Raechele Cochran Gathers, MD Vitamin C serums are a beauty trifecta for amazing skin! Using vitamin C serum protects your skin from damage, helps build collagen to keep your skin youthful looking, and fades dark spots—giving you brighter and more even skin. Here’s what you need to know about using vitamin C serum on your skin, and we have recommendations for what products to buy.
Benefits of Vitamin C Serums
Vitamin C, also known as ascorbic acid, is an essential nutrient for our health. It helps our bodies to repair injury and is crucial for our immune system function. It also is key for helping our bodies make collagen, which is key for healthy, younger looking skin.
Vitamin C is also a very potent antioxidant. That means that it helps our bodies respond to and repair damage. On the skin, the antioxidant effect of vitamin C helps our bodies respond to stressors like air pollution, cigarette smoke, cosmetic irritants, sun damage, and other damaging chemicals or biologic processes that may be occurring.
While a tall glass of OJ in the morning might help your body’s internal fight against free radicals and stressors, consuming vitamin C is not likely to do much for your skin. Scientific studies have shown that only a small fraction of vitamin C from oral intake will reach the skin. Therefore, if you want the maximum benefits from Vitamin C, you’ll need to use a serum or other topical vitamin C supplement on it.
Skin Benefits of Vitamin C Serums
- Reduces wrinkles and aging
- Reduces dark spots and hyperpigmentation
- Evens and brightens skin tone
- Helps protect against sun damage
- Protects collagen and helps produce collagen
- Helps prevent and repair damage to the skin
- Helps protect skin from pollution
3 Benefits of Vitamin C Serums
1. Protects your skin from sun damage
While you shouldn’t ditch the sunscreen, vitamin C serums work synergistically with your sunscreens to help protect your skin from free radicals and the damaging UV rays of the sun.
2. Reduces Hyperpigmentation
Most people with skin of color are more bothered by the dark spots and uneven pigment left by acne than by the acne itself. Post inflammatory hyperpigmentation and conditions like melasma will benefit from the skin lightening properties of vitamin C serums. Vitamin C serums help decrease dark spots by decreasing the production of melanin in your skin.
3. Antiaging
Using vitamin C serums help boost collagen production in the skin, which helps prevent wrinkling and aging of your skin. Studies have found that using vitamin C serum helps improve the appearance of sun damaged skin, improving fine lines, texture and uneven pigment.
Choosing a Vitamin C Serum
So, there are about a million and one vitamin C serums out there. Which should you get? In general, here are some guidelines for what to look for in a Vitamin C Serum.
- Active ingredient: L-ascorbic acid
- Percentage active ingredient: 10-20% L-ascorbic acid
- Dark/Light resistant container
- Look for vitamin E (aka tocopherol, which stabilizes the vitamin C) and ferulic acid (helps your skin absorb the vitamin C)
- Choose a product that fits your price point. There are some very good serums under 50 dollars.
Vitamin C Serum Recommendations
Don’t think that you must spend a lot of money for a good vitamin C serum. Follow the guidelines above, and you should be able to find good products at your price point.
1. Timeless Skin Care 20% Vitamin C Plus E Ferulic Acid Serum
This affordable vitamin C serum comes in at a higher percentage of l-ascorbic acid and contains vitamin E and ferulic acid to help your skin absorb the vitamin C better.
2. L’Oréal Revitalift Derm Intensives Pure Vitamin C Serum
This has a lower percentage of L-ascorbic acid, 10%, so it’s ideal if your skin is prone to irritation. It also contains hydrating hyaluronic acid, which makes it great for more mature skin.
3. SkinCeuticals CE Ferulic
This is a personal favorite and also a brand recommended by a lot of us Derms. It is a pricier product, but it is consistently highly rated. This product contains 15% L-ascorbic acid and checks the vitamin C and ferulic acid boxes too.
Conclusions
Using a vitamin C serum will help brighten your skin, improve the signs of aging, protect your skin from damage and reduce the look of dark spots. Who wouldn’t want all that? You don’t have to spend a lot of money, but you do need to be knowledgeable about what to look for in a vitamin C serum. Always test a small area of your skin with the product before using it all over. And always use a sunscreen. Need advice on how to find a sunscreen for your skin tone? Read this.
