The Most Important Vitamin for Your Skin

These days there are new cosmetic lines popping up everywhere touting the best new anti-aging technology. With such a flooded market, it is often hard to know which way to turn. Which one works the best? The most expensive one? The one with the most ingredients? You could spend hours reading the proclamations of skin creams trying to decide on the best product, but there are a few realities we should first understand before we make our choice. Our skin is our biggest organ and it absorbs everything you put on it, so please read the ingredients. If there is an ingredient with a number or color in the name, put it back on the shelf. The second thing to understand is that in order to have tight, glowing skin you have to give it the nutrients it needs to create elasticity and collagen.

Collagen is the most abundant protein found in your body. It is present in your muscles, ligaments, tendons, and connective tissue and it generally holds your body together. It is made up of three amino acids – glycine, proline, and hydroxyproline and is responsible for providing firmness and structure to your tissue. Not only does it provide structural support for our connective tissue but also for our skin. Unfortunately, as we age, collagen levels naturally decrease. From our early 20s, and certainly by the time we’ve reached our 40s, we lose the ability to manufacture collagen as abundantly as when we were younger. As a result of our declining collagen levels, we may notice that our skin begins to show visible signs of aging such as fine lines, wrinkles, sagging and a loss of elasticity and plumpness. It is usually around this time that we go in search of the best face cream on the market. Most face creams market themselves as some form of anti-aging magic, but the reality is that without an abundant amount of vitamin C in your system and in that face cream, that purchase will do more for the company that produced it than it likely will for your skin.

So what is it about Vitamin C?

Most people know vitamin C as the vitamin that keeps your immune system strong, but it’s also involved in the formation, maintenance, and protection of your bones, blood vessels, neurotransmitters, and collagen production. Having a vitamin C deficiency can lead to health problems such as scurvy, trouble healing wounds, bleeding gums, achy joints, fatigue, colds/viruses, and sagging skin and wrinkles. Without it, you wouldn’t be able to produce the collagen your body needs to thrive – for your muscles, your joints, or your skin. Technically, Vitamin C ignites collagen production and signals your body to make more.

Because high collagen levels provide your skin with a tighter, more supple, youthful appearance, supplementing with vitamin C paired with using it as a serum on your skin, helps to “plump” your skin cells and supports skin strength and elasticity. Much like retinol, it can also decrease hyperpigmentation and dark spots on the skin. Vitamin C is also essential for the synthesis of hyaluronic acid, another skincare ingredient having its heyday in the skincare world at the moment. Using Vitamin C topically for at least 12 weeks has been shown to decrease wrinkles, reduce protein fiber damage, and decrease roughness of the skin.

So what is the best form to buy it in?

Vitamin C is a water-soluble vitamin, which means your body can’t store it. So you must consume adequate amounts every day to replenish your stores and maintain the right levels.

Healthcare experts say you should aim for one gram (1,000 milligrams per day). When you think of foods that contain Vitamin C, you probably think of oranges and citrus fruits. But you may be surprised to learn there is actually seven times more vitamin C in a yellow pepper than there is in an orange. You can also find vitamin C in elderberry, broccoli, kiwi, strawberries, kale, and brussels sprouts. If these are foods that you are not eating everyday, then you are likely not getting enough of it.

Nowadays there are so many skincare products with vitamin C, from face wash, to lotion, as well as just pure vitamin C serum (the latter would be my choice). But there is a downside to topical applications of vitamin C and that is that it is not always efficiently absorbed. So to make sure, supplementing with vitamin C orally in addition to using it as a facial serum will bring the best results. And not only will you be boosting your skin health, but also the health of your immune system.