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Antioxidants are amazing for your skin. They work to protect the skin’s surface from damage caused by free radicals and harmful environmental factors. Want to learn more about the benefits of antioxidants? Read on for more on all things antioxidant!
What Are Antioxidants
Antioxidants are a broad range of ingredients that work to protect the skin’s surface from damage caused by free radicals and harmful environmental factors. Free radicals - a natural-born enemy of the skin - are unstable molecules that seek to gain stability by reacting with other molecules within the body, setting off a chain reaction that ultimately damages healthy cells.
Free radicals are naturally produced by the body, but can increase from exposure to environmental aggressors such as UV radiation, cigarette smoke, chemicals, and pollution. When our bodies become overloaded with free radicals it leads to oxidative stress, which breaks down collagen, triggers inflammation, and accelerates the skin aging process.
How Do Antioxidants Benefit Your Skin?
Antioxidants contain molecules that stabilize free radicals and combat their damaging effects on your skin, making them the perfect skincare essential! The benefits of antioxidants include:
Slowing premature aging
Oxidative stress, caused by free radicals, can lead to premature signs of aging including wrinkles, fine lines, and loose, sagging skin. By stabilizing free radicals, antioxidants can help to prevent and counteract these signs - keeping skin vibrant and youthful.
Helping to prevent sun damage
Antioxidants have anti-inflammatory properties that work to combat the skin’s inflammatory reaction to the sun’s UV rays. This can help prevent sunburn and protect your skin from sun damage.
Aiding the skin’s natural repair and renewal process
Certain antioxidants, like Vitamin C, stimulate collagen production, which promotes health and healing for the skin.
Brightening skin tone
Free radicals can cause changes in our skin’s natural melanin production, which leads to dark spots and uneven skin tone. Antioxidants help to reduce these damages, which can fend off abnormal pigmentation and keep skin looking bright and luminous.
Calming inflammation
The instability of free radicals causes inflammation to occur. Antioxidants bring stability to free radicals, which helps to reduce inflammation and soothe the skin.
The Best Antioxidants for Your Skin
1. Vitamin C
Vitamin C is one of the most popular and powerful antioxidants out there. Vitamin C has a ton of benefits when it comes to your skin - it boosts collagen production, helps to fade dark spots, and helps to combat inflammation.
2. Retinol (Vitamin A)
Retinol, derived from vitamin A, is an incredibly powerful antioxidant, particularly when it comes to anti-aging. It’s small molecular structure enables it to deeply penetrate into the skin, accelerating cell renewal and stimulating collagen production. When it comes to smoothing wrinkles and fine lines, as well as brightening skin tone, retinol is the ultimate essential.
3. Vitamin E
Vitamin E is well-known for its power to accelerate the healing process of the skin. It’s frequently found in moisturizers and creams that seek to treat dry, rough, and irritated skin. Vitamin E also has the ability to stabilize other antioxidants and improve their overall effectiveness, so it's great to use with other antioxidants like vitamin C.
4. Manuka Honey
Manuka honey is valued highly for its strong antioxidant properties. Manuka honey can help to promote skin healing and renewal, as well as soothe redness and swelling. Not only is manuka honey a strong source of antioxidants, it is also anti-inflammatory and anti-bacterial.
These antioxidants can be found in a number of our Blossom products, including our best selling Honeybutter body salve. Packed with organic manuka honey, as well as other powerful antioxidants like Vitamin E and A, Honeybutter promotes hydration, healing, and collagen growth - and those are just a few of its many benefits!