A.U.
B.R.
C.A.
M.X.
C.H.
How to Incorporate Antioxidants into Your Skincare Routine
Antioxidants are, without a doubt, some of the best skincare ingredients around. They can help with such a wide variety of visible skin concerns, with numerous studies proving the capabilities that antioxidants have when it comes to improving the complexion.
While there’s no denying that topical antioxidants can be a game-changer, knowing how to incorporate them into a skincare routine in the best way possible can be tricky. Fortunately, this is where Vine Vera can help! Read on for some of our top tips on ensuring that your skin is receiving the full spectrum of potential benefits that antioxidants provide.
But First…What Exactly Are Antioxidants?
Antioxidants are compounds that protect the skin from the appearance of free radical damage. What are free radicals? Unstable and highly reactive molecules that your skin is constantly coming into contact with. Not only are they produced in the body itself, but exposure to the sun, pollution, smoke, chemicals, medication, and more can also trigger free radical damage.
Antioxidants come from many natural sources. The human body produces some itself but they can also be obtained from plants, or synthetically produced. The latter two are where the antioxidants in skincare products come from.
What Do Antioxidants Do for the Skin?
It’s all very well saying that antioxidants neutralize the appearance of free radical damage, but what does this actually mean for your skin?
To start with, the oxidative stress that free radicals cause in the skin is largely responsible for skin aging. Using antioxidants will help to hinder the onset of the visible signs of skin aging. This means that the appearance of everything from fine lines and wrinkles to sagging skin and age spots can be prevented to quite an extent with antioxidants. They’ll also help your skin to feel more elastic and bouncy, giving it a more youthful finish.
Antioxidants are loved for how they improve the tone and texture of the complexion too. If your skin has been looking dull and discolored, antioxidants can turn this around, promoting the look of brightness. They’ll help with skin that feels rough too, giving it a much smoother and silkier feel.
Many antioxidants are also capable of lowering the feeling of inflammation. Not only does this help with the look of redness but it’s also very useful when dealing with inflammatory skin conditions, such as acne and psoriasis.
The Best Antioxidants to Use on Your Skin
One of the reasons why exploring the world of antioxidants can seem a little daunting is the fact that there are so many different antioxidants out there. New antioxidant compounds are constantly being discovered too, making your options seem endless.
When it comes down to it, all antioxidants will be beneficial for your skin. However, it’s certainly true that some are more powerful than others. If you want to ensure that your skincare routine contains the most potent antioxidants available, here are some to keep an eye out for:
- Vitamin C – one of the most-loved antioxidants around due to its multi-tasking abilities
- Resveratrol – Vine Vera’s signature ingredient! You’ll find this antioxidant in all of our products, with numerous studies confirming its tremendous capabilities
- Vitamin A – particularly beneficial when it comes to reducing the appearance of aging
- Vitamin E – leaves skin cells feeling safe and supported when faced with environmental aggressors
- EGCG – a very powerful antioxidant that comes from green tea
- Beta-carotene – particularly good at keeping the skin feeling protected from sun damage
Incorporating Antioxidants Into Your Skincare Routine
Now that you know why you should be using antioxidants, as well as which antioxidants to use, let’s take a closer look at how to incorporate these potent ingredients into your skincare routine:
Start With an Antioxidant-Infused Cleanser
Ideally, the majority of the skincare products that you use should contain antioxidants, and this begins with your cleanser. Sure, a cleanser only remains on your skin for 30 seconds or so, meaning that the antioxidants within aren’t going to have enough time to tackle the appearance of aging. However, you’ll still benefit from how they soothe the feeling of inflammation and calm the complexion. The act of cleansing can often act against this, making antioxidants very useful.
That’s why you’ll find antioxidants included in all Vine Vera cleansers. In addition to resveratrol, they also contain a blend of other potent compounds. The Vine Vera Resveratrol Vitamin C Cleanser, for instance, is packed with vitamin C, vitamin A, vitamin E, and a blend of antioxidant-rich plant extracts. Meanwhile, the Resveratrol Cabernet Mousse Cleanser contains extracts from lavender, chamomile, aloe vera, calendula, and more. They’re all brimming with antioxidants that your skin will love!
Follow Up With an Antioxidant Toner
A toner is a great product to use after a cleanser, no matter your skin type. While toners were originally a product favored by those with oily skin, there are now so many different formulas available, and some of them are full of antioxidants!
