OTC/prescription skin care

I am curious on how you guys think or feel about using the OTC or prescription skin care products for anti-aging/reversal, like retinol or prescription retin-a and there are many others like lactic acid, chemical peels etc . Is there the same feeling on those products as with the OTC and prescription drugs for hair (ie rogaine and propecia)?

I was doing some research a few days ago about this and estrogen creams came up a lot of times. Premarin and Estrace. Apparently estrogen is the most effective anti aging topical for the skin, for women atleast. I guess it's worth a try. But I would like CS or the other masters here to comment whether Premarin(conjugated estrogens from pregnant mare's urine) or Estrace(Estradiol) would be more effective and less damaging. If it was upto me to guess I would say Estrace would be safer.


http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/11705091

This reproductive hormone prevents a decrease in skin collagen in postmenopausal women; topical and systemic estrogen therapy can increase the skin collagen content and therefore maintain skin thickness. In addition, estrogen maintains skin moisture by increasing acid mucopolysaccharides and hyaluronic acid in the skin and possibly maintaining stratum corneum barrier function. Sebum levels are higher in postmenopausal women receiving hormone replacement therapy. Skin wrinkling also may benefit from estrogen as a result of the effects of the hormone on the elastic fibers and collagen.