eli5: How often can skincells renew themselves? (Retinol)

Question

So, recently, I’ve been trying to take better care of my skin. I read about retinol A LOT. It’s supposed to speed up cell turnover.

But cells do have a limited number of turnovers, no?

I am afraid of using retinol, I am worried it might make my skin look nice for now but might ruin it in the long run (because of the quick cell turnover). Can someone please explain this? Where am I wrong?

In: Biology

Answer 1

I found this meta study if you want to read for yoursrlf. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2699641/

It seems retinol’s effects is to increase the support structures of the skin, and therefore it gets thicker and reduces wrinkles. The study doesnt mention cell replication.