Why Vitamin C Is Essential to Your Skin

Skincare is an essential routine for many people. Using the right skincare products moisturizes your skin, improves collagen production and reduces skin inflammation. Vitamin C is an essential skin care product that has multiple therapeutic benefits. Read on to discover why most people use vitamin C for skincare.

Many people dream of having brighter, clearer, and smoother skin. Unfortunately, this is not always easy to achieve. However, the legendary vitamin C is a perfect ingredient in beauty and skincare. It contains antioxidants and anti-inflammatory properties, making it a secret remedy for alleviating various skin conditions. Unsurprisingly, many beauty product manufacturers continually incorporate it into their cosmetic products.

Vitamin C can be obtained from several nutritional intakes, such as fruits and vegetables. Furthermore, topical products such as salves, creams, lotions, and ointments are incorporated with vitamin C to improve the upper skin layers by reducing hyperpigmentation, preventing premature skin aging, alleviating wounds, and reducing the appearance of wrinkles on the skin.

Why is Vitamin C Essential to Your Skin?

Some people may describe vitamin C as a" holy grail" for healthy skin. Therefore, there are several reasons your skin needs vitamin C:

It Hydrates the Skin

Your skin needs sufficient moisture to prevent skin dehydration. Furthermore, proper skin hydration leads to healthier skin and prevents premature aging. According to Wang et al. (2020), vitamin C is highly reliable and retains the moisture in your skin for a plump and smoother appearance.

Therefore, if you don't want dry, scaly, rough, or patchy skin, why not try a vitamin C topical? As a clinical research report, the hydration level of vitamin C is essential for healthy skin.

It protects the Skin against Harmful UV Rays

When your skin is frequently exposed to UV rays, especially from excess sunlight, it gets damaged and dehydrated. According to Woodby et al. (2020), vitamin C helps protect the skin from the effects of UV rays. Besides, you can combine it with a broad-spectrum CBD sunscreen for more therapeutic benefits and stronger protection.

Can Help Reduce Dark Spots and Hyperpigmentation

If your skin has parts that are darker than others, it may be hyperpigmented. This condition results from extreme exposure to UV rays and consistent environmental and oxidative stress on the skin. It can make you appear older than you are, and fortunately, vitamin C offers a viable solution. According to Pawlowska et al. (2019), vitamin C has antioxidant properties that help prevent dark spots. Besides, it protects against damage from UV rays, hence counteracting hyperpigmentation resulting from the same.

Clinical trials on the effects of vitamin C on the skin report that most participants had their dark spots reduced and improved after applying topical products infused with vitamin C. However, more research is necessary to determine how effective vitamin C is in brightening the skin.

Helps Produce Collagen

Collagen gives your skin a smoother and more youthful appearance. Furthermore, it improves skin firmness. Unfortunately, aging reduces collagen production in the body. As a result, your skin ends up sagging. According to Gref et al. (2020), vitamin C boosts collagen production, thus improving skin firmness.

Vitamin C For Skin Care; How to Use

If you want to use vitamin C for skincare, you can obtain it from:

Food Sources

Vitamin C is a nutrient from foods rich in vitamins, such as fruits (berries and oranges) and vegetables.  

Topical Application

Applying products topically to the affected areas is advantageous because vitamin C gets directly absorbed into your skin. Moreover, the beauty industry understands vitamin C's importance in giving you smoother skin and offering protection against free radicals. That's why serums, moisturizers, and toners infused with vitamin C are frequently used, among other skin products.

Topicals vs. Food Sources; Which is More Effective?

Regarding vitamin C for skincare, the major debate is whether to apply it topically or obtain it from food sources such as fruits and vegetables. After all, you are what you eat. Suppose you are battling a skin condition, such as rough, oily, uneven-toned, or dehydrated skin, you would opt for the most effective sources of vitamin C.

Research suggests applying topical products infused with vitamin C effectively improves skin health. Taking dietary vitamin C may not offer enough nutrients for a greater improvement of skin health. It only gets to the lower levels of your skin, not the top layers that most skin conditions affect.

Therefore, topical vitamin C products are the way to go. Furthermore, you have various choices: serums, toner, moisturizers, cleansers, sunscreens, and oils. The good thing with topical applications is that they can have a vitamin C concentration below 1% but effectively deliver.

How Often Should You Use Vitamin C?

Vitamin C topicals are majorly recommended for adults and not children. If you want to reap the best results, you can apply the product once or twice daily, in the morning and at night. Also, when it comes to the dosage, follow the instructions on the label.

Notably, you should start small if you are a newbie. You may increase the concentration if your skin tolerates the product well. A patch test can also help determine how your skin will react to the beauty product infused with vitamin C. If your skin gets too sensitive and an allergic reaction emerges, it would be best to stop using the product.

Conclusion

Vitamin C is an essential ingredient in skincare. Dermatologists are continually recommending it as a remedy to various skin problems. Moreover, it is essential to the skin because it helps keep it hydrated, reduces black spots and hyperpigmentation, improves your skin's appearance, and reduces aging effects, giving you a degree of youthfulness.

Vitamin C has anti-inflammatory properties that reduce inflammatory skin conditions like acne. Furthermore, it has antioxidant properties that protect the skin from oxidative stress and removes fine lines and wrinkles that hasten skin aging. Moreover, it has anti-bacterial properties that remove bacteria, dirt, and oils from the skin. Additionally, it moisturizes the skin and improves collagen production, which improves skin firmness.

Vitamin C can be sourced from foods or other topical topicals. Notably, the topicals are most effective in addressing skin issues. Therefore, why not introduce vitamin C to your skincare routine? You can use it in the morning and at night to improve its efficacy.

When purchasing topical products infused with vitamin C, read the product label and ensure that you are not allergic to any ingredients listed in the product description. Furthermore, ensure the product does not have harmful ingredients, such as healthy metals and pesticides.

References

Pawlowska, E., Szczepanska, J., & Blasiak, J. (2019). Pro-and antioxidant effects of vitamin C in cancer in correspondence to its dietary and pharmacological concentrations. Oxidative Medicine and Cellular Longevity, 2019.

Gref, R., Deloménie, C., Maksimenko, A., Gouadon, E., Percoco, G., Lati, E., ... & Couvreur, P. (2020). Vitamin C–squalene bioconjugate promotes epidermal thickening and collagen production in human skin. Scientific reports, 10(1), 1-12.

Woodby, B., Penta, K., Pecorelli, A., Lila, M. A., & Valacchi, G. (2020). Skin health from the inside out. Annu. Rev. Food Sci. Technol, 11, 235-254.

Wang, K., Jiang, H., Li, W., Qiang, M., Dong, T., & Li, H. (2018). Role of vitamin C in skin diseases. Frontiers in physiology, 819.