May Help Protect Against Sun Damage
First Off, What Is Vitamin C?
As far as your skin is concerned, vitamin C is “a potent antioxidant that can neutralize free radicals,” explains board-certified dermatologist Patricia Wexler, M.D. “Because of its antioxidant properties, vitamin C aids in your skin’s natural regeneration process, which helps your body repair damaged skin cells.”. Quick refresher course on antioxidants: They prevent or reduce damage to our cells by neutralizing the production of highly reactive molecules called free radicals.
In other words, antioxidants help keep our body and our skin cells healthy.
How Else Does Vitamin C Benefit The Skin?
Amazingly, vitamin C’s skin-saving benefits aren’t limited to its antioxidant status. For one, when vitamin C is used topically, because it’s highly acidic, “the skin is triggered to heal itself by accelerating the production of collagen and elastin,” explains New York City-based dermatologist Howard Sobel, M.D.
What Is Topical Vitamin C?
Currently, there are many advertising claims of a topical formulation containing antioxidants that will protect against and reverse ageing. However, the truth is that many of the available formulations contain very low concentrations of antioxidants that are not well absorbed by the skin.