Vitamin C: Hit or Myth
Shining the light on ascorbic acid
Vitamin C is one of those skincare ingredients that everyone seems to have heard of, but with notoriety also comes many misunderstandings. Regardless of if vitamin C is incorporated in your skincare routine, you would have probably heard certain statements made about this active ingredient.
Today we’re going to take a closer look at some of these claims and examine if they are hits or if they’re just myths!
Claim: Vitamin C is a powerful antioxidant
Hit! Vitamin C has antioxidant properties which can help with soothing your skin. As with other antioxidants, it can help to neutralize free radicals that cause oxidative stress and oxidative damage. It can also help lessen the appearance of redness in the skin for a more even complexion.
Claim: Vitamin C lightens the colour of your skin
Myth! It’s a common misconception that vitamin C works by lightening the color of your skin. The way it works is by helping to reduce hyperpigmentation (dark spots) and by lessening the appearance of redness in your skin – evening out your skin tone, leading to a brighter–looking complexion. When your skin tone is even, it reflects light more uniformly, leading to a more radiant and glowy complexion.
Claim: You should only use vitamin C at night
Myth! Vitamin C can actually help protect your skin from the harmful effects of UV rays which makes it a good choice for day time use. However, it is also important to layer it with a sun protection product of at least SPF 50 to experience this photoprotection. Using a vitamin C product without UV protection may have the opposite effect and increase your sun sensitivity.
Claim Vitamin C is not suitable for sensitive skin
Myth! There’s a vitamin C product out there for almost everyone! For example, the Vitamin C Green Tea Enzyme Brightening Serum has a lightweight, watery texture for easy application and it contains moisturizing ingredients such as Green Tea Probiotics and hyaluronic acid. I always recommend making an in-store visit, or getting your hands on a sample, to do a patch test to ensure a product is right for you before spending your hard earned money on it.
Claim: You don’t need a super high concentration of vitamin C to see effects
Hit! While there are some folks out there who think more is more, I don’t consider myself one of them. In fact, going too high with the concentration of active vitamin C might increase your skin sensitivity and negatively affect your skin, delivering the opposite effect of what you’re after. You’ll want a vitamin C product that works and can be used for a long time for the most optimal results.
So whether you’re on the lookout for a product to give you a radiance boost, are looking for improved photoprotection, or something to help with your oxidative stress, give vitamin C another chance!
You may find you like what you C!
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