Ingredients · Wrinkles and firmness
Retinal레틴알
What it is
A form of vitamin A, also called retinaldehyde. Skin turns retinol into retinal, and retinal into retinoic acid, the form that acts on skin cells — so retinal is one step closer to it than retinol. A 2006 review of cosmetic retinoids described retinal as fairly well tolerated and the most efficient of them.
On a Korean label
The standard Korean name is 레틴알. Until September 2017 it was 레티날, and marketing still uses that spelling, so the front of a box can say 레티날 while the ingredient list says 레틴알. Don’t mix it up with 레티놀 (retinol).
Korean rules
The Korean ingredient dictionary lists no limit, label caution or functional-ingredient status for it.
Questions
Is 레티날 the same as 레틴알?
Yes. 레틴알 has been the standard ingredient name since September 2017; 레티날 is the old name that marketing still uses.
Is retinal a wrinkle functional ingredient in Korea?
Not in the Korean dictionary’s list. Korean 주름 개선 (wrinkle improvement) claims rely on ingredients such as retinol, retinyl palmitate, adenosine or polyethoxylated retinamide.
What is the difference between 레틴알 and 레티놀?
Retinol (레티놀) has to be converted to retinal in the skin first; retinal (레틴알) is one step closer to retinoic acid.
Sources
- Korea Cosmetic Association — ingredient dictionary (대한화장품협회 성분사전)
- “Retinoids in cosmeceuticals”, Dermatologic Therapy 19(5), 2006 — a review of retinol, retinaldehyde and retinyl esters
- Didierjean L. et al., “Topical retinaldehyde increases skin content of retinoic acid and exerts biologic activity in mouse skin”, Journal of Investigative Dermatology 106(5), 1996
Checked 27 October 2026. Rules change — the official texts above are the final word.