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Save Your Hands From Dark Spots & Fine Lines With This Retinol Hand Cream Hack

Alexandra Engler
Author:
October 06, 2024
Alexandra Engler
Senior Beauty & Lifestyle Director
By Alexandra Engler
Senior Beauty & Lifestyle Director
Alexandra Engler is the senior beauty and lifestyle director at mindbodygreen and host of the beauty podcast Clean Beauty School. Previously, she's held beauty roles at Harper's Bazaar, Marie Claire, SELF, and Cosmopolitan; her byline has appeared in Esquire, Sports Illustrated, and Allure.com.
Beautiful Hands in the sunlight
Image by Leire Cavia / Stocksy
October 06, 2024

It seems like overnight, body retinol became the thing. Every new launch—from body washes to lotions to hand creams—was infused with the vitamin A derivative.

The "anti-aging" skin care market had clearly set its sights on the skin south of the jawline. They were coming for your neck, legs, knees, and hands. 

And, listen, I'm all about full-body skin care. Skin is skin, no matter where it's located—so I certainly endorse treating the skin on your body with the respect it deserves. Especially the hands: The hands are exposed to external aggressors (pollution, UV rays, wear and tear) much more than the rest of the body. Thus, they experience the telltale signs of damage.

I'm so often tasked with the question from friends and readers who want to know: OK, but do I *need* to go out and purchase retinol hand cream? The simple answer is no, of course not. Your skin care routine can be as basic as you want it to be. 

But if you're dealing with crepey skin, dark spots, and fine lines in the area, you may find yourself curious about what can be done to address these signs of aging.

That's when, yes, retinol does come in handy. However, there's a simple hack to get around having to buy multiple new products. 

Allow me to elaborate. 

Editor's note:

We usually avoid the term "anti-aging," as we believe aging is a privilege. We only use it here because retinol products are often called "anti-aging" products. We use it here because it provides context, but we by no means view any skin routine as "anti-" aging.

The skin care benefits of retinol: A quick recap

Retinol is one of the most studied skin care ingredients and has a wide range of benefits, from treating acne to addressing aging. For the hands in particular, here are some benefits that might pique your interest:

  1. Upregulates collagen production: Retinol has the ability to encourage the collagen synthesis process1, which can help firm, tone, and smooth the skin. This is especially crucial if you're dealing with crepey skin, as the ingredient can thicken the dermal layer2 (the root cause of crepey skin is thinning skin). Not only that, but retinol combats the effect by inhibiting metalloproteinases3, or collagen-degrading enzymes, thus preventing future damage.
  2. Fades dark spots: One of retinol's superpowers is that it can speed up skin cell turnover4. This can help slough off overly pigmented areas of the skin (aka sun spots), revealing a brighter, more even tone underneath. 
  3. Smoothes fine lines: Due to a combination of both of the above, retinol has a profound ability to smooth wrinkles. With use, you'll likely see fine lines fade and deep wrinkles become less severe. 

So it's understandable that someone might want to use it in a hand cream. (I mean, after reading all those benefits, who wouldn't?) But first, consider this quick trick. 

A simple trick to treat fine lines & dark spots — without the hassle

If you're just starting out on your retinol journey, rather than buying multiple versions for all different areas of the body, find one serum (check out our favorites here), and use it on both your hands and your face. 

Just follow this easy routine at night:

  • Wash your face with a gentle face wash. While you're at it, be sure to clean the backs of your hands too. 
  • Take a small, pea-size amount of the formula and apply it to your face in four quadrants (forehead, both cheeks, chin). Then take half of that amount and tap it on the back of both of your hands. 
  • Follow it up with a moisturizer on both areas. For your face, use a comforting cream that can hydrate and soothe skin (as retinol can be drying, especially as your skin gets used to it). For the hands, we love this fragrance-free, sensitive-skin-safe hand cream.

Then during the day, be sure to protect both areas from the sun (use SPF daily!), and hydrate the skin. Retinol can make the skin more dry, sensitive, and susceptible to UV damage, so it's very important to protect and hydrate your skin while on a retinol regimen. 

For hands specifically, this means using a hand cream after every wash. I recommend carrying around your go-to hand cream so you can apply it as needed throughout the day.

The takeaway 

Thanks to its wide variety of benefits, it's no wonder folks want to use retinol all over. However, before you run out to grab an arsenal of new retinol products, slowly wade your way into the process with this quick, easy hack.

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