Vitamin C Serum: Best Products, Benefits, Usage, Side Effects

If you have been taking a proper care of your skin – cleansing, toning, and moisturizing assiduously – and yet the mediocre results, it’s the time for you to add vitamin C serum to your regimen.

Vitamin C is a powerful antioxidant that aids the growth of skin collagen. It helps retexturize the skin, brighten and even out the skin tone. It diminishes the acne scars, age spots, and pigmentation. Also, Vitamin C combats acnes, wrinkles, and fine lines. The ingredient, when used in the form of serum, works up with double potency. Add Vitamin C to your skincare bandwagon, and witness the drastic improvement it does to your skin. There are a number of vitamin c serums available in the stores. And, to help you pick the product worth the investment, we’ve got you covered 7 best Vitamin C Serums. Take a peek!

Urban Botanics Advanced Vitamin C Face Serum:

This Advanced Vitamin C Serum by Urban Botanics is packed with the richness of not just the Vitamin C, but also Hyaluronic Acid, Ferulic Acid, Kojic Acid, Niacinamide and Green Tea Extract. Advanced Vitamin C Serum 20% plays a significant role in the collagen synthesis in the dermis. The antioxidant and anti-inflammatory properties in the serum helps neutralize the free radicals, thus, combating wrinkles and fine lines. It helps maintain an even skin tone and provides a brighter and rejuvenated skin, aging gracefully.

Salient Features:

• Smoothens the fine lines and the wrinkles
• Boosts collagen
• Diminishes pores, blackheads, whiteheads, and breakouts
• Lightens dark spots, scars, sunspots, pigmentation, and redness
• Hydrates and deep nourishes the skin for a rejuvenated and youthful appearance
• Works as an eye serum and helps lighten the dark circles and eye bags

Chemist At Play Advanced Brightening Face Serum With Ceramides

Achieve bright and radiant skin with India’s First Ceramide based Serum introduced by Chemist at Play. The Advanced Brightening Face Serum with Ceramides by Chemist at Play is formulated with the power of 20% Vitamin C+, 1% Tocopherol+, and 0.5% Ferulic Acid. The serum helps supply the powerful antioxidants to help combat the environmental damage for a flawless and radiant skin. Ceramides helps maintain the skin integrity by keeping the cells bound together and create a shield to stave off permeability. It deep nourishes the skin, improves the skin barrier function, prevent the trans-epidermal water loss, thus, reducing the wrinkles, fine lines and dark spots.

Salient Features:

• Lightens and diminishes the scars or dark spots
• Reveals a youthful, rejuvenated, and brighter-looking skin
• Helps repair the damaged skin
• Heals blemishes, and dark patches on the skin
• The serum is vegan, parabens-free, and silicones-free

Dot & Key Glow Revealing Vitamin C Serum Concentrate

The Dot & Key Glow Revealing Vitamin C Serum Concentrate helps amp up the collagen production, boost the skin repair, and correct the uneven skin tone. It has a water-based formula that quickly absorbs into the skin for a skin glowing from within. The serum fights off the skin-damaging free radicals to neutralize the dark spots and combat the signs of aging and photo damage.

The Hyaluronic Acid content in the serum helps deep nourish the skin and restore the plumpness. The serum is packed with the goodness of star fruits like Kakadu Plum and Acerola Cherry that helps ameliorate the radiance and amp up the skin elasticity and youthfulness. Also, the Bear Berry Leaf and Peony Root Extracts supports an uneven, radiant and brighter-looking skin. It helps with skin-rejuvenation.

Salient Features:

• Dermatologically tested
• Gentle
• Lightweight
• Parabens-free
• Sulfate-free
• Phthalate-free
• Alcohol-free
• Cruelty-free

St. Botanica Vitamin C 20% + Vitamin E & Hyaluronic Acid Professional Facial Serum

St.Botanica is one powerful free-radical scavenger that one cannot regret buying. The serum is infused with 20% vitamin C that effectively smoothens the fine lines and wrinkles. It helps prevent breakouts, clear acnes, shrink pores, diminish age and sun spots, and eliminate the appearance of acne scars. Consistent use of this serum hydrates and soothes the skin, while making the skin appear bright, radiant and youthful.

This Vitamin C serum is formulated with vitamins and plant extracts that helps stimulate the collagen production. The key ingredients of this serum are 20% Sodium Ascorbyl Phosphate (or Vitamin C), 1% Vitamin E, 0.5% Hyaluronic Acid, Jojoba Oil, Aloe Vera Extract, Green Tea Extract, Vegetable Glycerine, Centella Asiatica, and Clary Sage, Bergamot & Geranium Essential Oils.

