Published: June 15, 2023
When it comes to skincare buzzwords, ‘antioxidant’ is a term that you’ll hear repeated time and time again. From dermatologists to beauty bloggers, everyone recommends the use of antioxidants in skincare, but why exactly is this?
Read on as CBGärdN discusses the many benefits that antioxidants can offer the skin, along with recommendations on the most effective antioxidants to add to your routine.
What Are Antioxidants & What Do They Do for the Skin?
Antioxidants are compounds that help to prevent and repair the appearance of free radical damage throughout the body. There are thousands of antioxidants out there, with plants being one of the most abundant sources. The human body also produces some of its own antioxidants, although the rate at which it does so declines with age.
So, why should you be prioritizing antioxidants in skincare?
Well, as mentioned, they’re a must if you want to fight visible free radical damage. There are so many different factors out there that can contribute to the creation of free radicals, with sun exposure and pollution being two of the biggest culprits. The damage that’s caused manifests as accelerated skin aging, dark spots, dryness, and dullness.
Research confirms that the use of antioxidants in skincare will help to prevent the appearance of all of those issues. It will slow down how quickly your complexion ages while smoothing and tightening the look of your skin. At the same time, it will brighten your appearance while fading the look of discoloration. Antioxidants help with hydration too and can also soothe the feeling of inflammation in the skin.
The Best Antioxidants in Skincare
Every antioxidant out there will benefit the skin in some way. Combine multiple antioxidants and the results that you experience will be significantly more impressive – antioxidants are even more powerful when they have other antioxidants around to support their effects.
That said, when it comes to antioxidants in skincare, some antioxidants are famous for being much more potent than others. If you want to ensure that you’re giving your skin the very best, these are the antioxidants to add to your skincare routine:
Vitamin C
When it comes to multi-tasking antioxidants, nothing can quite compare to vitamin C. It’s one of the most-researched antioxidants in the industry, with multiple studies backing up its many skin benefits.
One of the biggest appeals of vitamin C is how it can tighten the appearance to reduce the look of fine lines and wrinkles. It’s also fantastic at brightening the complexion and giving the skin a glow. It will help with skin hydration levels too.
There are several different forms of vitamin C out there. L-ascorbic acid is the purest and most potent, but it can sometimes cause irritation because of this. It’s also infamous for its instability – expose it to light or air and it will quickly oxidize.
Instead, look for a safer and more stable vitamin C derivative, such as tetrahexyldecyl ascorbate. You’ll find it in our CBDGöld Vitamin C Antioxidant Élixir, from our CBDGöld Collection. As you can tell from the name of this serum, it’s all about antioxidants. Vitamin C is combined with a long list of other antioxidants and antioxidant-rich plant extracts, making this formula capable of enhancing the complexion in so many different ways.
Vitamin A
If you’ve been looking for antioxidants in skincare to reduce the appearance of aging, then you’ve probably heard about vitamin A. Just like vitamin C, it’s available in several different forms, with two of the most popular being retinol and retinyl palmitate.
How does vitamin A help to tackle the look of aging skin? To start with, it assists in firming up the complexion. This diminishes the visibility of wrinkles, and there are multiple studies out there that back this up. Vitamin A is also a superstar at lightening the look of dark spots. It can help to prevent the appearance of acne too, making it another noteworthy multitasker.
If you’d like to add vitamin A to your skincare routine, check out our CBDGöld Purifying Heating Mask. It’s a clay-based mask, making it a great choice if you want your skin to feel deeply cleansed and detoxified. However, in addition to doing so, this mask will also pamper your skin with a plethora of antioxidants, including vitamins A, C, and E. It’s a great weekly treat for when you want to give your skin a dose of some of the best antioxidants in skincare!
Vitamin E
We’ve talked about vitamins A and C, but vitamin E is a very noteworthy antioxidant too. It helps with repairing the look of the skin, which is why it’s often included in formulas designed for dry or damaged skin. It’s great at keeping the skin feeling moisturized, giving dry skin a softer and smoother finish.
That said, it can be useful when dealing with oily skin too. Studies show that it can effectively calm the feeling of inflammation and irritation, which can help to prevent the appearance of acne.