The Vine Vera Resveratrol Cabernet Toner is one. This toner is primarily designed to hydrate the skin – something that’s particularly needed after cleansing. However, many of its hydrating ingredients, such as aloe vera leaf juice and cucumber fruit extract, also happen to be fantastic sources of antioxidants. Many don’t realize that aloe vera actually holds everything from beta-carotene to vitamin C to vitamin E, all of which, as mentioned earlier, are some of the best antioxidants around!
Layer on a Couple of Antioxidant Serums
Serums are your opportunity to really bestow your skin with antioxidants. These silky solutions are capable of being infused with high concentrations of antioxidant compounds. The fact that serums don’t contain any heavy ingredients enables them to carry those antioxidants down into the deeper layers of your complexion. This is where they’ll really be able to work their magic when it comes to improving the appearance of your skin!
At Vine Vera, we have several antioxidant serums to choose from. The Vine Vera Resveratrol Vitamin C Serum is a classic. Dermatologists recommend vitamin C serums to just about everyone, and this formula really stands out from the crowd. Why? Because not only does it boast two different forms of vitamin C, plus resveratrol, but it also contains vitamin A, vitamin E, and a blend of antioxidant-rich plant oils.
The Vine Vera Resveratrol Chianti Revival Serum is another antioxidant powerhouse. Again, you’ll find vitamins A, C, and E in this formula, as well as resveratrol. However, it’s also infused with a number of plant extracts that contain antioxidants that are renowned for how they even out the skin tone and brighten the complexion. From licorice root extract to kojic acid, this is a serum that will quickly have your skin glowing!
Finish With an Antioxidant-Rich Moisturizer
The final step in your daily skincare routine should be to moisturize, and this is another stage that antioxidants should be introduced to. Although these antioxidants won’t penetrate in the same way that those in a serum would, the surface of your skin needs plenty of antioxidants too!
If you’d like to add even more vitamin C to your skincare routine, the Vine Vera Resveratrol Vitamin C Moisturizer would be the way to go. It contains vitamin C along with plant extracts that provide their own form of vitamin C. Plus, you’ll also find everything from white tea extract to gotu kola extract in this cream. All of these are full of skin-loving antioxidant compounds.
The Vine Vera Resveratrol Cabernet High Potency Night Cream would be another great choice. This cream is loved for how it keeps the skin feeling so smooth and supple. This is thanks to a blend of shea butter, vitamin E, aloe vera, polypeptides, and potent plant extracts. These ingredients all boast incredible antioxidant properties.
Face Masks Can Be a Great Source of Antioxidants Too!
Let’s not forget about face masks! Although they’re not a product that you use on a daily basis, they’re still a great way to bump up your skin’s antioxidant content each week. In fact, face masks can often contain a greater concentration of antioxidants than the products that you use daily.
This is especially true of the Vine Vera Resveratrol Pinot Noir Phyto-Silk Mask. Its impressive ingredient list features so many superfood extracts. As you probably, superfoods are referred to as such because of their antioxidant content. While your body will benefit from you eating more of these foods, applying them to your skin in extract form is a good way for your skin to directly soak up all of those powerful compounds. Even better, this is a leave-on mask. Unlike other face masks that need to be rinsed off after 10 minutes or so, the antioxidants in this one will have so much more time to absorb into your skin.
Exfoliating Will Encourage Better Absorption
Want to really enhance how your skin absorbs antioxidants? Try exfoliating before using all of your antioxidant-rich products. This will clear away any debris from within your pores. As a result, your skincare products will find it much easier to reach your skin cells. This will make those products so much more effective.
While you’re at it, you might as well also use an exfoliator that contains antioxidants too! The Vine Vera Resveratrol Vitamin C Peeling, for example, is bursting with vitamin C and resveratrol. It offers an array of other antioxidant-laden plant extracts too, including green tea, bamboo, and coconut. Plus, vitamin C’s best friends, vitamins A and E, can be found in this peel as well!
Transforming Your Complexion With Antioxidants
If antioxidants don’t already heavily feature in your skincare routine, it’s time to change that. These potent compounds can make such a big difference to your complexion. Even if you aren’t yet experiencing any visible skin concerns, antioxidants will help to maintain that healthy feeling that your skin is currently sporting. They’re amazing multi-taskers that everyone would benefit from!
Click here to browse more antioxidant-rich skincare products from Vine Vera.
