One of the common side effects of differin especially during initial usage is skin redness and irritation. However, this does not affect all patients, and you can use differin directly on the skin as first layer if you do not experience any skin sensitivity. Skin irritation can also be reduced if you reduce the amount or frequency of appplication.
However, despite the above strategies, if bothersome skin irritation still occurs, applying a moisturizer first followed by differin will help further reduce the skin irritation without reducing the benefits of differin.
