Remedy skincare review: Why I’d take this skin aging serum to a desert island!

Anyone interested in finding the most effective anti-aging skincare products out there will know there is a dizzying array of options.

Up there at the top of the list of ingredients are retinoids for their skin smoothing, tone-evening effect; peptides for tackling wrinkles and boosting skin cell activity; niacinamide for reducing inflammation, minimizing pores and reducing hyperpigmentation; ceramides for guarding the skin barrier and antioxidants for preventing a build-up of free radicals which accelerate skin aging.

Trying to pack all those into a skincare routine is a job in itself.

Remedy

So it’s small wonder that a dermatologist has been smart enough to package those high-performing ingredients into one anti-aging serum.

The dermatologist is Dr Muneeb Shah, one half of the popular YouTube channel Doctorly.

He launched the Remedy skincare brand in 2024, aiming to simplify the routines of his patients and viewers by combining active ingredients to create a capsule range of products that target particular concerns like skin aging, dark spots and body bumps.

And they appear to have been well received.

Carefully formulated and, crucially, not over-priced (£36/$38 for 30ml), I have been particularly impressed with the Remedy for Healthy Aging serum.

Ingredients

Having researched effective skin ingredients for several years now, there are a few that stand out as being well evidenced.

Retinoids are a given, but my particular favorite is retinaldehyde which is present in this serum (and gives it its pale yellow color) at 0.05 per cent along with 0.1% encapsulated retinol.

Ironically, despite being a slightly less potent retinoid, retinol can often be more irritating than retinal (which is one conversion step behind tretinoin/retinoic acid whereas retinol is two steps behind).

I’ve had zero sensitivity from using this serum on my 52-year-old hormonally-challenged skin so the combination of the two should be well tolerated by most.

Then you’ve got Matrixyl 3000 – one of the best evidenced peptide formulations out there. Unless I’m buying a brand that uses a proprietary peptide i.e. one they made themselves (think No7 Future Renew or OneSkin) I would be looking Matrixyl 3000 to be in the ingredients list. And it’s there in the Remedy formula.

It also includes Argireline, sometimes called botox in a bottle, due to its ability to block neurotransmitters that signal muscle contractions. My experience of it is that it does have an impact on those finer lines, but is no competitor to botox for the deeper ones!

Then you’ve got your bonus ingredients like niacinamide, ceramides, and antioxidants resveratrol and ferulic acid.

These are the nice to haves that most of us can’t fit in to one skincare routine so I love that this serum does it for us.

The bottom line

Remedy for Health Aging is a very cleverly and carefully formulated serum that is non-fragranced and which I personally found non-irritating.

I have been using it in the evenings in place of my usual retinal serum.

While I think that in isolation there are better peptide and retinal serums, the beauty of this product is you cover all bases so you don’t have FOMO on skincare actives because they’re all in there!

That’s why it’s a serum I would take on holiday and to a desert island if I ever found myself being whisked away to one!

There is a whole argument to be had around how effectively all these individual ingredients put together work and the extent to which they can penetrate the skin.

But if you just want to follow a simple routine that includes proven anti-aging ingredients then this is ideal. You would apply it in the evenings followed by a nourishing ceramide and omega fatty acids-rich moisturizer or oil.

Put your sunscreen on in the morning and you’re good to go : )

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