The newest new skincare trend, yet one of the oldest dietary trends, vitamin C has it all, especially vitamin C powder, it seems. Used both as a food staple or as a dietary supplement, the super vitamin can play a huge role in reducing conditions like heart disease and can prevent strokes like a hemorrhagic stroke which is usually fatal with a 30% or less survival. Also, the regular consumption of vitamin C found in fruits and vegetables can greatly improve age-induced macular degeneration (poor eyesight) and can reduce the chances of becoming legally blind. It may be more beneficial to eat your vitamin C, or ascorbic acid, rather than rely on your own judgment on a recommended amount for supplementation. All the great benefits of vitamin C to your body beg the benefits from a skincare standpoint. Let's see the benefits and relate them to aging.
- What Is Vitamin C for Skincare?
- Where Is Vitamin C Found
- What Vitamin C Does for Skin
- Do Anti-Aging Supplements and Serums Even Work?
- Vitamin C Powder, C Serum as a Topical Vitamin C
- A DIY Serum or Moisturizer from Vitamin C Powder
- A DIY Bodywash With Powdered Vitamin C
- Are you Suffering from Vitamin C Deficiency?
- Other Vitamins and Ferulic Acid Added to the Mix
- Contraindications and Bonus Ideas from Vitamin C Studies
What Is Vitamin C for Skincare?
The more fitting question is what it doesn't vitamin C do for skincare. This newest craze of the skincare world is being hailed as a skin savior and a legendary vitamin antioxidant. While this is mostly true, a lot of these experts are leaving out the part wherein the vitamin needs other vitamin friends to reach its full potential for your skin. We will get back to that because there is indeed plenty to celebrate with L-Ascorbic acid all by itself. All the skincare experts are agreeing upon one thing and that is the antioxidant that can change the face of your skincare routine. The antioxidant superpower of drastically reducing the inflammatory response is good news for acne-prone skin as well as sunburned skin. The anti-aging benefits are downright miraculous, and the vitamin has a gentle spirit to mix in some other vitamins and ferulic acid for the ultimate skin makeover.
Vitamin C Products We Love
- Vitamin C Cleanser
- Ascorbic Acid Vitamin C Powder
by InstaNatural
We earn a commission if you make a purchase, at no additional cost to you.
by BULKSUPPLEMENTS.COM
We earn a commission if you make a purchase, at no additional cost to you.
Where Is Vitamin C Found
The most well-known source of vitamin C is found in oranges and orange juice. Many juicing companies will add ascorbic acid to the juice to up the ante, just FYI. The other food sources of vitamin C include, but are not limited to leafy greens, peppers, kiwi fruit, and tomatoes. You may want to make a mad dash to the grocery, but before you do, wait! While a fruit and veggie plate will certainly be beneficial, the idea is to eat your share of the best veggies and fruits and get yourself a concoction of the best vitamins to enhance vitamin's super strength for maximizing your results. In addition to a healthy diet and a vitamin supplement, you can also find a trusty serum. Any serums you choose should be at least made of 10% vitamin C, but you can also find serums that are 20% vitamin C, and those serums are worth the hassle of finding it. You will see that a lot of the serums and lotions on the market today will be lacking in any real weight and leading to a lot of unanswered questions. You should not be left questioning your facial skincare.
What Vitamin C Does for Skin
The short answer of what the super vitamin does for your skin would simply be everything. The ascorbic acid that is used in skincare products is pure vitamin C. And with that, the endless benefits of ascorbic acid include brighter skin, clearer complexion, more even skin tone, fine lines, and wrinkle correction, plumper, and glowing skin, and increased collagen production. Also, vitamin C works as a sunblock for the sunshine's harmful UV rays and free radicals that causes oxidative stress. Oxidative stress occurs when the free radicals in the environment can't be fought off well with a limited amount of antioxidants such as the antioxidants found in vitamin C-rich foods. Moreover, the ascorbic acid can heal dark circles under the eyes, dark spots, and sunspots from prolonged sun exposure and hyperpigmentation, therefore, reducing the appearance of dark or raised scars. The vitamin not only gives you glowing skin but can greatly lighten an uneven skin tone like with melasma, however, the vitamin doesn't work to darken a skin tone like in hypopigmentation; like with acne scarring. Finally, because of the skin cell turnover that vitamin C is famous for, the vitamin is touted for its remarkable wound-healing capabilities.
Do Anti-Aging Supplements and Serums Even Work?
