How do I add Vitamin C in my skincare (pic attached)

[SkincareHelp]

My skin seems to have lost it's glow recently Now I know this could just be a result of growling old and being more stressed with WFH full time while trying to parent a 7 year old and a 3 year old! But I have convinced myself that adding Vitamin C to my skincare routine is the answer.

Currently my AM routine is cleanse with Vit E cleanser and flannel, followed by Vit E hydrating toner, Garnier Rose moisturiser (this is a new change) and LRP sunscreen

PM: double cleanse with jojoba oil and Vit E cleanser, followed by Paula's Choice 2% BHA (a couple of times a week) and Rosehip oil.

My skin is normal to combination and I'm 36 years old. Any recommendations for including vitamin C in my routine (or anything else that may help) would be greatly appreciated

P. S. NC in case someone recognises me from the pic!

Can Vitamin C be used alongside acids (AHAs/BHAs)? I only use acids at night and was wondering if adding a vitamin C serum at night is safe or not. Thanks.

I believe you can but I prefer vit c in the morning as it has so many antioxidants

@SkincareHelp

Can Vitamin C be used alongside acids (AHAs/BHAs)? I only use acids at night and was wondering if adding a vitamin C serum at night is safe or not. Thanks.

Use the vitamin c in the morning and remember to use a factor 50 spf on top.

Another vote for the Beauty Pie vitamin C capsules.

Thanks all

Can any of you explain how the skin cells absorb the vitamin C and use it to 'detoxify' - because there isn't biological mechanism for doing so, I promise.

It's a marketing con. Just eat more vit C OP - even if I'm wrong, why would you spend money getting vit C indirectly into your skin, when you could send it via a much cheaper, more direct route of just eating it?

@Grobagsforever I definitely do know the science behind any skincare products

But as you say, adding more vitamin C to my diet can do no harm.

You’ve had lots of suggestions, but some incorrect advice regarding where it fits in your routine. It should be the first thing on your skin after cleansing. You can use acids in the same routine, but go slowly and perhaps build up to this. My routine is cleanse, vit c, eye cream, mist, serum, mist, moisturiser, spf. I use the Oskia vit c, hated the Beauty Pie ones as they’re very siliconey which pills like mad.

Go check out Caroline Hirons and or Nadine Baggot for great skincare advice. Caroline has a new book out which is really go for clear no nonsense advice.

@SkincareHelp can you share? I'm honestly interested because I've seen any actual evidence that the skin can take in vitamins externally

@Grobagsforever I meant to say 'I definitely do not know!'

labmuffin.com/mythbusting-vitamin-c-serums-bad/#:~:text=Vitamin%20C%20is%20one%20of,that%20vitamin%20C%20increased%20collagen.

Sorry posted too soon
Some sciency stuff about vit c

@Grobagsforever sorry keep posting before i am finished

@Grobagsforever pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/11896774/ here’s just one

@WhoEatsPopTarts yours is better 👍

I use cosmetix and I bought some vitamin c powder to mix in with morning moisturiser - honestly vit c (ascorbic acid) is as cheap as chips. Next time going to buy some from supermarket - I am sure exactly the same!

@WhoEatsPopTarts thank you for digging that link out. It's worth noting it's a sample size of 10 people though.

Running normal group difference statistics on a sample size of ten and finding a 'statistically significant' result is pretty suspicious, as statistical significance is extremely hard to achieve with tiny sample sizes.,also the authors don't state on which of the metrics the difference was found..

I had seen an article on these Vit C shower heads don't know anyone who's used them though or if they even work.

But I guess a way to get a little more onto your skin

I use a powder one from the ordinary, I mix it in with my sunblock & apply it all over my face, neck and chest because there’s no point having a wrinkly neck but smooth face. They provide a little scoop & you build up the amount you can tolerate.

It does brighten the skin by lightening any dark patches of sun damage but without bleaching the surrounding skin.

I have dark patches from the contraceptive implant on my forehead and on my cheekbones and it has helped them but not faded them so I’m using tret and hydroquinone from dermatica to fade those areas. It has stopped them getting worse.

It’s MEANT to stop particles of pollution being able to enter your skin and cause inflammation. I do not know how true this is. I usually research things so I really ought to look into this. The acidic nature of it is also supposed to cause a small amount of damage for your skin to heal which encourages it to produce more collagen. I’ve seen this written in articles by dermatologists so I’m going to assume this is true.

Diet, sleep plays a role though, as does stress & we are all under a lot of stress right now.

Nip fab vitamin c

@Grobagsforever It's true that most vitamin c serums probably do not transport vitamin c into the epidermis. The only way this is likely to happen is with pure ascorbic acid, which is quite irritating. Probably best bet is to mix some pure ascorbic acid powder into something you are already putting on (suncreen).

However I'm not sure it's true that eating vitamin c can do much to the epidermis either. Internal nutrient delivery to the epidermis is always a challenge because there're no blood vessels and therefore no delivery system. (It won't do you any harm to eat more vitamin c though.) Let me see if I can hunt up something to illustrate this...

www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5579659/

@Grobagsforever

Can any of you explain how the skin cells absorb the vitamin C and use it to 'detoxify' - because there isn't biological mechanism for doing so, I promise.

It's a marketing con. Just eat more vit C OP - even if I'm wrong, why would you spend money getting vit C indirectly into your skin, when you could send it via a much cheaper, more direct route of just eating it?

It's not used to de-toxify, it's used as an exfoliator. With regular, daily use you do see a smoother, more even tone and brighter face. But it's not a quick fix, it has to be used every morning for the long haul.