Serving as the resident beauty expert in a friend group tends to come with an unofficial job description. Product recommendations, late night texts about a cracked lipstick, and one recurring question show up on a near constant basis, and that question almost always comes down to whether something is actually worth buying.
Why that question…
The skincare industry is worth billions of dollars, and it shows. Walk down any beauty aisle or open TikTok for five minutes and you'll be met with a flood of serums, essences, and treatments all claiming to transform your skin overnight. But according to dermatologists, most of it is noise.
Retinoids are the gold standard…

