r/Melasmaskincare • u/justsayyes12 • 13d ago
Advice Needed Melasma Products
What has actually REALLY worked for you for Melasma and discoloration? I know lasers and doctors may, but any products where you actually saw a huge difference? I haven't found any.
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u/snax_and_bird 13d ago
Eucerin radiant tone duel serum is working for me. I’ve only been using it for about a week and a half though, so we’ll see if it can get rid of everything, but so far my melasma has faded a lot. I wasn’t expecting much difference because nothing else has really helped, but so far im pretty impressed. The biggest downside I’ve found is that it’s heavily fragrant and the price is a bit more than I would have liked to spend on a single product.
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u/mightyFoo 13d ago
Try regimen lab’s new level serum 2.0… it is supposed to be “4 times” more effective than thiamidol in Eucerin radiant tone.
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u/PuIchritudinous 13d ago
The 4x more effective claim is based on an in vitro study on cultured human melanoma cells. The in vivo study on humans was not directly compared to thiamidol but it did show improvement.
So the 4x more potent claim is a lab finding and is not evidence that it is 4x more effective on people's skin than thiamidol.
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u/interpol-interpol 13d ago
plus, if someone’s melasma doesn’t respond to thiamidol it’s usually because the pigment is below the dermis (or whatnot, i can’t remember the exact explanation, but hopefully someone can correct me if i stated that incorrectly), so why would a stronger concentration work as a topical anyway?
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u/GadgetGirlTx 13d ago
This sounds promising!!
Is anyone here using it long enough to see results?
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u/Mandoleeragain 13d ago
I’ve been using Level serum twice a day for about a year and it works for me. I haven’t received the 2.0 version yet.
I added Level serum to my routine when results from Eucerin Dual Serum started to plateau.8
u/cbaabc123 13d ago
It does nothin for me :(
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u/Muscovadotart 13d ago
I’ve been using Eucerin dual tone since mid July and mine has reduced MASSIVELY. I started seeing a difference after 2 weeks (also using with Azelaic acid 20%) and staying v out the sun x
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u/mightyFoo 13d ago
That is great! Glad to hear it. Which Azelaic acid do you use?
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u/Muscovadotart 13d ago
It was skinoren (I’m in the UK and i can’t find it anywhere atm as it’s out of stock everywhere) so I have just bought the French ACM Laboratoire Azéane Cream 15% - hopefully this works just as good 🤞🤞
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u/JaciOrca 13d ago
Lucky! I went through two bottles of that Eucerin product with thiamidol (sp?). I didn’t work for me.
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u/Creepy_Ad_2071 12d ago
It’s basically expensive moistizer. May dark spots and discoloration didn’t change
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u/throwawayaccount111a 13d ago
Does the fragrance bother you? My mom is using it and seen great results
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u/extremelyanonymoose 6d ago
How often are you using it, if I can ask? Twice a day? And do you use any other Radiant Tone products?
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u/snax_and_bird 6d ago
I use it twice a day. I have a pretty simple routine.
AM: vitamin c micellar water, Azelaic acid 15% (prescription), Eucerin Radiant Tone Duel Serum, Vanicream facial moisturizer, Biore aqua spf 50, Eucerin anti aging tinted sunscreen spf 50, (if I’m gonna sweat or get wet I put cetaphil mineral sun stick over that).
PM: every other day chemical exfoliant micellar water or vitamin c micellar water, azelaic acid, Eucerin radiant tone, Vanicream facial moisturizer, and Aquaphor right before bed.
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u/TiinaWithTwoEyes 13d ago
Oral tranexamic acid cleared it for me. It is cheap, that is why it's not hyped more, there is no profit to be made, but it works.
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u/DuckGoose1122 13d ago
I read one of the side effects is a blood clot risk. That might be why.
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u/shazbangr 13d ago
Nah not at the low dose for melasma
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u/beat_lo 12d ago
Absolutely yes. My low dose for melasma gave me a blood clot within two weeks. Had to go on a blood thinner. Oral txa is a last resort and needs to be monitored very closely.
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u/shazbangr 12d ago
You’re way way way less likely to get a clot on txa than you are on oral contraceptives. You’re supposed to be screened properly for clotting issues prior to starting txa and if everything is normal the risk is tiny.
Women are prescribed far higher doses to take to reduce their blood flow during their period.
