If you've been a beauty addict long enough, or even if you're a newbie — chances are you're well-versed with vitamin C serum. You may have spent countless hours trawling the internet for all the latest info on vitamin C serums, and well, you're not going to be disappointed. ICYMI, vitamin C serum is an almost holy grail-like product when it comes to skincare. It's a hydrating, brightening, and anti-inflammatory product that tackles problems ranging from hyperpigmentation to signs of ageing, to sunburn, and even wound healing. And yes, in order to avail of these benefits, you do need to use an actual vitamin C serum — just incorporating vitamin C into your diet won't guarantee it has any effect on your skin, so a topical product is the best possible option. But our favourite part about vitamin C serum? It works for all skin types, especially oily skin; in fact, vitamin C serum for oily skin is a fantastic way of dealing with a lot of problems that your skin type may be giving you. As someone with skin that greases up 5 minutes after cleansing, I've dealt with almost every issue there is — I've been afraid of moisturisers, my pores are constantly clogged, and I've had days where I've refused to step out because I had a raging break out of acne. However, vitamin C serum for oily skin was a game-changer — it managed to hydrate my skin just the right amount without making it greasy, it worked for my pores, and best of all, it gave me pimple-free, bright-looking skin. Don't want to take my word for it? Well, if you need convincing that vitamin C for oily skin is an actual game-changer, read on. We're listing down the benefits of vitamin C for oily skin.
01Benefits of vitamin c serum for oily skin
1. It Hydrates The Skin Effectively
People with oily skin have a strange, not entirely misguided fear that using moisturiser will make their skin greasier. But what they fail to understand is what makes their skin too oily — sometimes, there's an overproduction of sebum from the face's sebaceous glands. Additionally, using harsh, alcohol-based cleansers without moisturising effectively can strip the skin of its natural oils, and make the sebaceous glands go into overdrive, meaning they produce more sebum than necessary. We say it's about time we struck a balance between the two extremes, which is where a vitamin C serum for oily skin steps in! Instead of being a humectant that would draw extra moisture on your face, vitamin C serum simply helps your skin to retain moisture. This means that it can hydrate and moisturise your skin effectively without making it overly greasy, which we count as a total win!
2. It Helps With Pores
Having oily skin means having to deal with humanity's biggest threat yet — large, clogged pores. Since excessive sebum production clogs and congests your pores, it almost feels like there's no respite. That is, apart from vitamin C serum. Since it's an antioxidant, vitamin C serum manages to unclog the pores, clear out dead skin, and reduce the overall amount of sebum. Additionally, it also minimises the pores — and since it's non-comedogenic, you know that you can kiss those social life-ruining blackheads goodbye.
3. It Takes Care Of Acne
Breakouts are the absolute worst, and regardless of whether you get blackheads or full-blown cystic acne, we'd just like to say — we feel you. Enter vitamin C serum. Even though acne is the bane of everyone who has ever had oily skin, vitamin C serum for oily skin manages to take care of it as if it were never there. This is because vitamin C is a powerful antioxidant that fights the free radical damage that may happen to the skin cells. Additionally, topical vitamin C serums can help reduce the inflammation caused by acne — and we already covered how it helps with pores and blackheads, so you know you're in safe hands.
4. It Promotes The Healing Of Acne Scars
While you may have figured out how to heal your acne, healing acne scars is a whole other story. They take what seems like centuries to disappear, always reminding us of the painful pimples they once were, and give rise to a lot of unnecessary questions when visible. Thankfully, because vitamin C serums promote the skin cells turnover rate and promote collagen production, it manages to renew the cells much quicker than what would happen if you just let it be — and hence, manage to manage to make acne scars disappear into thin air, like they were never there in the first place.
5. It Prevents Future Breakouts
Just because your acne and your acne scars are taken care of doesn't always mean that you'll never get breakouts again; and we're not promising that either! What we will say, though, is that if you're scared of major breakouts in the future, you can be assured that vitamin C serum will take care of it. Since it's slightly acidic, vitamin C manages to kill acne-causing bacteria that may settle in the pores, thus preventing bacteria-induced breakouts.
6. It Brightens The Complexion
One of the biggest problems with having oily skin is that if you're susceptible to having a dull complexion, you're in for a bad time. Not only will all promises of dewy skin fail you — since your skin is already oily to begin with — but you'll have to deal with a weird amalgamation of dullness and oiliness, meaning your complexion just does not look good. This is where a trusty vitamin C serum for oily skin comes in super handy. Since it's an antioxidant, it protects the skin from sun damage, stimulates collagen production, and gets rid of dullness-inducing dark spots to reveal a radiant, glowing complexion that doesn't look oily. We'd say the future of oily skin after using a vitamin C serum looks just like the person using vitamin C serum for oily skin; bright AF. While the benefits of using a vitamin C serum for oily skin are multifold and plenty, don't treat this as a one-size-fits-all product, where every single serum will work for you. You need to be careful of the kind of serum you pick, and take into account specific details to ensure that your serum doesn't make your skin oilier. Ahead, we're letting you in on how to pick a vitamin C serum for oily skin, so take notes.
02How to pick a vitamin c serum for oily skin
1. Make Sure It's Water-Based
This is perhaps the most important factor to consider! While both oil-based and water-based vitamin C serums exist, when you're picking one for oily skin, ensure that it's water-based. A water-based vitamin C serum is more absorbent, so you know it'll give you instant results. At the same time, it's much lighter than its oil-based counterpart, and won't sit heavy on your face or make your skin overly greasy.
2. Look For L-Ascorbic Acid
Vitamin C serum comes in a plethora of forms when it comes to absorption — ranging from L-Ascorbic Acid, to Magnesium Ascorbyl Phosphate. The recommended one for oily skin has to be one that's water-soluble, lightweight, and one with high penetration ability — and the winner is L-Ascorbic Acid. Always make sure the vitamin C serum you pick for oily skin contains L-Ascorbic Acid, since it will absorb extremely well into the skin, and fulfil its purpose without any detrimental effects.
3. Check The Concentration of Vitamin C
When choosing a serum, even though you're not a chemist or a product-formulator, you should always have a fair idea of the concentration of the active ingredient that goes into it — too little, and there won't be any impact at all, and too much, and there may be unwanted side effects. When it comes to picking a vitamin C serum for oily skin, you should always ensure that the serum contains between 5-20% of L-Ascorbic Acid acid in its formulation. Usually, the packaging will specify the quantity, so you don't need to stress out about it. It's safe to say that vitamin C serum is a skincare holy grail, especially for those with oily skin. With multifold benefits that make it a must-have for everyone, you can rest assured that this will take care of all your skincare woes.
