Vitamin C serum for the face
Vitamin C is an essential component in skincare, widely celebrated for its anti-aging and skin-brightening benefits. However, its advantages for the skin extend far beyond these attributes. Vitamin C helps prevent uneven skin tone and dark spots, making it a key ingredient in many cosmetic products aimed at achieving a more even and radiant complexion.
Effective forms of Vitamin C include Magnesium Ascorbyl Phosphate, Ascorbyl-6-Palmitate, Disodium Isostearyl 2-O-L-Ascorbyl Phosphate, and Ascorbic Acid Sulphate. These specific types are beneficial because they are stable, meaning they won’t easily break down and lose effectiveness in products. This stability is crucial for Vitamin C to be effective at the physiological level, improving the skin’s overall appearance.
It’s recommended to use skincare products with up to 20% Vitamin C. Concentrations higher than this can lead to skin irritation, but up to this level, they can significantly enhance skin brightness and help in managing pigmentation issues. Thus, incorporating Vitamin C into your skincare routine can offer a multitude of benefits, from evening out skin tone to promoting a youthful, luminous complexion.
What does vitamin C serum do to the face?
Skin-brightening agent
Vitamin C is a key skin-brightening agent, but it’s not the only one; there are other brightening agents available in the market as well. However, Vitamin C is one of the most widely marketed. It acts as a tyrosinase inhibitor. Tyrosinase is an enzyme crucial for the production of melanin, the pigment that gives color to our skin. Vitamin C inhibits the activity of tyrosinase, blocking its ability to produce melanin, thereby brightening the skin.
Antioxidant
Another important function of Vitamin C is that it acts as an antioxidant. This emphasises the necessity of using Vitamin C in the morning since it creates a protective layer of antioxidants on the skin to resist free radicals. Free radical damage can be caused by exposure to sunshine, environmental stresses, pollution, and other factors that contribute to rapid skin degradation. However, it is vital to note that Vitamin C cannot replace sunscreen. Although both Vitamin C and sunscreen protect against free radicals, Vitamin C acts as an extra layer of defence against UV-induced free radicals, complementing rather than replacing sunscreen.
Collagen Booster
Vitamin C’s key advantage is its ability to create collagen. It promotes collagen synthesis and inhibits matrix metalloproteinases (MMPs), which damage collagen fibers. Vitamin C increases collagen formation while also protecting existing collagen from premature breakdown. This dual action is essential for preserving skin elasticity, firmness, and youthfulness.
When to apply vitamin C serum to your face?
Morning Routine
Vitamin C Serum for Morning Use: Vitamin C serum may be used both in the morning and at night, with different benefits at each time. When applied in the morning, it works as an antioxidant, protecting the skin from damaging sun rays and environmental stress. After a shower, use Vitamin C serum first, followed by any additional serums, moisturiser, and sunscreen. It’s crucial to remember that this serum should be used after toner.
Night Routine
Vitamin C Serum for Nighttime: At night, vitamin C serum helps to reduce hyperpigmentation and promote collagen formation. After cleaning and toning your skin, apply Vitamin C serum, then any other serums and moisturiser. This bedtime practice helps your skin to recover from the everyday stresses it faces. It is critical, however, to avoid taking vitamin C serum in conjunction with retinoids. However, in this situation, dermatologists’ perspectives differ; some feel that combining the two can be beneficial, while others disagree. In such cases, it is better to choose one over the other based on whatever best suits your skin..
Personal Experience
My Vitamin C Journey: Personally, Vitamin C has significantly helped me eliminate pigmentation. I began by applying it both in the morning and at night, avoiding it on nights when I used retinoids.
For beginners, it’s advised to start with a low concentration , ranging from 5% to 10%.
Based on my experience, after about three to four months, as my skin adapted, I increased the concentration to 12%. However, I’ve maintained a consistent use of 10% to 12% concentration over the last one year, which has effectively kept my skin free from pigmentation.
It’s important to understand that regular application is essential to see noticeable improvements with Vitamin C serum.
