Tretinoin is not safe for everybody, and we have to talk about this
Hey guys,
Firstly, I’m not going to argue with anyone in the comments. Love tret? Go for it. I made my choice, and I trust my provider much more than any anonymous comment. I’m sharing this because I wish someone had told me this before. Regardless, I just want to put this out there for people who might be unknowingly putting their health at risk.
One month ago, I got a full blood checkup, and my ALT and AST levels were 4 and 1.6 times higher than the norm. For context, I’m a college student. I was prescribed 0.025% tretinoin for anti-aging. I don’t have acne, I’ve never been on any medications, and I don’t smoke or drink. When I saw those results, I was like, WTF is even going on? My doctor reviewed my entire medical history, spotted the tretinoin prescription, and immediately said, “Don’t tell me you’re on tretinoin.”
So, I stopped using it, and wow—what a difference. I got my test results today, and my parameters are almost back to normal. My liver isn’t self-destructing anymore, I feel more rested, and I don’t get tired as easily as before. I was on the verge of developing hypervitaminosis A due to tretinoin, and it negatively impacted even my stress-level.
I see a lot of people here who are amazed by tretinoin and say some bs like, “It’s 100% safe because it’s topical,” or “It’s fine, just don’t eat it.” Respectfully, stop misleading people. Tretinoin is a medication, and based on my experience, its effects are highly individual. Using it can have consequences.
I don’t want anyone to end up in the same situation I did. Honestly, I’m upset that I put my health at risk for purely cosmetic benefits. It’s almost comical—it reminds me of Victorian women using mercury and other toxic substances without realizing the harm. Getting liver damage from a cream? That’s insane.
So please if you feel smth is off don't trust internet. Check it. Tretinoin in general is pretty safe, it's been on market for a long time, but study shows that there are special cases when it can be gamaging.
- Get your blood checked.
- Talk to your provider.
- Don’t rely on Reddit lol. Of course don't even rely on this post, I don't know personal cases, I just want people to be aware.
Take care, be healthy and happy.
UPDATE
I KNOW COMMENTS ARE EASIER AND SHORTER TO READ, BUT CHECK THIS OUT FIRST.
Right now, I see 260 comments, and of course, I’m not going to read all of them. I’ll respond to the longest ones because it seems like people put effort into those. I’m not going to read anything new from here on out, but I recommend you do—this is a healthy discussion. People are sharing their experiences, some have linked a couple of sources, and honestly, the drama is pretty entertaining. I actually liked some of the comments opposing my position, and this post has highlighted another issue within the community that I’d like to address.
First of all, let me clarify—my post above does not tell anyone to quit tretinoin, ban you from using it, or recommend any of the nonsense some people are claiming in the comments below. A large portion of the conflicts down there is pure overreaction. READ THE POST’S POINTS, NOT THE VERSION COMMENTERS MADE UP.
Here’s what I’m saying: “Don’t blindly trust anything online, including my post. Get checked just in case. Here’s a situation I had with blood results during a routine check-up. I’m sharing it with you as part of this community. Don’t forget tretinoin is a drug. Stay healthy!” And yet commenters are like, “This dumb OP gave me a meltdown. She probably just grabbed tret from a store at 20 years old. It has no side effects. She has no Reddit comments, so many red flags, her doctor’s tone seems off, she’s way too defensive, definitely used it wrong. What a disaster.”
What do you mean “without a prescription”? What “20 years old”? And finally, what the hell does ‘she’ have to do with it? Big thanks to most of you for keeping the discussion reasonable. To the rest of you—fantastic job stretching reality to fit your narrative.
Once again—I’m not trying to convince you of anything or sell you something. I’m sharing personal experience, not pitching a vacuum cleaner. I don’t need to make up a bad tretinoin experience. I’m not going to dig up documents and get into endless proof-heavy debates just to satisfy someone else’s hypothetical skepticism. I liked it, my skin responded well, I adapted quickly, and if I didn’t like it, I’d have thrown it out without a second thought.
Stop demanding my personal data, inventing some wild biography for me (like calling me out for tret being prescribed “too early,” as if I can’t be older than 25), accusing me of using the drug without a prescription, giving “advice” to my provider or me directly, and deciding what I should or shouldn’t do. Tret is not for everybody, admit this, move forward.
I don’t care what you do with yourselves. I honestly don’t. Tretinoin has side effects—just because you didn’t experience them doesn’t mean you should silence other commenters with downvotes. I’d like newcomers to tretinoin to see a wide range of opinions, not just the same “Oh, you’re having issues? Come on, keep using it!” over and over again.
You’re not doctors. At best, you’re just people with personal experiences. I can’t prove my doctor’s words, but guess what—you didn't prove anything either. Your experience versus mine, my “my doctor said” versus your “but I read” or "MYY doc said"—we’ve got a lot in common here. So, tell me, what’s the point?
I’m an aerospace engineer. Testing things and scrutinizing them is literally my job.
I believe science will move forward, I stand by every word I’ve said, and I admit that tretinoin might still bring some unpleasant surprises as we spend more time with it and dedicate more resources to its study.
I won’t be reading anything else, but I hope the discussion continues and that this community becomes less one-sided.
Thank you, and stay healthy.