Vitamin C Protection

If you follow this blog regularly you’ll know that I wrote about vitamin C last week, but in case you didn’t catch it, this powerful antioxidant is essential to life, and good health, as it’s needed for the growth and repair of tissues in all parts of your body. Vitamin C is also a powerful antioxidant which helps to block some of the damage caused by free radicals, which contribute to the ageing process, and although health experts recommend that you include plenty of vitamin C-containing foods in your daily diet, as the body can’t make it itself, you can also treat your skin with vitamin C from the outside. Many skincare brands have recognised the importance of it as an ingredient in skin creams and serums, as it can boost your complexion in a number of ways, including brightening it, improving skin tone and fading sun spots. A key problem, however, has always been stabilising vitamin C so that it remains effective, and doesn’t “go off”.

I’ve been using vitamin C in my skin care regime for years, testing many products on and off, but always coming back to a highly concentrated powder formula which needs to be measured out using a special spoon and spring water to mix with it to apply to my face. Taking this setup on the road is not only tricky but inconvenient, so I was excited to hear about the new Paula’s Choice Resist C15 Super Booster; a lightweight, supercharged vitamin C formula which promises much, simply by adding a few drops to a moisturiser or serum. I received a bottle to test, and have been using it daily for the past three weeks or so. It comes with a convenient dropper, so all you need to do is apply a few drops to the face product of your choice, or in my case, as my skin is used to high doses of vitamin C, I applied it directly to the skin. I would recommend, however, that as it contains 15 per cent vitamin C (stabilised l-ascorbic acid), if you are a first timer you might be best adding it to a moisturiser or serum in case of any irritation. The water-light formula has virtually no odour, and it has the texture of an extremely light oil, blending easily with other products.

Besides the power-packed vitamin C, which is stabilised with a pH of 3.0, this concentrated formula also contains Ferulic Acid, which is known to boost antioxidant benefits to defend against photo-ageing, antioxidant vitamin E, and peptides which help to repair visible signs of ageing while also stimulating collagen production for smoother, brighter, and firmer skin. Initially there was no wow-factor, but three weeks down the track, after a very long summer where I picked up some superficial pigmentation, my skin tone is definitely looking more even, and many of those new sun spots have faded dramatically. Paula’s Choice Resist C15 Super Booster is also very reasonably priced at $48 for 67oz (www.paulaschoice.com) and it will become a regular in my anti-ageing armoury, and not just for use while on the road. If you want to experience the terrific benefits of vitamin C, this is a great product which does what it promises; as a bonus the formula is suitable for all skin types, even for those with breakout-prone skin.