Starting Tips
“If you’re new to using Vitamin C serum, begin with a lower concentration (5% to 10%) to allow your skin to acclimate. As your skin becomes more tolerant, you may consider increasing the concentration. I’ve been using Vitamin C serum for over a year and have observed significant improvement in reducing pigmentation. However, I continue to use a concentration that suits my skin best—between 10% and 12%. It’s important to remember that consistent application is necessary to achieve and maintain noticeable results.”
Rules for applying vitamin c serum in the morning
After your morning shower, gently pat your skin dry with a towel to avoid creating fine lines and wrinkles; it’s important not to rub. If you use a toner, apply it next. Then, take a pea-sized amount of vitamin C serum on your fingertip and spread it evenly across your entire face, including the neck and chest. If you have additional serums in your routine, apply them after the vitamin C serum. Follow this with a moisturizer to hydrate your skin, and then finish with sunscreen, the most important step in your skincare regimen. Both vitamin C and sunscreen are essential for protecting your skin against free radicals.
For those with oily skin, you might consider skipping the moisturizer, although it’s crucial for people with dry skin to use a moisturizer before sunscreen to ensure the skin remains hydrated.
As we get older, it becomes even more important to take care of our skin. Dry skin and the development of fine lines and wrinkles are side effects of estrogen deficiency, which occurs naturally as we age. Though we can’t stop the clock from ticking away, we can slow its impact on our skin. Using moisturizers to keep the skin moisturized and sunscreen and vitamin C to protect it from UV rays. Environmental stress should be part of your regular skincare regimen. In order to keep your skin healthy and looking good, these steps are essential.
One thing to be careful about during your morning shower is to avoid putting hot water from the hand shower on your face. Please don’t be lazy; wash your face with cold water. Hot water strips your skin of essential oils
Can you use benzoyl peroxide with vitamin c?
Mixing multiple skincare products may sometimes be confusing. People often wonder if it’s safe to mix benzoyl peroxide(BPO), which is often used to treat acne, with vitamin C, which is known to make skin healthier and brighter. Let’s delve into this issue and see if these two can operate together to improve your skin.
Benzoyl peroxide is great for fighting acne because it kills bacteria and helps reduce redness. Treats mild to moderate acne. Does not treat whiteheads or blackheads. Effective against pus-filled acne. On the other hand, Vitamin C is loved for making the skin look brighter, reduce hyperpigmentation and for protecting it against damage from the sun and pollution.
So, can they be used together? It depends on how you utilize them. If you use benzoyl peroxide as a face cleanser, you will most likely wash it off before it reacts with Vitamin C. This implies they will not conflict with one another because the benzoyl peroxide does not remain on your skin long enough to cause a problem.
However, if you’re using benzoyl peroxide as a leave-on treatment, like a cream you put on spots and leave it there, then you might want to be careful when applying vitamin c serum on top. Vitamin C is unstable in nature. Applying Benzoyl peroxide with Vitamin C might disturb the pH of the skin, reducing the efficacy of Vitamin C. Applying these two products together could also potentially irritate or damage your skin. However, if you still want to include both in your skincare routine, there are ways to do it safely. One approach is to use them on alternate days. Alternatively, you could apply Vitamin C in the morning, along with sunscreen for extra protection, and use benzoyl peroxide at night, making sure to follow it with a moisturizer. This method helps ensure that each product can work effectively without interfering with the other.
For those with sensitive skin, there’s another technique you might find helpful: apply a layer of moisturizer before using benzoyl peroxide and then add another layer of moisturizer on top. This method can help minimize irritation by providing a protective barrier between your skin and the benzoyl peroxide.
But no worries about combining BPO cleanser and vitamin C! Since you wash off the cleanser, BPO doesn’t stick around to interact with the vitamin C. However, if you use BPO as a leave-on spot treatment, it’s better to avoid using vitamin C at the same time.
No worries about combining BPO cleanser and vitamin C! Since you wash off the cleanser, BPO doesn’t stick around to interact with the vitamin C. However, if you use BPO as a leave-on spot treatment, it’s better to avoid using vitamin C at the same time.
