‘Vitamin C Serum’ Advantages and Myth-Busters

To get rid of sun spots; one of the popularly preferred ingredients is Vitamin C. Dermatologists claim that, Vitamin C is perhaps the most potent topical antioxidant available.” It has the capacity to neutralize free radical damage and it can protect the skin against UV light and other environmental factors, it can also block abnormal production of pigmentation to even skin tone and fade dark spots.” And while it’s best known for brightening of skin; dermatologists claim that, it can also be instrumental in skin firming.

Let us understand the best methods to utilize vitamin C for a brighter and smoother, complexion:

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1. Dermatologists state that to identify the right concentration as per your skin type is essential to analyze how effective your topical vitamin C will be. Experts always recommend wearing vitamin C with a low concentration of 10% with a slight increase to 15% or 20% as tolerated,” for beginners.
2. L-ascorbic acid is known to be most potent form of vitamin C and can be the most beneficial, whereas for dry and sensitive skin, magnesium ascorbyl phosphate, a water-soluble vitamin C, is less irritating.
3. It’s important to pay attention to the pH level. For normal skin, look for one with a low pH of approximately 3.5. If you have sensitive skin, you should use a formula with a pH of 5 to 6.
4. Sensitive skin types might attain benefits by choosing an appropriate serum and mixing the serum into a moisturizer, or opting for a vitamin C-infused moisturizer.
5. Expect slow results while using vitamin C and keep your approach slow while making it a routine. As, it helps with better results but at times it takes several weeks to improve the skin tone. So, be patient!
6. Vitamin C does not make the skin more vulnerable to sunburn, unlike hydroxyacids or retinol. The good news is that, when layered underneath sunscreen with a minimum of SPF 30, vitamin C protects the skin even more.

Apart from all the benefits it is known for, one major misconception about vitamin C is that it should not be applied on the skin before going out into the sun.

A cosmetic chemist, Ron Robinson, for Beauty Stat, controverts this myth by stating that “vitamin C does not make the wearer more sensitive to the sun. Vitamin C is a powerful antioxidant that helps to protect the skin from UV damage.” There are various other research studies to support Robinson’s conclusions.

A research study conducted in 2019 by The Journal of Clinical and Aesthetic Dermatology claims that vitamin C is a valuable and safe anti-pigmenting compound (which means it protects against hyper-pigmentation caused due to sun exposure or other environmental factors) and it is also useful in preventing ‘signs of photo-aging’ (which means occurrence of alterations in skin, induced due to chronic UVA and UVB exposure). Robinson explicates that Vitamin C being in its purest form as L-ascorbic acid is very unstable, is one of the reasons behind this misconception.

Therefore, Dr. Fieling states that the main idea of this demonstration is that “Vitamin C is generally safe to be used on all skin types and will not make the skin vulnerable to sunburn,” “Whereas, it actually protects the skin from sun damage,” So wearers can go ahead with it. It could be applied both in the morning and at night. It just needs to be followed up by SPF during the daytime to get the most out of its protection.

(With inputs from: Reviews of Popular dermatologists and original research and surveys conducted on various skin types)