If you’d like to make the most of the moisturizing potentials of vitamin E, look for a face cream that features the ingredient. The CBDGöld Daily Rehydration Cream would be a great choice. Just like the other products featured earlier, this moisturizer is loaded with some of the best antioxidants in skincare. From vitamins A and E to a long list of floral and herbal plant extracts, this cream will leave your skin looking bright and dewy all day long.
EGCG
Epigallocatechin 3-gallate (EGCG) is an antioxidant that many people won’t be familiar with. However, you’re probably acquainted with its source; green tea.
Green tea contains a number of polyphenols, one of which is EGCG. This compound is amazing at reducing the appearance of oxidative skin damage, particularly the visible issues that have been caused by the sun. Whether it may be the appearance of wrinkles, dark spots, or anything else, EGCG will help to restore and rejuvenate the look of sun-damaged skin. Even more importantly, it will protect against the appearance of further UV-induced damage, making it crucial to use this antioxidant long-term.
Our CBDGöld Eye Serum Concentrate makes this easy. Designed for the delicate skin around the eyes, which is highly susceptible to UV damage, this serum brings green tea together with a number of other antioxidant-rich plant extracts, including calendula, ginkgo biloba, aloe vera, and grape stem cells. Its A-list ingredient lineup enables it to effectively firm, brighten, and revive the look of the eye area.
Niacinamide
Another vitamin that also functions as an antioxidant is B3, also known as niacinamide. What makes niacinamide one of the best antioxidants in skincare is that, like the other vitamins we’ve talked about, it helps the skin in a number of different ways.
Many love niacinamide for how it balances out the complexion. It helps to lighten the look of discoloration and dark spots, leaving the skin looking even and clear. It can make the skin feel less greasy too, which is why those with oily skin often include it in their routines.
That said, it’s an antioxidant that’s revered by those with dry skin as well. Niacinamide leaves the skin barrier feeling stronger and more resilient. This can help to reduce the feeling of dryness and sensitivities in the long run.
Since niacinamide feels so restorative, it’s a great ingredient to apply to your skin immediately after cleansing. This way, it will have direct access to your skin cells, enabling it to really work its magic.
This is where a niacinamide-infused toner, like our CB Facial Toner, comes in. It combines niacinamide with nettle leaf extract, an ingredient that is packed with polyphenols and carotenoids, both of which are antioxidant compounds. It’s also infused with sodium hyaluronate, an ingredient with superior hydrating capabilities. It will plump up the look of your skin to give it a fuller, brighter, and more radiant appearance.
Grape Stem Cells
Grapes are loaded with multiple polyphenols, which are powerful antioxidants. They’re great at diminishing the visibility of aging in the skin, leaving the skin looking firmer and younger.
Unlike some of the other antioxidants in skincare, grape stem cells aren’t as commonly found in products. Compared to other antioxidants, extracting this ingredient can be laborious and costly.
However, if you want to give your skin the best, then grape stem cells are well worth looking out for. You’ll find the ingredient in several CBGärdN products, including our exquisite CBDGöld Replenishing Serum. This serum also contains apple fruit extract, lilac extract, and hawthorn berry extract. All of these ingredients are brimming with antioxidants too!
Extra Tips for Making the Most of Antioxidants in Skincare
Before using any antioxidants on your skin, it’s important that you first cleanse. Fail to do so and all of those antioxidants that you apply will end up blocked by the barrier of dirt, oil, and dead skin cells that sits on the surface of the skin. Of course, a cleanser containing antioxidants would be a good way to go, which is why our CB Facial Cleanser is such a hit.
When you use your antioxidant-infused products, make sure that you’re applying them in the correct order. Start with your lighter products, such as essences and serums, and then finish up with heavier products, like creams. Layering your antioxidants in this way will help to maximize absorbency.
Finally, pay attention to how you store your skincare products. Some antioxidants degrade quite quickly when they come into contact with oxygen and light. So, a dark and air-tight cupboard would be ideal for storage. Your fridge would work too! The cool temperatures would help to preserve the potency of the antioxidants in your skincare products. They’ll also feel even more refreshing when you apply them to your skin!
Conclusion
When it comes to using antioxidants in skincare, the more the merrier! Try to cram antioxidants into every stage of your skincare routine. After all, not only will they reduce the visible signs of skin aging, but they’ll also help with the appearance of dark spots, dullness, dryness, and more. No matter how you want to improve your complexion, antioxidants will undoubtedly help!
Click here to browse even more antioxidant-infused skincare products from CBGärdN.