73 subjects with symmetric pigmentation.

  Journal of Periodontology, 2009

• Topical application of VC-IP cream twice daily for 8 weeks reduces periorbital wrinkles in female subjects compared to a placebo cream.

  Journal of Cosmetic Dermatology, 2022

• Squalane at 0.005-0.015% counteracts UVA-induced oxidative stress, inflammation, and collagen metabolism inhibition while stimulating fibroblast migration in human dermal fibroblasts.

  Molecules, 2025

• Plant-derived squalane protected human dermal fibroblasts against UVA-induced damage by counteracting ROS formation, suppressing apoptosis-related proteins p53, caspase-3, caspase-9, and PARP, and restoring the pro-survival p-Akt/mTOR pathway.

  Antioxidants, 2025

• A single application of a moisturizing fluid containing hyaluronic acid 1%, glycerin 5%, and Centella asiatica stem cells extract significantly increased skin hydration by 29% and reduced transepidermal water loss at 24 hours compared to baseline and an untreated control site in twenty healthy women.

  Clinical, Cosmetic and Investigational Dermatology, 2017

• The emollient V0034CR significantly reduced TEWL compared to vehicle and vehicle plus glycerol, and significantly increased corneometry scores compared to vehicle and vehicle plus petrolatum in healthy volunteers with dry skin, demonstrating combined barrier function improvement from petrolatum and hydration improvement from glycerol.

  Journal of Cosmetic Dermatology, 2020

• Ten days of treatment with a cream containing 20% glycerin significantly increased skin hydration measured by corneometer values in 17 healthy volunteers compared to a placebo cream, but showed no influence on transepidermal water loss or skin sensitivity to an irritating surfactant.

  International Journal of Cosmetic Science, 2001

Ingredients

Water, Caprylic Capric Triglyceride, Glycerin, Isododecane, Cetearyl Olivate, Sodium Acrylate Sodium Acryloyldimethyl Taurate Copolymer, Cetearyl Alcohol, Ppg-12 Smdi Copolymer, Sorbitan Olivate, Tocopheryl Acetate, Titanium Dioxide, Squalane, Eclipta Prostrata Extract, Hydroxyethyl Acrylate Sodium Acryloyldimethyl Taurate Copolymer, Phenoxyethanol, Cyclodextrin, Hydroxypropyl Methylcellulose, Sodium Hyaluronate, Tetrahexyldecyl Ascorbate, Melia Azadirachta Leaf Extract, Alumina, Isostearic Acid, Lecithin, Polyglyceryl-3 Polyricinoleate, Disodium Edta, Hydroxyacetophenone, Polyhydroxystearic Acid, Stearic Acid, Ethylhexylglycerin, 3-O-Ethyl Ascorbic Acid, Daucus Carota Sativa Seed Oil Carrot Seed Oil, Sodium Polyaspartate, Climbazole, Retinal, Dipteryx Odorata Extract Tonka Extract Bean Extract, Lonicera Japonica Flower Extract Honeysuckle Flower Extract, Lonicera Caprifolium Flower Extract Honeysuckle Flower Extract, Rubus Chamaemorus Seed Oil, Moringa Oleifera Seed Oil, Polysorbate 60, Sorbitan Isostearate, Pentylene Glycol, Vanilla Planifolia Fruit Extract Vanilla Fruit Extract, Decylene Glycol, Bht, 1,2-Hexanediol, Coumarin

Behind this fit score

Lovi calculates every fit score from the full ingredient list 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.