When you are at the local drugstore and find yourself overwhelmed by the large selection of anti-aging serums, it is important to know what you are looking for. When you are trying to narrow your choices down to just one, beware of the imitation serums that aren't going to cut it. The very best serums will have L ascorbic acid listed as an ingredient on the label. The knock-off vitamin C will be listed under names like magnesium ascorbyl phosphate or ascorbyl palmitate. The topical vitamin C listed as L ascorbic acid is the most researched and proven effective on the skin. The amount of vitamin C you'll need will make you feel a bit like Goldilocks, but in the end, you should hunt for a serum containing anywhere from 10% to 20% ascorbic acid. If you buy anything lower, you'll be risking not getting any real results. If you reach above 20%, you may end up compromising your skin health and for not much more of a result. Anything above the 10-20% rule can make skin red and irritated, and you may get burnt from the acid or feel a real sensation of sensitive skin, and Lord help you already have sensitive skin! A lower percentage of ascorbic acid may be tolerated better for people who suffer from sensitive skin. On the other hand, magnesium ascorbyl phosphate is said to be better for people with sensitive skin, however, there's not much research that supports that hypothesis. The bottom line is that serums can be very beneficial to your skin just be sure to educate yourself about what ingredients and the best amount of the main ingredient is necessary for fantastic results.
Well, what about vitamin C supplementation with skincare supplements or otherwise? It is important to note that eating healthy to reap the rewards of the fruits and veggies and exercising will be so much more beneficial than just simply using a supplement. Having said that, supplements are potentially good. If you stick with the basic vitamins which have real antioxidant superpowers, pro and prebiotics, beta carotene, lycopene, and omega 3 fatty acids. A quick note about the supplements that claim they improve energy by putting coffee, guarana, or even green tea in the mix, these may seem natural, but it doesn't mean they're not harmful and addictive. Caffeine and the like are stimulants that can cause elevated blood pressure, jitteriness, withdrawals, and even insomnia with just short-term use. However, don't be too down about the energy we all crave, there are plenty of truly natural sources that pick you up out of your midday slump. Try something with L-Theanine, ashwagandha, creatine, or even vitamin B12. When you are deciding on your next supplement, be sure to ensure the efficacy and the safety of the supplement by looking for GMP (Good Manufacturing Practices) and USP (U.S. Pharmacopeia standard) on the bottles. However, with no more to go on for solid proof that skin supplementation actually works you may be better off sparking your new skincare routine personalized by you, for you. In the mornings after washing your face, you will work wonders to apply a vitamin C serum and apply a good moisturizing UV ray blocker. At nighttime, you need a deep moisturizer or cream after a good face wash followed by a ceramide. Even a ceramide and hyaluronic acid duo will attract and lock in moisture by the hyaluronic acid and at the same time, the ceramides will protect your skin's barrier.
Vitamin C Powder, C Serum as a Topical Vitamin C
Right now you will learn all the reasons why you need to use the pure vitamin C form L ascorbic acid to really make your skincare routine sparkle. The serums and supplements are dim in the glow of the powdered vitamin C, and it's of a few factors. First, in the serums and supplements, the instability of the form of the vitamin makes it too difficult to keep. The instability happens when the product has to be kept in a dark cool place or it will start to break down. The 100% L ascorbic acid in a powder form is quite resistant to losing its efficacy and value. In fact, vitamin C powder is very resilient and reliable by its amazing adaptability and its potency naturally. Adaptability means that there are many various ways to prepare and apply powdered vitamin C. The potency is the amount of the good stuff in the jar especially compared to a serum or a moisturizer. Don't toss the serums out yet though! There are plenty of ways they can still be used and to their maximum potential, too! Here are some good ideas to get you a running start with your potions and lotions
A DIY Serum or Moisturizer from Vitamin C Powder
This DIY is great because you need not use any power tools nor are your ingredients expensive or many. To start this magical potion, you'll need either a serum, moisturizer, or purified water, and of course, a skincare grade type of vitamin C. Please, do not use a food-grade or a supplement vitamin C pill or capsule to include in your homemade serum. This will take the use of it right out and the magic will be gone. Then use an aloe vera gel even if it's from your sun damage from last summer or if it's from a plant that lives in your front yard, use it. You can use whatever you wish here as it is completely optional, but a great few ideas are vitamin E oil, an already existing serum, an already existing moisturizer, or even hyaluronic acid. So the recipe will look like this:
-
1 tsp vitamin C powder
-
1 tsp of water/serum/moisturizer
-
1 tbsp of aloe gel
-
¼ tsp vitamin E oil, serum, lotion, or HA
A DIY Bodywash With Powdered Vitamin C
To make the benefits of these here mixtures the most attainable and useful is the primary goal. If you even use an already owned body scrub or even serums instead of something you don't already have, the recipe is certainly not ruined! As a result of employing the powdered vitamin C, or L ascorbic acid in different ways you're maximizing the potential of your skin and your skin's nourishment. Whatever you do, right after you cleanse your skin, moisturize. You should apply a moisturizer within 3 minutes of washing, no longer than that if you want to maximize your results. Yes, you have the power to maximize glowing skin and stop aging and even stand against aging with the most potent form of vitamin C, vitamin C powder!
