Lifting the lid on skin brightening and beautifying Vitamin C
The skin-beautifying promise of vitamin C has been well-aired for many years. One of skincare’s most famed ingredients, it’s a tricky little active to tie down to a simple explanation, mainly because it comes in different forms and names.
While the sweeping statements of vitamin C being a skin brightening, free-radical fighting active (plus more) is valid, there are ways to use it in products for max benefit.
What is vitamin C anyway?
Vitamin C is an ingredient found in our bodies, and our skin can benefit from it either through our diet or when applied topically. From a skincare point of view, it’s considered one of the most effective and safe actives out there, so hooray for that.
Its special powers lie in its anti-aging properties, which can tackle wrinkles, fine lines, and skin tone, and protect against environmental stressors. Yet, this smart-working vitamin comes under many guises on your skincare label, depending on its type, so we always put the “Vitamin C” note in brackets to help you.
The names you’ll commonly find in skincare include:
The big five of ethyl ascorbic acid (otherwise known as L-ascorbic acid).
Ascorbyl palmitate. Sodium ascorbyl phosphate.
Tetrahexyldecyl ascorbate.
Magnesium ascorbyl phosphate.
Here’s what they all do.
Ethyl Ascorbic Acid
One of vitamin C's most widely used derivatives, ethyl ascorbic acid , is pure, water-soluble, easily absorbed, and works harmoniously with almost every other active and botanical in skincare.
This means you can get maximum benefits fast, including protection against environmental stressors, reducing visible signs of aging and fading hyperpigmentation, while blending it with your other products without fear of a reaction. Sensitive to heat and light, always check that your products come in an amber bottle or jar because that helps preserve them.
Sodium Ascorbyl Phosphate
Another water-soluble form of vitamin C, sodium ascorbyl phosphate, doubles up on the skincare benefits by being a remarkably stable form of vitamin C. You see, vitamin C can oxidize quickly, which tampers with its ability to give you the best results.
Because sodium ascorbyl phosphate doesn’t do this as readily, it lasts well in the bottle and maxes out its promises. Among its predictably good skin-brightening perks, used in a vitamin C cream or serum, it can also help with acne, skin tone, and lightening.
Tetrahexyldecyl Ascorbate
Considered the stable form of vitamin C, tetrahexyldecyl ascorbate offers similar anti-aging and antioxidant benefits. It’s also linked to collagen preservation and free radical protection.
This one is generally used in oil-based products and must be formulated at specific pH levels to remain effective. That makes it a little trickier to handle than its counterparts, such as ethyl ascorbic acid, even though it's less sensitive to heat and light exposure.
Magnesium Ascorbyl Phosphate
Along with its youth-bringing capabilities, magnesium ascorbyl phosphate is hailed for its skin-soothing properties. It has a chameleon-like ability to work in both water-soluble and oil-based forms, which gives it versatility too.
Unlike tetrahexyldecyl, ascorbate doesn’t need a specific pH tolerance when used in formulations. Still, at the same time, it’s not as pure in antioxidant goodness as pure forms of vitamin C, like ethyl ascorbic acid.
Ascorbyl Palmitate
This combo involves blending ascorbyl acid with palmitate acid, which gives it some extra oomph in some respects but lessens the effectiveness of pure vitamin C at the same time.
On the plus side, it boosts the effects of vitamin E when used together, and its oil-loving nature helps it to stabilize certain sensitive skincare formulations.
How do we use vitamin C in our skincare
While we love the science that backs up the benefits of these types of vitamin C, among other derivatives, our products' primary focus is ethyl ascorbic acid and sodium ascorbyl phosphate. Considered stable and easy to formulate and match with other ingredients, we’re confident they up the efficacy levels we expect.
From your perspective, this means you can trust our vitamin C products to deliver, and you don’t need to get tied up in knots trying to find the proper routine that won’t irritate your skin. As with most actives, we would say that it’s always worth checking out concentration levels and testing them first.