Richard Merrill’s Talks Vitamin C!
Looking for the best vitamin c skin care products? You’re in luck, award-winning esthetician, educator, and skin expert, Richard Merrill is here to give us his thoughts on the 5 best vitamin c products that he’s found in the professional skin care industry. Richard has a long history in the beauty industry, he’s a talented make up artist as well as an award-winning esthetician. He owns Richard Merrill Consulting where he is a dynamic coach, who offers incredible support to estheticians and spa owners in the business.
5 of the Best Vitamin C Solutions for Spa Professionals
Vitamin C is one of the most popular ingredients used in skin care and personal care products today. A vitamin that has been popularly branded around citrus fruits, you might be surprised to learn that Vitamin C is also one of the skin’s naturally occurring antioxidants. Unfortunately, our skin’s vitamin C content decreases over time with age, sun exposure, and pollution, which is why we need to add it back into our diets and skin care routines.
When adding vitamin C products to your skin care routine, it’s important to understand that this ingredient comes in many different forms, which can have many different effects. To start, you may have heard that vitamin C is a powerful antioxidant for our skin, but what does that really mean? Well, oxidation is largely caused by the creation of free radicals at the cellular level when your skin is exposed to ultraviolet light and the sun’s rays. Antioxidants, like vitamin C, are touted to reduce this oxidative stress by neutralizing the free radicals, thereby reducing their damage to your skin.
Vitamin C can also help to stimulate collagen production and even out skin tone by reducing the production of melanin pigment. It’s also important to note that vitamin C is used in both naturally occurring and synthetic (chemically modified) forms. It has be debated that synthetic vitamins lack the proper delivery systems to effectively create the desired change. However, it has also been debated that natural forms of the vitamin may cause adverse reactions, such as inflammation and photosensitivity, due to the acidic formulation needed to keep it stable. One of the key things to look at when using synthetic vitamins is whether the synthetic vitamin C can be metabolized to release the natural form of vitamin C as this is the form that has the most beneficial effects to the skin. Not all of the synthetic vitamin C products release the natural form.
A Beautiful Reminder That May Is Skin Cancer Awareness Month
The L+A #SPF365 Sun Shield Pendant $48
Lipgloss + Aftershave is selling The L+A #SPF365 Sun Shield Pendant, $48. Wholesale accounts are available. Bonus FREE Gifts from HydroPeptide (Mini Tinted Solar Defense 30) and Oncology Training International. May is Skin Cancer Awareness Month! This is our way to help raise awareness for the importance of wearing sun protection, spf, sunscreen every single day! No matter the weather, no matter if you’re going to be in direct sun or not, no matter if you’re going to be indoors all day. SPF, sunscreen, sun protection, however you say it, you have to wear it every day! It’s so important that the FAA and TSA just approved full size product of SPF/Sunscreen can be carried on to planes.
Richard’s Top 5 Picks For Best Vitamin C Product
M.A.D. Skincare – C4 Intensiv Brightening Serum
Vitamin C is an effective way to brighten skin and minimize the appearance of fine lines and wrinkles. This potent complex of four types of Vitamin C will deliver maximum results. C4 Intensiv also moisturizes and plumps, with added botanicals to nourish and soothe. Does not contain parabens or chemical colorants. Minimizes the appearance of fine lines and wrinkles, anti-oxidant rich, encourages collagen synthesis and and even skintone.
Sources of Vitamin C
BVOSC – A stabile, oil soluble form of Vitamin C, called Tetrahexyldecyl Ascorbate, BVOS-C offers UV-protection, skin whitening, and anti-aging benefits as well as aiding in collagen synthesis. It also offers excellent antioxidant benefits and the ability to penetrate into the epidermis and cells makes BVOS-C very bio-available.
Stay C 50 – This stable form of Vitamin C, sodium ascorbyl phosphate, offers numerous benefits for skin including helping to lessen the appearance of fine lines and wrinkles, whitening spotty and darkened skin, evening out skin tone and aiding in collagen production. Additionally, it is an excellent repair agent for photo-aged and sun damaged skin. When added to skin care products along with ascorbyl glucoside, the secondary ingredient in Stay C 50, it helps to firm sagging skin and diminish wrinkles. It also improves the skin’s ability to protect itself against free radicals and aids in increasing elasticity and luminosity.
Magnesium Ascorbyl Phosphate – See above Ascorbyl Glucoside – A non-irritating and stable form of Vitamin C which offers excellent antioxidant properties helps to encourage collagen synthesis and helps to improve uneven skin tone and skin pigmentation.
My number one fav for use twice a day! This super-powered serum does it all —brightens, fights aging and protects. The key to its multi-tasking power lies in a potent complex of antioxidant vitamin C, lactic and malic acids, which work at the molecular level to give skin a firmer, brighter look. L-tyrosine, an essential amino acid, joins forces with vitamin B5 to soften the look of fine lines. Your skin is worth fighting for.
Source of Vitamin C
Citric Acid – Naturally occurring citric acid is often mistaken for vitamin C and is a member of the alpha hydroxy acid (AHA) group. Citric acid is often used as an ingredient in exfoliants and chemical peels, but most often citric acid is used to adjust the pH level in products.
Magnesium Ascorbyl Phosphate – Magnesium ascorbyl phosphate, known as MAP, is a water soluble and highly stable form of Vitamin C. It is known primarily for its skin brightening benefits and can help even out skin tone, stimulate collagen production, and diminish fine lines and wrinkles through increasing the process of cell-turnover. Studies have shown that L-ascorbic acid 3 phosphate magnesium salt (which is the chemical makeup of MAP) has shown a significant effect in skin brightening by inhibiting tyrosinase which is the enzyme responsible for melanin production. It can also offer a high moisturizing effect and enhanced diffusion of Vitamin C into the skin. Since ascorbic acid is extremely unstable in the presence of light and oxygen, this instability is offset by the use of the stable MAP thereby offering excellent benefits and results.
California Skincare Supply – Vitamin C Whitening Collagen Crystal Mask
This excellent whitening/lightening mask, moisturizes, reduces fine lines and wrinkles and replaces collagen. This Vitamin C mask melts into the skin allowing for 10x greater ingredient absorption.
Source of Vitamin C
Ascorbic Acid – AKA topical vitamin C–is the most common form of vitamin C and is available in many skin care products. Scientific studies show that vitamin C will help skin look younger by decreasing the visible signs of aging. Products that contain ascorbic acid are best used in after sun products and at night. Vitamin C is one of the many active ingredients to topical agents and can play a vital role in a regular skin care regimen. While ascorbic acid contains many benefits, it can cause products to turn a brownish color over time.
Global Beauty – Hydra C + Ferulic Serum
The Hydra C + Ferulic Acid contains hyaluronic acid, vitamin C, and ferulic acid work together to protect skin and provide long lasting hydration. An advanced micro-encapsulation technology enhances product penetration.
Source of Vitamin C – Ascorbic Acid
Circadia by Dr. Pugliese – Zymase Enzyme Mask w/ activator
This powerful enzyme contains multiple forms of vitamin c designed to brighten, tighten and exfoliate the skin. When combined with the gentle exfoliation of natural pineapple and papaya enzymes we can slow down the visible signs of aging.
Source of Vitamin C Ascorbic Acid
Do you use a Vitamin C product in your current regimen? We would love to hear from you! Tell us which forms you find in the ingredients and share your experience in the comments below!