Lactic acid and hydroxypinacolone retinoate
Keep them apart
Use them on alternate nights because combining them can cause skin irritation. Both ingredients work hard to renew the skin, so layering them together can easily cause redness, dryness, and a stinging feeling. To prevent this, the shopper can either switch to a gentler product strength or leave more days between using each ingredient.
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
Lactic acid products
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Medicube
Zero Pore Pad
$18.90
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First Aid Beauty
KP Bump Eraser Body Scrub
$36.00
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EltaMD
UV Clear Broad-Spectrum SPF 46
$46.00
-
First Aid Beauty
Facial Radiance Pads
$39.00
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CeraVe
SA Lotion for Rough & Bumpy Skin
$47.19
- CeraVe Renewing SA Cream
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The Ordinary
Alpha Arbutin 2% + HA
$11.50
-
The Ordinary
Retinal 0.2% Emulsion
$14.90
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Kate Somerville
ExfoliKate Intensive Exfoliating Treatment
$85.00
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Dr. Dennis Gross
Alpha Beta Universal Daily Peel
$22.00
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The Ordinary
Lactic Acid 5% + HA
$8.10
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Good Molecules
Overnight Exfoliating Treatment
$5.99
Hydroxypinacolone retinoate products
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The Ordinary
Granactive Retinoid 2% Emulsion
$12.10
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IOPE
Retinol Super Bounce Serum
$49.00
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BYOMA
Sensitive Retinol Oil
$17.99
- Medicube Deep Vita A Retinol Serum
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Sunday Riley
A+ High-Dose Retinoid Serum
$50.00
Questions and answers
Can you use lactic acid and hydroxypinacolone retinoate together?
Keep lactic acid and hydroxypinacolone retinoate apart by using them in separate routine steps, such as applying lactic acid in the morning or on alternate evenings. Combining them in the same step may cause irritation or disrupt your skin barrier because both increase cell turnover.
Which goes first, lactic acid or hydroxypinacolone retinoate?
Keep lactic acid and hydroxypinacolone retinoate apart by using lactic acid in the morning or on alternate evenings and your retinoid on separate nights. Combining them in the same routine may cause irritation or barrier disruption because both increase cell turnover.
Are lactic acid and hydroxypinacolone retinoate good for sensitive skin?
Keep lactic acid and hydroxypinacolone retinoate apart by using them on alternate evenings to help prevent skin irritation. Sensitive, dry, and reactive skin should avoid direct overlap of these two ingredients in the same routine step.
Research on lactic acid and hydroxypinacolone retinoate
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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Cosmetic chemist, cosmetologist, aesthetic products developer
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Dr. Sof铆a Perea P茅rez, MD, MSc
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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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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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