Winter Radiance: Nourish Your Skin with Vitamin C!

As the cold weather sets in, give your skin the boost it craves! Our Vitamin C serums are your winter skincare essential, combating dryness and dullness while delivering a burst of hydration and brightness. Embrace the season with a luminous glow and keep your skin healthy and vibrant all winter long!


By Jessica Ashcroft, Licensed Master Aesthetician

Topical Vitamin C

Topical Vitamin C is a vital component of any skin routine and is an ingredient I encourage all my patients to use daily. Vitamin C is traditionally found in a serum formulation, which allows it to be more concentrated and applied at the most beneficial time of a routine – after cleansing.

Typically, I recommend using Vitamin C as a part of a morning routine since its benefits pair well with a broad-spectrum sunscreen to protect the skin. This is due to Vitamin C being an excellent antioxidant that can prevent and correct damage to our skin.

As an antioxidant, its main job is to stop unstable molecules from UV damage, pollution, and other stressors from creating a chain reaction of damage. This damage can be manifested as collagen breakdown, pigmentation, a compromised skin barrier, etc.

It’s a great multifunctional ingredient that not only protects the skin from damage but helps to brighten, lighten, and tighten (the BLT, as I call it).

What to Look For

Efficacy is key when it comes to Vitamin C, as it has different forms and levels. I encourage my patients to look for products that use a percentage between at least 10 and 20 percent while also checking the ingredient’s placement on the ingredient list.

Due to the delicate nature of Vitamin C, I also recommend looking for airless tubes or dark glass bottles that will increase the longevity of the ingredient.

Most brands try to protect Vitamin C from oxidizing, and if it’s been oxidized, that means the antioxidant effect of the molecule has been used. It will no longer be able to stop damage and provide skin benefits.Therefore, most Vitamin C serums only have a shelf life of 6 months from opening.

Choosing a Vitamin C Serum

When it comes to choosing a Vitamin C serum, over-the-counter brands can be a great starting point for patients who have more sensitive skin or are just beginning to use Vitamin C.

While medical-grade Vitamin C serums will usually have sophisticated delivery systems and advanced molecular structures of Vitamin C that make them more corrective or give additional benefits but may be more costly.

Patients with oily skin may prefer a thinner formula like La Roche-Posay® 10% Pure Vitamin C Serum or SkinCeuticals C E Ferulic®. In contrast, dry skin types may benefit from a more hydrating formula like CeraVe® Skin Renewing Vitamin C Serum or Alastin® C-Radical Defense Antioxidant Serum.

Regardless of choice, everyone can benefit from Vitamin C, and no matter what skin type or stage of life, there is something out there for everyone.