-
1 teaspoon vitamin C powder ( do not use pills or capsules unless they are the right type of vitamin C)
-
1 teaspoon hot water
-
2 teaspoons jojoba oil, almond oil, or olive oil (jojoba is the best for gentle exfoliation)
-
3 drops of geranium or rose hips essential oil
-
1 drop of carrot seed essential oil
Vitamin C Products We Love
- Vitamin C Cleanser
- Ascorbic Acid Vitamin C Powder
by InstaNatural
We earn a commission if you make a purchase, at no additional cost to you.
by BULKSUPPLEMENTS.COM
We earn a commission if you make a purchase, at no additional cost to you.
Are you Suffering from Vitamin C Deficiency?
If you are taking vitamin C supplements or generalized vitamins and eating healthy foods like fruits and vegetables, then you're more than likely fine. If you are doing any one of these things, also, no. It is actually pretty rare to be suffering from a vitamin C deficiency, also known as scurvy. Approximately, 7% of people in the American population are suffering from a vitamin C deficiency. Some of the warning signs of scurvy include periodontitis and teeth falling out, perifollicular hemorrhage that causes blood vessels to burst at any hair follicles. There is also a direct link between vitamin C and iron deficiencies in some cases. There are many instances of damage to the body in scurvy by the loss of collagen such as bone and joint pain and bruising easily. There are some more signs of scurvy or a vitamin C deficiency, but the point is that in all of these cases the deficiency was corrected in as little as 2 weeks and could've been totally prevented with a vitamin C supplementation or eating a healthier diet. In any case, the reasons that a person could acquire scurvy in the first place may include anorexia-nervosa, poor diet, smoking cigarettes, alcoholism, renal or other types of dialysis, and severe mental health disorders. If you've been struggling with an iron deficiency for an extended amount of time and with no legitimate cause, it may be helpful to have a test for a vitamin C deficiency.
Other Vitamins and Ferulic Acid Added to the Mix
With the gentler L ascorbic acid, you have almost infinite possibilities to add vitamins to your skincare routine. The addition of vitamin D to your ascorbic acid will return stronger protection from free radical and oxidative stress caused the pollution and environmental factors like smoke. The duo improves your wrinkle reduction because of the plumping the collagen produces. Vitamin D will also work alongside vitamin C to correct any inflammation and redness doubly with their powers to neutralize the skin. However, the glowing skin, the scar or wound healing, melasma and hyperpigmentation, and dark circles or dark spots correction are all on ascorbic acid still. What vitamin D does is protect your skin barrier and renew skin cells. Vitamin E oil and vitamin C is doubly protective of your skin giving the best overall forgiveness and restorative power from the sun damage and UV rays. You will do your best to apply these antioxidants under your sunscreen. The power that any antioxidant combo possesses is nothing short of magic. The tangible effects of these antioxidants combined are seen in the aging reversal, oxidative stress, and sun damage. When you add ferulic acid to the mix you end up with the trio of all things that will undoubtedly protect you from further free radical damage. Ferulic acid is a great addition to the vitamin combo (vitamin C and vitamin E oil or serum) because the acid is a natural stabilizer for the vitamin's chemical makeup making it all more well, stable.
Contraindications and Bonus Ideas from Vitamin C Studies
As lovely as the versatility of the L ascorbic acid may be, the vitamin does have a natural enemy, retinoids. A mixture of these two anti-aging benefactors will cause a lot of heartache over your inflamed and irritated skin. Do not mix the two and be cautious of the layering order of your skincare routine. This is especially vital to know when you're thinking to combine the powers of niacinamides with ascorbic acid. The two, almost identical in their benefits, will cancel one another out and can cause a pretty nasty breakout and a painful irritation. Similarly, the AHA and BHA like salicylic acids and lactic acids will be a big "no-no" for the same reasons. After you write this cheat sheet down, go find all your serums, lotions, creams, and aloe vera gel and make something new and guaranteed to give lasting results. Go forth fearlessly and create your magical potion.
