Target Pharma Tretin

A cruelty-free prescription that contains 4 ingredients.

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Overview

What it is

Prescription with 4 ingredients

Cool Features

It is cruelty-free, fungal acne (malassezia) safe, and reef safe

Suited For

It has ingredients that are good for fighting acne

Free From

It doesn't contain any common allergens, fragrances, oils, parabens, silicones or sulfates

Fun facts

Target Pharma is from Greece. This product is used in 3 routines created by our community.

We independently verify ingredients and our claims are backed by peer-reviewed research. Does this product need an update? Let us know.

About this product

Ingredients List

Dive into the full list of ingredients.

2

Isotretinoin

Hydroxypropyl Methylcellulose

Emulsion Stabilising

BHT

Antioxidant

Alcohol Denat. 96%

Antimicrobial

Isotretinoin, Hydroxypropyl Methylcellulose, BHT, Alcohol Denat. 96%

Key Ingredients

Benefits

Concerns

Ingredients Explained

Isotretinoin

This ingredient is also known as accutane. Accutane is a prescription retinoid used to treat severe acne.

Please consult a medical professional when using this ingredient.

Hydroxypropyl Methylcellulose

Emulsion Stabilising

This ingredient is a semi-synthetic polymer created from cellulose. In case you need a refresher, cellulose is the main component of plant cell walls.

Hydroxypropyl Methylcellulose has many uses:

emulsifier
create a gel-like texture
boost foam

BHT

Antioxidant, Masking

BHT is a synthetic antioxidant and preservative.

As an antioxidant, it helps your body fight off free-radicals. Free-radicals are molecules that may damage your skin cells.

As a preservative, it is used to stabilize products and prevent them from degrading. Specifically, BHT prevents degradation from oxidation.

The concerns related to BHT come from oral studies; this ingredient is currently allowed for use by both the FDA and EU.

However, it was recently restricted for use in the UK as of April 2024.

Learn more about BHT

Alcohol Denat.

Antimicrobial, Astringent, Masking

Alcohol Denat. is an alcohol with a denaturant property. It is created by mixing ethanol with other additives.

This ingredient gets a bad rep because it is irritating and drying - mostly due to its astringent property. Astringents draw out natural oils in tissue, constricting pores and leaving your skin dried out.

However, alcohol denat. is not all that bad.

Due to its low molecular weight, alcohol denat. tends to evaporate quickly. One study on pig skin found half of applied alcohol evaporated in 10 seconds and less than 3% stayed on skin.

This also helps other ingredients become better absorbed upon application.

Studies are conflicted about whether this ingredient causes skin dehydration. One study from 2005 found adding emollients to propanol-based sanitizer decreased skin dryness and irritation. Another study found irritation only occurs if your skin is already damaged.

Small amounts of alcohol are generally tolerated by oily skin or people who live in humid environments.

The rule of thumb is if this alcohol is near the end of an ingredients list, it will probably not affect your skin much.

Also...

This ingredient has antimicrobial and solvent properties.

The antimicrobial property helps preserve products and increase their shelf life. As a solvent, it helps dissolve other ingredients.

Other types of astringent alcohols include:

Learn more about Alcohol Denat.