Retinol use and salicylic acid use during pregnancy - help!!

[Greeneyesbiglashes]

Hi,

I am 9+4 weeks pregnant. I started using a 0.2% retinol night cream, I used it 3-4 times following conception until I found out I was pregnant. Technically I was 4 weeks pregnant but the times I used it were the 2 weeks after conception. I have also used a fair bit of salicylic acid too. I had no idea and I am feeling so scared now. I suffer with anxiety too so my mind has absolutely blown up today once I realised what i’d used. It says on the NHS website topical retinoids need to be avoided due to possible birth defects and now I am petrified!! Please can someone offer some advice, I mentioned the salicylic acid to my dr before I even remembered the retinol I had used and he said it should be fine. My mind is going into overdrive I feel like such an awful person!!

I’ve never heard about avoiding salicylic acid. Retinol yes, but I think even if you used it throughout pregnancy the chances of it causing damage are slim - even more so if you only used it until week 4. I don’t think up to week 4 counts for much - I know a lot of recommendations are out there and off course we should do our best to keep to them but loads of women get pregnant accidentally, they drink, they smoke, they don’t take folic acid, they use face creams with retinol and eat pate and camembert cheese ... I don’t think many babies are known to come to harm because of it and the mums shouldn’t be feeling anxiety or guilt because of it. If it continues to play on your mind I think it’s more important to get support with your anxiety.

Thank you for your response @Pinkblueberry and for taking the time to reply to me. I am going to speak to the dr about my anxiety anyway because it is taking over. I am just so concerned that the retinol I used could have caused some harm. I hear what you are saying though that other women do not know they are pregnant and do a lot of thing etc. trying to stay positive but so hard. Thanks again

Hi, I did exactly the same as you and was using a retinol cream in the early weeks of pregnancy before realising I wasn't meant to. I then got very worried after doing too much googling and coming across stuff about it causing birth defects etc. I think the amount that enters your body through your skin is so small that the chances of it causing any problems are minimal. I found a good article about it which I'll try and find again. My baby was born absolutely fine and with no issues. Please try not to worry but speak to your dr if you're still anxious about it.

Hi OP, I honestly wouldn't worry about it at all (And I say that as someone who googles a lot!). They are such common ingredients in face creams that I'm sure some women use them throughout their pregnancies without a second thought.

I found this 'If you've been using a skin cream that contains a retinoid, don't panic. Retinoids that you put on your skin have not been shown to cause problems in pregnant women. Doctors are just being extra cautious in recommending that you avoid them.' Source: www.babycenter.com/pregnancy/your-life/safe-skin-care-during-pregnancy_1490031

When you're googling retinoids you'll find results for a vast range of products, for example roaccutane. That's a really strong medication and very, very different to the a face cream. It's apples and oranges.

@Beccalyn thanks so much for commenting and sharing what happened with you! I am so pleased to hear your baby was absolutely fine. Can you remember how long you used it for?

I have done exactly that, googling everything and getting myself into a bit of a frenzy. Thanks again for sharing that’s reassuring to read.

@Teakind thanks so much for your comment to me, everyone is so lucky on here I am glad I have found this site. I actually just stopped using it when I realized I was pregnant on NYD, didn’t even cross my mind until I was looking into stuff to help pregnancy acne and then my heart dropped when I read several sites saying do not use! I of course have not used it for several weeks and have done everything to be as healthy as possible. I just hate the thought of something so simple to cause something so awful.

Thanks for the link, i’ll have a read. Yep saw Roaccutane and knew about that one just had no idea some sites including NHS would mention topical retinoids!

Thanks again

I can't remember exactly how long I was using it for now but it was definitely during conception and for a few weeks of pregnancy. Is it just an over the counter face cream? What did reassure me what that someone pointed out to me that if these creams were that dangerous to pregnant women there would be warnings all over the bottle. I took Roaccutane for acne as a teenager and there were huge warnings all over the medication and you had to take regular pregnancy tests while you were on it to ensure you weren't pregnant.

@Beccalyn okay thanks for letting me know. I used it around 3-4 times following conception till I realised I was pregnant (so just under 2 weeks) hoping like everyone has said that there is not going to be any likely risks. It is yeah, it’s Medik8 night retinol cream 0.2%.

That’s a good point re the packaging, it doesn’t say on it anywhere but I contacted the company and they said it is not for use in pregnancy.

Ah did you! My friend at school did too and she also mentioned taking pregnancy tests and also having to be on 2 forms of birth control.

Thanks again for info

Google can send you crazy though I totally understand! I tried not to google things about the pregnancy as I realised every search can bring up something terrifying and I'm a big worrier!

I've a feeling Salicylic acid is essentially just aspirin. Many women are prescribed low dose aspirin throughout pregnancy so I wouldn't worry too much about that either x

It has sent me absolutely crazy, my partner is always like what are you googling now.... so wish I could turn the worrying off!

I will try and not google anymore like you say

Thank you @Alittlexmasmagic for putting my mind at rest with that too. At first it was that I was worried about and then my mind decided to try and recall everything I have done over the last 9 weeks....!

There is so much scaremongering about this stuff. I found a study that had been done into retinol use during pregnancy. The conclusions of the study found that taking retinol orally was not good for unborn babies. However, the study could not find any sort of link between applying the retinol to skin and the baby being affected. IIRC, the study said that if there was any effect it would be 'negligible'.

