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How Do I Choose the Best Face Cream with Vitamin C?

By B. Miller
Updated May 17, 2024
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Vitamin C is an antioxidant that is good for the body and the skin, so choosing a daily face cream that contains this ingredient is a good idea. Often, a face cream with vitamin C will contain other antioxidants such as vitamins A and E, which can make the cream even more beneficial and effective at repairing damage from pollutants and UV rays, as well as preventing future damage. In addition, choosing one with a sunscreen is even more beneficial, because it is important to protect the skin every day to prevent wrinkles, sun spots, or even skin cancer.

When you are searching for a face cream, determine when you will want to use the it; for instance, a cream for use in the morning or one for use at night will generally be very different because they are accomplishing different goals. Products for use during the day will generally provide light moisturizing, as well as sunscreen and possibly even a light tint to even out the complexion. A cream for nighttime use will not contain sunscreen or makeup, and will generally contain heavier moisturizing ingredients such as shea butter to more deeply repair the skin overnight. Though it may be possible for people with very dry skin to wear a nighttime moisturizer during the day, generally this will just make the skin look oily.

There are a few other considerations when choosing a face cream with vitamin C, such as any specific skin issues you want to address. If your skin is particularly sensitive or allergic to certain ingredients in beauty products, you may want to choose a cream designed for sensitive skin, or one that is hypoallergenic. Blemish-prone skin might do well with a cream that includes ingredients like benzoyl peroxide or salicylic acid.

Consider also your skin type, and whether it is prone to being oily or dry. As a general rule, it is best to choose an oil-free moisturizer for all but the very driest skin types. People with oily skin may only need to moisturize once a day as well, generally at night. It is still important to be sure to wear sunscreen every day, however. Some people find that they prefer natural or organic moisturizers, while others are fine with the common drugstore brands; it is generally not necessary to spend a great deal of money to find a quality vitamin C face cream, however.

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Discussion Comments

By anon998708 — On Aug 09, 2017

@Candyquilt:

I've been using this vitamin c cream from Image for around six months now and it is amazing. I've had breakouts here and there (because I was really stressed out) but the cream helped so much; I have dry, combination skin so this cream provided the perfect kind of hydration for my skin. 10/10 I recommend it, although it's quite pricey. (The product's name is Image Vital-c hydrating crème). The only two disadvantages to this product is that it's in an open container (so the vit c easily oxidizes) and 2 ounces of product is not enough for the price. Hope this helped!

By anon301136 — On Nov 02, 2012

@turkay1: I read that you have a lot of blemishes. My adult son had a bad case of acne and had tried many products, none of which helped. We heard that if you wash your face with organic honey that it might clear up the acne, and it did! His face completely cleared up.

Honey has anti-bacterial properties, so this may be why it worked. Hope this might help you! Good luck!

By discographer — On Jan 30, 2012

@turkay1-- You're absolutely right about vitamins not remaining beneficial for very long in products. Vitamin C, especially, doesn't have a very long shelf life and breaks down if it's in sunlight or heat at all. So if you're not buying a product within several months of the production date, the vitamin C that's in it has probably already expired no matter what the expiration date is on the bottle.

I do use a face cream with vitamin C, but I make it myself at home. It's really easy! I buy fresh powdered vitamin C (also called 'L-Ascorbic acid') and then add some to my favorite face cream. I only mix enough to last me a week because I want to use it fresh. When it runs out, I mix some more.

I personally think that this is the best way to use vitamin C for skincare. Otherwise, you might end up using products where the vitamin C in it has already expired.

By SteamLouis — On Jan 29, 2012

@turkay-- Yes, I've been using an organic vitamin C cream and I have seen an improvement in my malesma since I've started using it. Malesma is a condition where the skin is discolored and pigmented. I've tried lots of different products but finally found some improvement with vitamin C face cream. Since it helped with my malesma, I think it will help with your blemishes too.

My face cream is from an organic brand and has vitamin C and E, coconut oil, green tea and aloe. It also has SPF 15. I have dry skin so I'm using this one but they also have an oil-free version for people with oily and acne-prone skin.

By candyquilt — On Jan 29, 2012

I've been hearing a lot about vitamin C creams lately on skin care forums. Some claim that it helps with acne and sun spots, other say that it's great for anti-aging and it's also supposed to be beneficial for skin conditions like melasma.

I have a lot of blemishes from acne breakouts on my face and I'm desperately looking for a product that could help. I'm a little doubtful of vitamin creams though because I've always though that vitamins are good when taken orally. I also don't understand how a vitamin could remain beneficial when mixed with so many other ingredients and stored in containers for months and years.

Has anyone used a vitamin C face cream and are happy with the results? What kind do you use? What are the other ingredients in your vitamin C cream?

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