When boosting hydration, smoothing fine lines and erasing dark spots, vitamin C is your skin’s BFF. However, add a raft of other power ingredients, and you have the ultimate duos that do it all by working better together. So what dynamic duos help vitamin C to keep your skin balanced and brighter-looking? Read on to find out, says editor Trudi Brewer.
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According to London-based skin doctor Amiee Vyas, vitamin C is required for many bodily functions, including collagen and elastin – vital components for the skin to ligaments and tendons, cartilage and bone, and even the corneas in our eyes.” But when it comes to vitamin C in skincare, it does more than brighten. “It’s photoprotective, antioxidative, anti-pigmentary and overall anti-ageing effects,” says Vyas. Essentially vitamin C is an anti-pollution powerhouse. “It’s a potent antioxidant, which can neutralise free radicals from UV radiation, pollution, blue light and other aspects of our daily lives”. Finally, vitamin C can help to fade and prevent dark spots or hyperpigmentation. “It reduces melanin production through its action as a tyrosinase inhibitor, brightening skin and preventing oxidation of existing pigmentation, so it doesn’t become darker,” says Dr Vyas. Add the goodness of vitamin C with other active skincare ingredients to help this clever vitamin become more potent and stable. Here are the power couples to look out for in your daily routine. Read on to learn more.
Vitamin C and SPF
Sunscreen must be in your beauty routine daily - that is the only way to keep your skin safe. If the skin cancer risk isn't enough to convince you, you should know that up to 70 per cent of visible signs of ageing result from sun damage. When you apply a broad-spectrum SPF of 30 or higher, you're doing the right thing by your skin, but you can also level up your protection. According to Manhatten-based dermatologist Marisa Garshick, pairing your favourite SPF with an antioxidant vitamin C serum can give you even better sun protection. "Together, the sunscreen and vitamin C are going to protect against UV and free-radical damage that can occur from sun exposure," she says.
Supergoop Vitamin C + SPF 40 Serum, $87.
The cocktail of brightening vitamin C and organic sun filters gives your skin antioxidant protection and hydration. While this is your daily SPF it comes with the benefits of a dewy glow.
Murad Correct & Protect Serum Broad Spectrum SPF 45, $139.
A 100 per cent zinc mineral SPF that glides on the skin to feel like silk. Stacked with carotenoid technology, skin loving antioxidants such as vitamins B3, and lycopene that work to protect and perfect your skin.
Vitamin C & Retinol
"Retinol is a vitamin A derivative that helps regulate cell turnover and boost collagen production," says Dr Garshick. "Meanwhile, when applied topically, vitamins like C and peptides (proteins) help signal the body to produce more collagen." Since both ingredients help to stimulate collagen production, they're a powerful combination when used together. But according to Garshick, peptides also help improve the tolerability of retinol. When beginning a retinol regimen, new users commonly experience dryness, redness, and general skin irritation.” A moisturising serum or cream stackedd with nourishing peptides can decrease these unwanted side effects.
Boost Lab Night Renewal Serum, $35.
A great cheeky beauty buy, that’s made with that game-changing ingredient retinol to speed up your skin cell turnover, along with brightening and hydrating vitamins C and E. It’s liquid-light, sinks in within seconds and comes at an affordable price.
Kate Somerville Retinol Vita C Power Serum, $187.
Made to rejuvenate a dull, blotchy complexion. Not only does it boost brightness, with the stable form of vitamin C, the vitamin A smooths the look of an uneven skin texture, while the nourishing benefits of peptide rich coconut keep skin moisturised.
Vitamin C & Vitamin E
While vitamin C is an incredibly effective skincare ingredient to protect and brighten the skin, it's also often precariously unstable. You have likely heard of vitamin C "oxidizing" (turning a brownish hue when exposed to air) or being a common culprit for causing skin irritation; these factors all root back to the instability of vitamin C. But this can be drastically improved with the addition of vitamin E in a formula. "We already know that vitamin E is a great antioxidant, but vitamin E is too," says Dr Garshick.
Dr Le Winns Reversaderm Cellular Regeneration Cream, $70.
A multi-benefit day and night cream (ideal for streamlining your routine) that helps erase those signs of ageing thanks to Resveratrol and oligopeptide–24, vitamins C and E. It also gently exfoliates with glycolic acid and alpha hydroxy acids. This cream targets those dark patches on the skin and helps to transform a dull complexion.
Clinique All About Eyes Rich Cream, $81.
For dark circles, bags and fine lines, under eyes this rich cream hydrates day and night with the help of hyaluronic acid, vitamin E and shea butter, as well as wheat germ and barley extracts. The brightening action of green tea and vitamin C adds clarity, to the delicate under eye skin.
vitamin C & Hyaluronic Acid
The hydrating powers of hyaluronic acid are unrivalled. Its benefit is that it can hold 1000 times its weight in water, locking in moisture for hours. That is why it’s found in hundreds of serums and moisturisers. On the other hand, ceramides, while not so famous, yet vital when moisturising the skin to protect its barrier. Together these ingredients flood the skin with moisture, nourishing your complexion all day. Dr Garshick recommends layering a hyaluronic acid serum underneath your moisturiser that contains ceramides (lipids or fats found in nourishing plant oils), ceramides make up fifty per cent of skin’s composition, so it’s no surprise they play a vital role in determining how your skin looks and how it responds to environmental aggressors. Put simply, the combination of ceramides, hyaluronic acid and vitamin C brighten and fortify the skin.
Sunday Riley C.E.O Afterglow Brightening Vitamin C Cream, $110.
Think of this luxe-y cream as a glow-giver in a jar. Supercharged with a stable vitamin C and stacked with sodium hyaluronate, the gel-like texture hydrates without overloading skin in the warmer months. Add lutein for an essential antioxidant boost, and you will be sporting a glow in days.
Kiehl’s Powerful-Strength Line-Reducing & Dark Circle-Diminishing Vitamin C Eye Cream, $107.
The brightening benefits of vitamin C are excellent for dark circles under the eyes. This lightweight formula contains 10 per cent pure vitamin C, tri-peptide and hyaluronic acid. That equals, a brighter-looking fresher, hydrated looking eye area - fast.
Ideal for Christmas gifting.