The Benefits of Antioxidant Skin Care

November 2009

Have you been hearing a new buzz word called antioxidants? What are they and how can they help you? Many skin care products have popped up on the market today with antioxidants in the ingredients list. Many of these skin care products are claiming that antioxidants do wonders for your skin. Are these claims legitimate? What are antioxidants? Do antioxidants really work? What should you be looking for to know you are getting a skin care product with antioxidants? To answer some of these questions lets first start with what antioxidants are.

What are antioxidants? Antioxidants are chemicals that protect the cells by neutralizing external and internal forces. These forces can include sun damage, pollution, emotions, metabolism and the presence of excess oxygen.(1) Antioxidants act as the armor and ammunition your skin needs to battle free radicals. Free radicals form by exposure to many things such as environmental pollution, sunlight, smoke and poor dietary habits.(2)

Free radicals are the reason why we need antioxidants. Free radicals are formed in the body from oxidation and through the break down of food through our metabolism and from the environment. Free radicals cause a lot of damage to the skin cells and are highly reactive substances that can damage and even kill skin cells.

Free radicals are molecules that have one electron missing and they occur naturally after the body carries out chemical reactions every single day. Molecules are not happy when they are short of electrons and they will "steal" one from another cell, this cell will turn around and try and "steal" an electron from another cell, hence a chain reaction begins. The damaged caused by free radicals can appear as fine lines, wrinkles, sagging and dull skin and possibly affect your health on a long term basis.(3)

It is inevitable that we all form and produce free radicals in our system from everyday living. That is why it is so important to add antioxidants into your daily routine. Antioxidants have an abundance of "spare" electrons that freely give to these free radicals and this way they stop the destructive cycle free radicals can cause. Antioxidants have shown to slow, stop or neutralize cell oxidation and damage caused by free radicals. A low level of antioxidants in the body can cause oxidative stress and may hasten cell death.

It is important to feed your body antioxidants as well as apply them topically to have healthy, great looking skin. Always use natural skin care products when using heavy antioxidants, when these antioxidants mix with the other synthetic ingredients the outcome is unknown. Eating foods high in antioxidants is also very beneficial to the health of your body and skin. Antioxidants can be found in foods such as brightly colored fruits, vegetables, various plants and herbs.

Antioxidants have a reparative nature and can help assist in the production of collagen and elastin both of which help keep the skin firm. Antioxidants can help prevent further and future cell membrane damage and repair already damaged skin cells. Along with all these benefits antioxidants also help to nourish and moisturize the skin. As you can see having antioxidant skin care products can be very beneficial to the health of your skin

Here is a list of high quality natural antioxidants that you should look for in your natural skin care products. Vitamin E is an excellent antioxidant that helps protect your skin from environmental pollution as well as moisturize the skin and prevent skin aging. Green Tea is a botanical extract that has amazing cell protective qualities and helps to protect collagen, which is the primary component of healthy skin. Other great antioxidants are Vitamins A and C, Grape Seed Extract, Cranberry, Beta carotene, Cysteine, Methionine, Selenium, Glutathione, Lycopene, Coenzyme Q10, Lipoic acid and Melatonin.(4)

To find great natural skin care products with high levels of antioxidants please visit us at BTrue Naturals. Our mission is to educate people on the benefits of using natural skin care products and staying chemical free. By using natural skin care products with high amounts of antioxidants you will keep your skin looking young and healthy.

(1)Reilly, Colleen; "Antioxidants and Skin Care: Media Hype or Wonder Drug?". Vanderbilt University Antixodiants and Skin Care: Media Hype or Wonder Drug?

(2)"Antioxidant Skincare, Give your skin the ammunition it needs to win the aging wars". Antioxidant Skincare

(3)Patterson, Jenny; "Revealed - The Best Antioxidant Skin Care Products Available!". Revealed - The Best Antioxidants Skin Care Products

(4)Dr. G. Todorov; "Antioxidant nutrients and skin protection". Antioxidant nutrients and skin protection