What are anti-oxidants?

What are anti-oxidants?

Anti-oxidants are often mentioned in skincare, with companies telling us how good they are for our skin, but why?

Briefly, they control free radicals. We naturally produce free radicals. in some circumstances they are beneficial, like creating an inflammatory response to injuries or infections. If they aren’t controlled, overproduction is bad for us. Exposing ourselves to too many toxins, such as environmental pollution. This includes; too much sun, smoking and other chemicals can create over production. This is due to the free radicals trying to remove them from our bodies damaging beneficial cells. Free radicals can cause premature aging and have even been linked to the onset of cancer if not controlled.

Are anti-oxidants beneficial in skincare?  

So now we see why it’s beneficial to have a good variety of anti-oxidants in our diet and skincare. Probably one of the most well known is Vitamin E. Vitamin E is a fat soluble anti-oxidant along with Vitamin A and beta-carotene (our body makes Vitamin A from Beta-carotene). These best for skincare as they are drawn to the fat layers of the skin where they go to work controlling the free radicals, which is where the anti-aging claims come from. Although I don’t make these claims on my skincare (only big companies can afford the tests required to state these claims), I do add these beneficial anti-oxidants which can be found in all my products.

What are the most popular anti-oxidants in skincare?

There are hundreds of water soluble anti-oxidants, such as Vitamin C.  Vitamin C is drawn to different parts of the body that contain more water, such as our organs. Some Anti-Oxidants are added alone as a separate ingredient, and can be added underived in their natural origin. Such anti-oxidants are Beta-carotene and Quercetin in sea-buckthorn, Diterpene phenols in Rosemary extract, Vitamins A and C in Rose hip extract.

Anti-Oxidants in skincare

In addition to being good for our skin, anti-oxidants also help prolong the shelf life of oil based products, without the need for preservatives, I’ve used this method in my Rose Hip Multi-Vit Facial Elixir and the Wild Rose & Seaweed Body Oil. For a holistic approach to skincare, it’s also important to include a variety of them to our diets, as what goes on internally has an impact on our skin and can be the root cause of most skin issues. You’ll find brightly coloured fruit and vegetables are good sources.