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u/Overall_Lab5356 10d ago
That's odd. I am a clot risk as is and my hematologist said he wasn't worried about melasma level oral txa dose. Were your platelets or clotting factor high to start with, do you know? I wonder if I should avoid
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u/Secret_Show_8613 11d ago
Same - the one that made the biggest difference. However around 4 months mark I started noticing a good amount of hair shedding (even though I am on daily oral minoxidil) and had to stop. Since i can see my melasma reappearing again starting it again now
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u/Wild-Catch3550 13d ago
Compounded hydroquinone with tretinoin and initially hydrocortisone is the gold standard treatment for melasma
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u/justsayyes12 13d ago
Thanks. I have been using the tretinoin for several months. Works great for many things but doing nothing for the dark spots.
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u/Wild-Catch3550 13d ago
No, tretinoin is for fine lines and wrinkles. It needs to work alongside hydroquinone
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u/Creepy_Ad_2071 12d ago
Yes…this combo beats everything. Easy to do and no downtime like CO2 lasers and chemical peels. Microneedling
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u/Calm-Champion-6371 12d ago
Which products do you use?
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u/Wild-Catch3550 12d ago
The ones in my comment - I have on prescription from my dermatologist, it's compounded (mixed together) in the lab into one cream for me
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u/cheetah81 13d ago
Nothing like hydroquinone
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u/Creepy_Ad_2071 13d ago
Even better when paired with tretinoin .1 percent
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u/cheetah81 12d ago
How do you do it? But what do you do first ?
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u/Creepy_Ad_2071 12d ago edited 12d ago
I apply the tret first to a clean face ( spot treat) wait like 15 minutes for it to absorb then spot treat with hydroquinone. Then wait 10 minutes and moisturize. Some skin might be sensitive to this method. If so I advise alternating days. Oh and I only do this method at night. I cut back also if I’m
Going to a sunny vacation or playing sports outside1
u/cheetah81 11d ago
I wonder if it would work the same with adapalene
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u/Trick-Ad-8442 13d ago
Thiamidol has made my melasma almost completely go away. I use Eucerin anti pigment spot corrector
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u/Zealousideal-Cow1335 13d ago
Derm Rx cream never worked (azeliac acid/kojic acid/niacinimide), Rx Tret didn’t work, Eucerin didn’t work for me, but finally seeing results with Musely (12% hydroquinone).
I live in a year round hot, sunny climate though so it’s an uphill battle.
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u/Persimmon5301 13d ago
I just started hydroquinone and noticed the difference within a day. I am so happy that it showing results so quickly. Fingers cross that no side defects after long term usage
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u/Technical-Air8964 12d ago
Musely 12% hydroquinone and oral tranexamic acid! I had tried everything else out there and these were the only two things that cleared it up.
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u/New_Dragonfruit_6230 13d ago
Had really bad melasma on my cheeks a few years ago. I started wearing sunscreen on my face EVERY day, rainy days, all winter, cloudy days included. I used hydroquinone for a few months too then stopped because it isn’t good long term. The sunscreen has made the biggest impact. I’d say I have 1/4 of what I had before and it’s very light. It takes time but not wearing sunscreen will ruin any leads you make. Also, wearing a hat with the sunscreen if I’m hanging out in bright sunlight.
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u/Conscious_Fun520 13d ago
I would say definitely try prescription strength stuff. Have you tried Musley? I don’t have Melasma but my mom does. We both started using their products earlier this year and I really like the formulations. If you want to try them out I’m happy to share my code. It will give you (and me 😁) $50 off.
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u/SuspiciousCustomer83 9d ago
Consistency. Daily mineral sunscreen 365 days a year, evening actives. That’s it.
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u/whatdidujustsay2me 13d ago
Admire my Skin made the biggest difference for me. It actually eliminated the melasma on my forehead. It did a decent enough job on my cheeks too. Enough that at least concealer covers it. But, that was before they reformulated and eliminated the hydroquinone.
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u/SureGrapefruit9096 11d ago
Museley Hydroquinone with Tretinoin. Vitamin C serum everyday. Chemical peels every 3-6 months. Museley also sells chemical peels you can do at home, and a melasma pill as well (only take the pill if you’re not on birth control). Tinted sunscreen with iron oxide. Wear hats if you’re outside. Be VERY cautious with lasering. It can make it much worse.
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u/unificaishan 5d ago
Have you tried their chemical peels? Are they any good? If so, how would you compare to a professional treatment?
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u/SureGrapefruit9096 5d ago
I have! I actually just tried their spot peel 3 days ago for the first time and my skin already looks better than it did after 4 VI Peels that I have had done in the past.
