My Facial Facts: Is Your Skin The Best It Can Be?

So now we’ve cleared up what antioxidants are and what they do (click here to read more on this.) 

But which ingredients should you be looking for?

Do you know which are the most effective antioxidant ingredients on the market today?

If not, don’t worry. We’re going to sum it up for you and make it really simple.

 

We’ve mentioned Idebenone:

• This is the newest kid on the block, when it comes to antioxidants.

 

• It has the ability to neutralize multiple free radicals, and even prevent them from forming in the first place.

 

• It is recommended to begin using a .5% and to gradually build up to a 1%, so as to prevent irritation.

 

Superoxide Dimutase (SOD):

• Normally, vitamins can only neutralize one free radical at a time, but SOD can neutralize many and for a longer period of time.

 

Pomegranate:

• Very high in polyphenol content. This helps strengthen the cell membrane (what wraps the cell) protecting it from UV damage.

 

• It also helps retain moisture so it can be a great daytime moisturizer because it performs two jobs: hydration and protection.

 

 

Vitamin C:

• Vitamin C does not oly prevent but can also repair sun damage by playing a vital role in the production of collagen.

 

• A product must have a high concentration of Vitamin C (15–20%) and a low pH for better absorption.

 

• It also needs to be stabilized so it does not lose its potency when exposed to air.

 

• Contrary to Green Tea, you don’t want your Vitamin C turning black or a dark color. This then means that the product has oxidized and has lost its potency and efficacy.

Good Vitamin C formulation:

 

 

Green Tea:

• This is probably the most studied antioxidant.

 

• Green Tea is very rich in polyphenols (very powerful antioxidants.) These polyphenols are preserved because the tea is not fermented.

 

• Green Tea is considered more powerful than Vitamin C and E.

 

• In order to be effective, Green Tea needs to be present in a concentration of 50% or higher.

Do you know how to tell that it is a high concentration?

• The product should be dark or black in color!

Now you have an idea of which ingredients to look out for.

Keep your skin healthy and until next time!

The Derma Divas.

 

This entry was posted on Thursday, May 22nd, 2008 at 1:09 am and is filed under Antioxidants. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.