Hyaluronic acid in the serum retains moisture and keeps the skin plump, while the combined properties of vitamins E and C supports protection from UV rays. Jojoba oil regulates the excess sebum (oil) production and amps up the collagen synthesis. Green Tea Extract is a powerful antioxidant that helps combat the free radicals, thus, preventing premature skin aging. Vegetable is a humectant that helps hydrate the skin well. The serum is suitable for all skin types and is free from parabens, mineral oil, sulfates, or silicones.

If you still are skeptical about adding Vitamin C serum to your skincare regimen, this list of numerous benefits that one could avail shall be convincing. Keep reading!

Benefits of Vitamin C Serums on Skin:

• Brightens the skin
• Smoothens the fine lines and improves the skin texture
• Reduces dullness
• Reveals an uneven skin tone
• Lightens the dark patches, age spots, acne scars, and under eye circles.
• Combats acnes and pimples.
• Diminishes scars and hyperpigmentation.
• Amps up the collagen production.
• Hydrates the skin.
• Boosts skin elasticity, thus, improving the skin texture.
• Diminishes the appearance of fine lines, wrinkles, age spots, and photo damage.

Having learnt the skin-amicable properties of vitamin C serum, skim through the article below to know the ideal ways to use it.

How to Use Vitamin C Serum:

When introducing Vitamin C Serum to your skin, make sure you patch test first. Apply a little amount of the product on your inner elbows and leave it on for 24 hours. If you witness any side effect, discontinue the usage. If vitamin C doesn’t seem to be showing any adverse effect, massage a few drops of it on your cleansed face followed by a moisturizer. For best results, be consistent and use it regularly for two to three months.

Listed below are certain points to be considered when investing in a vitamin C serum:

Points to Consider When Investing in a Vitamin C Serum:

1. Skin Type

It is imperative to evaluate the performance o serum on your skin type. Carefully gauge the symptoms of skin irritation, such as dryness or skin peeling. If that’s happening, the product isn’t suitable to your skin. If, with consistent usage, you witness your skin evolving into smoother, softer, and glowing version of itself; the serum is certainly crafted suitable to your skin type. The overall effect of a vitamin C serum is akin to exfoliation. You’ll witness a visible reduction in acne marks, scars, dark spots, pigmentation, and lightening of dark patches.

2. The Concentration

When starting off, use a lower concentration of vitamin C. Start with 10% until your skin assimilates the product. Thereafter, you can work up the higher concentrations. It is imperative to know that vitamin C oxidizes or breaks down when exposed to light and oxygen. Henceforth, there remains a huge probability of the concentration level dropping low in a matter of month. The serum turns futile and can, furthermore, lead to the skin irritation.

3. The Packaging:

The ideal form of vitamin C has to be Serum, and not cream. Serums are water-based and penetrates deep into the skin layers, whereby the water form makes for the requirement by the skin. The vitamin C serums are ideally stored in an air-tight, opaque glass bottles to keep them from oxidization process. Also, they would ideally have an air pump than a dropper to taper off the probability of oxidization.

Frequently Asked Questions

How long does it take for vitamin C serums to show results?

This would vary brand-to-brand. It would take typically 2-4 weeks period of time to show up results. Also, the results would vary depending upon your skin type and skin condition.

What is the right time to use vitamin C serums?

We totally recommend you to use vitamin C on skin at night, right before you hit the sack. Vitamin C is packed with anti-ageing benefits as it amps up collagen production, boosts elasticity, improves skin texture and repairs damaged skin cells. Also, it protects the skin from photo damage and free radicals that damages the skin throughout the day. This could be the reason to why many choose to wear vitamin C during daytime. However, the exposure of vitamin C to sun rays, peculiarly when worn without sunscreen, might not fare well. Hence, leaving the skin susceptible to irritations, especially if you’ve a sensitive skin type.

Can I wear vitamin C serum daily?

Of course, yes! Vitamin C serums are crafted for regular use. You can wear them once or twice a day, on a cleansed face. For precise application frequency and directions, you may refer to the product package.

Can I substitute vitamin C serums with lemon juice?

No. Vitamin C serum and lemons are not the same. The serums are diluted versions of vitamin C, carefully crafted with skin-friendly ingredients like essential oils and plant extracts. Lemon juice have a high acidic pH level which, when applied on the skin, may cause inflammation, redness, and dryness.

What are the potential side effects of vitamin C serums?

Like any other skincare product, vitamin C serums too can lead to side effects for certain skin types. Some of the common side effects of vitamin C on skin are breakouts, irritation, rashes, and dryness. Hence, it is always suggested to patch test first. If it works fine, begin with lower concentrations i.e. 10%. Work up the concentration level gradually.