Here’s a short overview of one of the most popular and widely used ingredients in skin care, vitamin C!
http://www.futurederm.com/2012/07/05/spotlight-on-l-ascorbic-acid/
Let me know what you think! What else would you guys like to know about vitamin C?
The Triple Helixian 
I am currently using several Vit C products, one with Ascorbic Acid and (another) with Ascorbyl Glucoside. I understand that Vit C can be simply an antioxidant/ preservative and/or that it will stimulate the formation of collagen at certain concentrations.
My question is; Is it still the general understanding that concentrations below 10% will not significantly boost collagen production in the skin or have penetration enhancers or other recent advances made lesser concentrations more available/effective?
What are my products (5% and below) actually doing for my skin? Should I switch to a 10% concentration of L Ascorbic acid for anti-ageing effect.
Also, what concentration of Ascorbyl Glucoside would be needed to stimulate collagen in the same way as L Ascorbic acid at 10%,or are the stabilized forms of vit C not capable of the anti ageing benefits derived from L Ascorbic acid at the right concentration
Posted by Robyn Hurren | November 15, 2012, 4:04 amThe 10% concentration rule generally only applies to L-ascorbic acid specifically, not to its derivatives. Therefore, 5% ascorbyl glucoside can still have a positive effect on the skin, though we can’t know specifically what it’s doing since very few studies have been done on this form of vitamin C. It has only been shown to be marginally effective at skin lightening (http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/16626384) and as an antioxidant (http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/22537778).
Therefore, the biggest question is how much ascorbyl glucoside converts to L-ascorbic acid? Unfortunately there is no study or verifiable source detailing that information. We can only hope that ascorbyl glucoside is effective. Furthermore, there is not a study documenting ascorbyl glucoside’s ability to stimulate collagen production.
Therefore, I think that it’s just safer to stick with 10%+ L-ascorbic acid until more studies are performed.
Does that make sense?
Posted by John | November 15, 2012, 10:32 pm