I read this study. It was on an official EU site of some description (can't remember which one). And then at the end of it, the recommendation of the website (not the scientists who conducted the test) still said that pregnant women should avoid creams containing retinol 'as a precaution'. Even though the study they had linked to literally said that the effects of harm on an unborn baby by creams containing retinol were either non-existent or negligible!

So please don't worry. So much of this stuff is just a 'precaution' and the science behind it is very weak.

As long as you're not eating your face cream, you should be fine

Wow thanks @EdgeOfACoin that is really great to hear you say that you have read that study! I am so grateful for you sharing that with me.

I will of course not use it again but that has definitely put me ease to know you read that study.

It’s the NHS website that really threw me, although it said retinoids which I thought were perhaps stronger than retinol.... maybe?!

Definitely not eating it haha!!

That sounds like the study I read too and it really put my mind at ease!

@Beccalyn @EdgeOfACoin if either of you lovely people remember the name of the study, i’d be really interested to read it!

A study like this wouldn’t surprise me. It’s important to remember that the skin’s job is to act as a barrier for your body - it’s not a sponge.

I am 9 weeks pregnant and I’m still using products with salicylic acid as I have acne, and also a mild retinol serum on occasion. This is baby number 2 and I basically gave no thought to what I was using on my face for no1 and she turned out fine.

Technically speaking all retinols are also retinoids, as retinoid just means a vitamin A derivative, however generally in skincare the term retinoid is used to refer to the stronger (ie closest to pure vitamin A) prescription products.

In my view no product that is sold off the shelf in a shop (rather than over the pharmacy counter or on prescription) is going to do any harm, as if a product is able to pass through the skin’s barrier and have any effect it would have to be labelled as a medicine - like the stronger retinoid creams such as trentoin) that have been proven to be dangerous in pregnancy. (This is also why most skincare products claims are likely to be unfounded, but I digress)

And yes salicylic acid is aspirin (I once made some in first year chemistry at uni) and as another PP said some women are prescribed low dose aspirin throughout pregnancy so I can’t see why on earth it would be a problem to use it on your skin.

I really really hate the scaremongering that goes on around pregnancy, which understandably panics many women- like that quote from the end of the study that @EdgeOfACoin quoted. Basically the view seems to be avoid everything and go and lie in a darkened room, ^just in case....^

I’d recommend the book ‘Expecting Better’ by Emily Oster, which looks at the science behind a lot of the common pregnancy recommendations and is very sensible- not sure it covers skincare though.

Thanks @Pinkblueberry that’s true. I just also hope me over doing it on the salicylic acid is ok too.

@CaptainWentworth thanks for sharing. Firstly congrats on your pregnancy! I do use salicylic acid but really worried the ones I have used are too strong. The mild retinol you use, can I ask which one it is? I used a medik8 one and it is 0.2% retinol. I can’t seem so find anywhere if that is a considerable amount.

Glad to know your first baby was absolutely fine, that’s really reassuring to know.

Re retinol and retinoids, that’s interesting to know. I just bought this stuff normally and you can get it online so I assume it’s not enough to have to be sold over the counter.

Interesting to know about the asprin and salicylic acid, thank you. It says in so many places online it’s a nono orally and so stay away topically too, a little like the retinoid. It’s really confusing and scary.

Tbh after freaking out so much yesterday I feel I do need to lie in a dark room 🤣 I also feel like lockdown doesn’t help anyone either. Not being able to really converse so just end up googling everything, I need to stop, for sure.

Wow thanks I will deffo be looking at buying that book. I feel like this would be really really good for me. Thanks sooo much for recommending that

@Greeneyesbiglashes Watching out for salicylic acid is news to me - if it makes you feel better I would have used it at least once a week in a facial scrub during my last pregnancy. I would imagine if the risks were substantial this information would be better known.

@Pinkblueberry thanks for letting me know that. I have used it day and night 2% on one product which I heard is fine (from googling...obviously) and then the other one is a la roche posay toner and it doesn’t say the percentage anywhere.

I think that’s a good point, re if the risks were substantial. Such conflicting advice everywhere online, makes me feel like i’m going mad!

The retinol product I sometimes use (although tbh it doesn’t seem to have much effect so I may as well stop!) is the La Roche Posay serum - it’s 0.3%

I also use Effaclar Duo and Acnecide, but both of them are benzoyl peroxide not salicylic acid - my bad - but I’m looking at buying the Medik8 pore something face wash which has salycylic in.

Anyway basically I’d not worry too much, stop using these products if you want to - and I do think that book might help you feel better about other things too.

And congratulations and enjoy your pregnancy!

Thanks for letting me know @CaptainWentworth that info on the products. Speaking of acne though, have you found anything that is actually helping?

I used acnecide yesterday morning but it says on the nhs website you can use benzoyl peroxide? I then spoke to my dr as I am taking erythromycin antibiotics for it at the moment too and he has prescribed me a Benzoyl peroxide product 🤷🏼‍♀️

Yes thanks for the book name, it’s on amazon so i’ll be purchasing that today.

Thank you that’s so kind, I hope everything goes ok for you

I found acnecide really helped me a couple of years ago, but I recently bought it agin and it doesn’t seem as good for me. However they now have it on the shelf at Boots (well, before the last lockdown!) rather than behind the pharmacy counter, and it’s in a smaller tube with slightly different wording on the pack so I’m a bit suspicious they’ve changed the formula!