A-Z of Cosmetic Ingredients and Terms
Retinol is the alcohol form of vitamin A used in some skin care products as an anti-ageing active.
Retinol boosts cell renewal and may help with skin elasticity and smoothness. It is closely related to vitamin A.
Because of the sensitivity of retinol to reacting with other ingredients, cosmetics often contain the more stable retinol esters (e.g. retinyl acetate, retinyl linoleate and retinyl palmitate) or the aldehyde form (retinal). Retinol occurs naturally in fish, butter, yolk and dairy products, amongst others.
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