What Is Tretinoin Used For? by What Is Tretinoin Used For?If you haven’t heard of tretinoin before, you’re definitely not alone. 10/10 dermatologists recommend and personally use this cream to treat acne, wrinkles, fine lines, sun damage, and discoloration. However it’s only available as prescription, which is why many people don't know it exists. How? It essentially works by speeding up your skin's regeneration cycle and helping to grow new cells while causing old ones to die off. Meaning that new, smoother skin will begin pushing through to the surface as older, damaged skin begins to flake off. This process generally takes 6 - 8 weeks to see the full effectiveness of the treatment. In fact, tretinoin is so effective that it’s the only topical medication approved by the FDA to treat the visible signs of aging. After being studied for many years with numerous clinical trials done on it, a 2001 study showed that a low dosage of tretinoin cream 0.02% produced improvements in fine wrinkling, coarse wrinkling, and skin yellowing over 24 weeks of treatment. Anti-Aging Tretinoin is commonly used to treat the signs of aging because it actually grows and thickens your epidermis layer. When this happens, fine lines and wrinkles tend to smooth out and skin appears more plump and lifted. Sun Damage Also known as hyper pigmentation or skin discoloration, tretinoin can counter these skin conditions as well. These issues generally occur over time as your body produces excessive amounts of melanin in certain areas of the skin. As you age, melanin deposits may become more obvious, resulting in the appearance of dark areas and sun spots. Numerous studies have proven that long term use of tretinoin produced significant improvement in skin hyper pigmentation and discoloration for users. Acne Another benefit of tretinoin is the prevention or reduction of severe acne. Since it works by speeding up your skin cycle and removing old cells, it reduces the chances of developing acne from sebum and oil buildup.