Eye serum isn't necessarily better than eye cream, but using a water-based eye serum can be a more efficacious way to apply potent active ingredients to the skin. A liquid or gel serum can penetrate the skin to better deliver moisture and active ingredients into the skin—plus they can be easier than creams to smooth around your delicate eye area, says Dr. Turner.

It took over two years of tweaking TRNR Skin to make sure it achieved all those goals. Turner selects each ingredient in the brand’s products. The products marry skincare staples like niacinamide, green tea extract and bakuchiol with lesser known active ingredients like yacon root supplemented with inulin that Turner and scientific research have identified as helpful for skin health. Turner has published over 20 peer-reviewed articles in journals such as Nature Structural Biology, Journal of the American Academy of Dermatology, Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences and Archives of Dermatology.

Mushrooms have a long, rich history, and many cultures have been harnessing their wellness powers before it was trendy. "Mushrooms have long been used since traditional medicinal practices throughout Asia, and their use has also been described in ancient Greece, most notably for their anti-inflammatory and wound-healing properties for the skin," says Dr. Turner.

New York dermatologist Dr. Ryan Turner, who you might have seen on NBC News, unveiled TNR skin the same day. It aims to simplify skincare routines by distilling them into just 3 products, including an “all-in-one Niacinamide treatment serum to combat blemishes, signs of aging, stress and irritation.” Dr. Turner has previously worked with CeraVe, so he knows the ropes of clinical skin care.

“They sound similar in concept, and you absolutely need both to achieve healthy skin,” says Dr. Ryan Turner, M.D., New York City-based board-certified dermatologist and co-founder of TRNR Skin. As he explains, water is the underlying connection, but their functions are different. “Hydration is all about pulling water into the surface layers of the skin while moisturizing is about trapping it within to support and strengthen its barrier,” he says.

“Hyaluronic acid is a humectant, meaning it attracts water to and retains it in the skin,” Ryan Turner, MD, a board-certified dermatologist in New York City, tells SELF.1 (And a lot of H2O at that: Hyaluronic acid can hold up to 1,000 times its weight in water.)2 Think of it like a sponge; as it pulls in moisture and absorbs it, it puffs up, helping to both hydrate and plump the skin. As a result, your complexion looks smoother and more vibrant, and fine lines may be less noticeable, Dr. Turner says.

“We often say, ‘The answer is in the history,’ when we’re trying to discover the cause of a breakout,” says board-certified dermatologist Ryan Turner, M.D., the founder of Turner Dermatology in New York City. If you went to his office, he would examine the spots but he would also ask a bunch of questions to determine what was going on in the weeks leading up to the breakout. Did you travel? Eat something new? Sample a product at a store? Swim in a pool? Sleep somewhere different?

Both red and blue light therapy are a type of photodynamic therapy, meaning they use light in different wavelengths of the color spectrum to penetrate skin. You may also see them referred to as low-level laser light therapy, cold laser therapy, biostimuation therapy or photobiomodulation therapy. Ryan Turner, M.D., a board-certified dermatologist in New York City calls them “an established part of a number of dermatologists’ treatment protocols.” They’re also used in at-home products as a weekly or even daily treatment.  

What causes acne scars?

First things first, let’s best understand what causes acne scars before diving into how to help treat and remove them.

According to Chwalek, acne scars occur “when there is significant inflammation damaging deeper tissue and resulting in a depressed scar.”

This prolonged inflammation in acne cysts or nodules is most common, although all forms of acne, “including red papular acne (pimples), pustules, white heads and black heads,” per Turner, can also result in scarring. In short, inflammation in the skin causes damage to the collagen in the skin, leading to scarring. “The longer a person delays treatment, the more the risk of scarring,” Turner adds.

If your eczema comes with little cracks in the surface of your skin, what you’re dealing with is likely asteatotic eczema, a subtype of the chronic inflammatory condition that is characterized by fissures in the skin that resemble a cracked desert floor. It’s just one of the many kinds of eczema out there, but also one you should pay close attention to, says Ryan Turner, M.D., an assistant professor of dermatology at the Albert Einstein College of Medicine in New York City. “In severe cases [asteatotic eczema] becomes painful, and the cracks can let bacteria into the skin and lead to infection,” says Dr. Turner.