Vitamin C Benefits with Dr. Ashley Magovern

Vitamin C Benefits with Dr. Ashley Magovern

It’s always been Honest Beauty’s goal to provide informative and resourceful advice on skincare routines, ingredients, and benefits to the beauty community. To ensure we get you the most knowledgeable and educational recommendations, we reach out to experts in the industry. In honor of National Vitamin C Day, we’ve asked Dr. Ashley Magovern, Owner + Founder of Manhattan Dermatology and board-certified dermatologist to discuss all things Vitamin C, in her own words. Join us in learning from Dr. Ashley Magovern on all the skin benefits of this popular antioxidant!

“Vitamin C is by far my favorite antioxidant to use in a skin care regimen. It is the most studied and has a great deal of evidence backing its efficacy, which makes it something that everyone should incorporate into their routine- it just works. As an antioxidant, it oxidizes (neutralizes) free radicals- pretty cool stuff. Free radicals are formed from things like the sun, pollution, stress and smoking, and damage the DNA of the cell, which can lead to premature aging and skin cancer. Vitamin C also boosts collagen production and reverses cell damage, which helps keep the skin firmer and younger, and even helps fade and prevent brown spots and pigmentation. It’s the perfect multitasker. With regular use, the skin will look better and healthier over time. I promise!

I recommend it to everyone and anyone, but it is particularly perfect for someone in their 20’s or 30’s who would like to boost their skin care routine and is ready for something to add to their cleansing and moisturizing routine (just using cleanser and moisturizer is not enough anymore!). I even find that people with more sensitive skin can usually tolerate a vitamin C product, so it’s usually my go to for these patients as well. It can be used in the morning under your makeup and sunscreen to help boost your sun protection--or at night under a moisturizer to help fight the free radical damage from the day. Some experts think that you can even apply it every other day and still get the same benefit (maybe our receptors get saturated), but I enjoy it so much, I tend to use it most days.

Vitamin C comes in different forms—L-ascorbic acid, tetrahexyldecyl ascorbate, ascorbyl palmitate and sodium ascorbyl phosphate, among others—but not all of them are equal in terms of stability. As with all active ingredients in skin care and critical with vitamin C, it is essential that whatever Vitamin C product you use, it is well formulated and has good bioavailability and penetration-it needs to be able to get to where it needs to go and do what it’s supposed to do. After all, if you’re going to use a product, it needs to work! And, they don’t need to be expensive to work- many well-formulated products are easily accessible and affordably priced.”

Honest Beauty is so grateful for Dr. Ashley Magovern’s insight into the benefits of Vitamin C. We hope her expertise has given you a greater understanding on why it’s important to include Vitamin C in your skincare regimen, and the effects of using it. If you are looking to add some more Vitamin C to your life, check out our Vitamin C Serum to get glowing + brightening. Tag us @Honest_Beauty and share how you’re incorporating Vitamin C into your routine!