When it comes to fighting the signs of aging, antioxidants are among your best friends. While people talk about retinoids a lot, primarily retinol as an anti-aging skincare ingredient, there are others that make worthy contenders. Niacinamide, a form of vitamin B3, is commonly used to defend the skin against harmful UV damage, which contributes to aging. Hyaluronic acid is another effective ingredient, as it helps the skin retain moisture.
When it comes to anti-aging ingredients, vitamin E may not be the first on your list, but that doesn’t mean it should not have a place. With powerful antioxidant properties, it protects the skin against free radicals and UV damage, two primary contributors to premature aging. It can address many skin care issues, but how effective is vitamin E for wrinkles and fine lines?
What is Vitamin E?
Vitamin E is made of fat-soluble compounds – eight, to be exact. Because our bodies can’t make vitamin E, we must find it in the foods we eat and the skincare products we purchase. And we promise it’s a useful ingredient to have in your arsenal. It can protect the cells against oxidative damage and free radicals, which break down the skin’s collagen, directly contributing to blemishes, age spots, skin discoloration, wrinkles – and the list goes on.
How Vitamin E Fights Wrinkles and Fine Lines
There are many ways that vitamin E can protect the skin from signs of aging. However, some factors cause age spots, fine lines, and wrinkles more than most. We’ll look at how vitamin E can protect us against these harmful contributors to premature aging.
Protection Against Sun Damage
Since we cannot avoid the sun entirely, our only recourse is to protect ourselves against it. Sunblock should be your first line of defense, but you can incorporate other ingredients for added protection.
Vitamin E is an antioxidant; therefore, it protects the skin against oxidative damage, which can be caused by UV rays. Oxidative damage occurs when there are more free radicals than antioxidants in your body. Applying vitamin E oil or products that contain it can help prevent UV rays from increasing free radicals in the body, which serves to produce and worsen fine lines and wrinkles.
After spending a day in the sun (and thoroughly cleansing your face), we recommend using the Niacinamide 3% & Hyaluronic Acid Serum from Routine 10. While vitamin E isn’t in the product’s name, it’s one of three powerful active ingredients that reduce the signs of aging. It can also soothe irritated skin after spending hours in the sun.
Locks in Moisture for Extra Hydration
Most people talk about collagen loss as we age, but did you know we also lose moisture?
One of the many changes our body undertakes as we age is the inability to produce natural oils that moisturize the skin. In addition to this, our skin begins to get thinner. Thinner skin is more fragile, less elastic, and dries easier as we lose water and electrolytes.
Combined with our body’s inability to sufficiently moisturize our skin, this leads to wrinkles, creases, and sagging skin.
Enter vitamin E. It’s said to prevent the breakdown of the outermost layer, which can stop moisture from escaping. Additionally, it can heal cellular damage that has already occurred. As we age, it becomes vitally important to find skincare products that contain vitamin E as an active ingredient. Start off with the Niacinamide 3% & Hyaluronic Acid Serum by Routine 10. Combined with hyaluronic acid and niacinamide, vitamin E works to soothe, strengthen, and replenish aging skin.
If you haven't thought of this ingredient as being a formidable opponent, we hope you now see how effective vitamin E is for wrinkles and fine lines.
