Body & Beauty / Compounds / Retinol (Vitamin A)

Retinol (Vitamin A) on your skin: a safety profile

Moderate risk

(People-specific data is limited; this page draws from human adult context.) Vitamin A; photosensitizing; skin irritation/peeling; liver toxicity at high oral doses

What is retinol (vitamin a)?

Also known as: retinol, all-trans-Retinol, trans-retinol, Veroftal.

CAS number
68-26-8
Molecular formula
C20H30O
Molecular weight
286.5 g/mol
SMILES
CC1=C(C(CCC1)(C)C)C=CC(=CC=CC(=CCO)C)C
PubChem CID
445354

Risk for people

Moderate risk

Vitamin A; photosensitizing; skin irritation/peeling; liver toxicity at high oral doses

Regulatory consensus

1 regulatory bodyhas classified Retinol (Vitamin A).

AgencyYearClassificationNotes
Regulatory Framework—Regulated under dietary supplement frameworks (DSHEA in US, EU Novel Food)

Regulators apply different standards of evidence — animal-data weighting, exposure-pattern assumptions, epidemiological power thresholds — which is why two scientific bodies can review the same data and reach different conclusions. The disagreement is the data.

Where you encounter retinol (vitamin a)

  • Personal Care — anti-aging cream, serum, eye cream, acne treatment
  • Consumer Products — supplements

Safer alternatives

Lower-risk approaches that achieve a similar outcome to Retinol (Vitamin A):

  • Food-based nutrient sources; Whole food diet
    Trade-offs: Alternative approach; specific tradeoffs depend on application context, scale, and regulatory requirements. Full hazard assessment of alternative recommended before adoption to avoid regrettable substitution.
    Relative cost: 1.2-2×

Frequently asked questions

What products contain retinol (vitamin a)?

Retinol (Vitamin A) appears in: anti-aging cream (Personal care); serum (Personal care); supplements (Consumer products).

See Retinol (Vitamin A) in the body app

Look up products containing retinol (vitamin a), compare to alternatives, and explore the full data record.

Open in body View raw API data

Sources (1)
  1. PubChem Compound Database (2026) — database

Reference data, not professional advice. Aggregates publicly available regulatory and scientific data; not a substitute for veterinary, medical, legal, or regulatory advice. Why we built ALETHEIA →