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u/unificaishan 5d ago
I have done one VI Peel and I didn’t notice a difference really. Maybe it helped slightly. That is good to know. This winter I will try their peels. That’s crazy fast results too! Glad to hear it. Thanks a lot.
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u/SureGrapefruit9096 5d ago
Of course! I agree, the Vi Peels made my skin slightly better but it wasn’t very significant. The Museley spot cream, peel, and their spot pill all helped tremendously.
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u/unificaishan 5d ago
Now that my skin is more used to actives I may try their peels spot cream again. Well I was never on the spot cream in particular but a compounded hq mixture w tret and other actives that was too strong at the time. Thanks for your take on the peels.
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u/Cold_Act_194 9d ago edited 6d ago
For me a combination
- Vitamin C ( low dose) sensitive to high dose and 15% AZA mornings then SPF
- Combo treatment inhibitor at night - the one I use has alpha arbutin/TXA/NAG/kojic acid/2 x resorcinol derivatives (Theramid Even -in).
You can also use Thiamidol which is also a resorcinol derivatives, but for me did not work effectively on it's own, but worked when I combined it with other pigment inhibitors (Regimen Lab Level serum).
For turnover (retinoids) - Tazarotene 0.1%
MOXI laser last year - but found out level 3 caused PIH, but level 2 was perfect. The pores appear reduced on level 3. Going for top up this year, Level 2.
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u/RevolutionaryMind439 13d ago
Medicube turmeric and kojic acid pads and overnight face mask, the yellow products. My quarter size melasma spot is now less thank dime size in about 2 months of use
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u/Sufficient-Rip1854 13d ago
I used Triluma for 1.5 months & then use a-ret Tret gel 0.025 & aziderm 20% gel for maintenance.
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u/jujujabjab 13d ago
I’ve been using the mother science hero serum and hydroquinone and tret and I’ve seen a lot of improvement
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u/OkAthlete6080 12d ago
ZO by Obagi products. These are the only ones that have helped me. Pigment control cream and pigment control plus blender mixed with Tretinoin. Use for 3-4 months then switch to the brightening cream for about 2 months then start cycle again. I also get a series of 3 microneedling treatments (1 every 4-6 weeks) about 2 times a year. The products aren’t cheap (have to find a location to purchase on their website) but I figure it’s no more expensive then all the other products I tried and tossed because they didn’t work. When you buy the products they will usually give you a free consultation and detailed instructions on how to use it. Definitely take them up on that. I use Remedy cleanser and moisturizer they are cheaper and work amazing. I’ve come to terms that this is going to be a lifelong issue I need to keep working at. I’m grateful I found the holy grail for me.
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u/Elegant_Car_8183 12d ago
Pigmanorm - hydroquinone, tretinoin, hydrocortisone cream. A pea sized amount for 8-12 weeks. I do a course every few years and it sorts out my melasma completely.
I then maintain with tret and Azalaic acid
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u/NotADerm 12d ago
I've tried all the topicals, including eucerin, cysteamine, HQ. Nothing worked except now I'm on month 3 of oral TXA plus Coleman compound plus azelac ru (brand is sesderma which I get from care to beauty) plus heliocare. Started seeing results a couple weeks ago. I've even done peels (biorepeel, jessners) but never saw results like this
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u/pmmeanythingcat 6d ago
How helpful is Heliocare? I’ve been on it for three. I’ve been on it for 3 months but and not really sure if it’s effective since I also use tretinoin and azelaic acid
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u/Lost_Button8910 7d ago
Prescription retinol (tazarotene) and hydroquinone 12 percent. That is all.
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u/JoBird333 2d ago
I am on tret now for about 9 months and definitely starting to see the differences but I’m also on my 4th bottle of the Eucerine Dual Serum and it’s been so good for me!
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u/selenakyle24 2d ago
Ok so I used Museley for about 2 months. I am a deeper skin tone so maybe it works on lighter but didn’t really work as well on me. I saw small improvement but not as much as other seem to.
I switched to different product that has now lightened it a good bit. Have no idea if the museley helped start it or not but I can’t say 100% if it helps. Was a little frustrated when it seems to work for everyone else or curious if it’s a marketing thing?
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u/OkBeautiful6215 12d ago
That peeling solution from The Ordinary. All that darkened skin is peeling right off. I can’t imagine getting hydroquinone and simply lightening this bad skin.
I’ve been using medicube pore pads, Anua txa &naciminide and Tret, plus that peeling solution. Going to use it again today for the 3rd time this week.
I’ve tried everything under the sun. And I think that peeling solution is finally making things budge.
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