We all want our skin to feel and look its best and there are countless products out there all promising to help us achieve a more youthful, radiant look. But sometimes, no matter what we do, our skin can still appear dull, grey or washed out. After all, it has to battle against the elements each day with pollution, indoor heating, air conditioning and poor eating habits all taking their toll on our skin. But there is a product by Skin Doctors, called Gamma Hydroxy which claims to help restore the younger looking skin hidden beneath our lifeless surface skin.


Skin Doctors is a rapidly expanding Australian skincare company whose aim is to provide cosmeceutical strength skincare. This means it’s supposedly stronger than ordinary creams with results that are comparable to some cosmetic surgical procedures. Their products are designed to make a very noticeable and visible difference to our skin.

What is Gamma Hydroxy™

Gamma Hydroxy™ is a smooth, white cream that's used daily instead of, or underneath your regular moisturizer. Its primary function is to gently resurface your skin and works at exfoliating throughout the day and night. It's described on their website as ‘a new generation in cosmetic skin resurfacing for the best results possible without a chemical peel!’ Its aim is to reduce the appearance of acne scarring and skin blemishes as well as smoothing wrinkles, reducing signs of aging and pore size. I was after fresher looking skin but wouldn't have minded a reduction in wrinkles and pore size too.

Who is it suitable for?

Because this cream is quite strong, it's recommended a patch test is undertaken on a small section of the skin you want to treat and wait 24 hours. If you have any allergic reaction or if any irritation occurs, you must stop using it. You are also warned against using the cream if you have skin that's broken, inflamed or sun burnt. I didn't have any adverse reaction to the cream so was able to carry on using it.

How to use Gamma Hydroxy™

The instructions tell you to cleanse your face then massage a small amount of cream over your skin. Unlike exfoliating creams and scrubs, you don't wash it off afterwards. Instead you leave it on all day, then in the evening you cleanse your face again and reapply for the night.

You can carry on using the cream for as long as you wish. They tell you not to worry if you notice a slight flaking or peeling of your skin. This is just your dead skin cells rejuvenating at a faster rate than normal. If this happens you simply apply moisturiser over the top. If the peeling is excessive, just use Gamma Hydroxy™ less often.

My experiences

I really love this cream and use it every winter without fail. It's easy to apply and after I've put it on my face and neck I can feel a slight tingling sensation. I find this quite reassuring as I feel this shows that it's actively doing something. I haven't ever experienced the flaking they mention can happen either.

After just a week of using it, I always notice a real difference to my skin. Even without using an additional moisturizer on top, my skin still feels lovely and soft and is definitely more glowing. It's quite reassuring to think that this cream is continually resurfacing my skin without the need for extra facial scrubs and exfoliators. I can't say it's had any noticeable effect on wrinkles, but certainly my pores have diminished in size.

The first time I used Gamma Hydroxy, I didn't properly read the instructions and used a tanning bed for a few sessions. I was quite amazed at how fast my face turned brown, much more so than the rest of my body. Anyway, this was because the Gamma Hydroxy had heightened my skin's sensitivity to the UV rays. It did scare me a bit so since then I only use it during the winter months when I'm not bothered about getting a tan.

All in all, this cream does go a long way towards achieving what it says on the box and I'd certainly recommend it, particularly as it's suitable for most skin types. You can find Skin Doctors Gamma Hydroxy in some pharmacy stores but it's widely available from on line skincare sites as well as Amazon costing between $55-$70 for a 1.7 oz pot.