What Are Antioxidants? Benefits for Skin & Body Explained
I love knowing the functions of vitamins, minerals, extracts, and other substances so I can understand how they would work best for my skin and body. Knowing how your skincare ingredients work, what they should do for your skin, and how they fit into your skincare routine is what will help you choose the best products for yourself and craft the perfect routine.
Let’s chat antioxidants! Antioxidants are in a WIDE range of skincare ingredients, as well as in foods we eat. We know that antioxidants are good, as they are advertised as beneficial in many skincare and health products, but do you know what they actually do? And why do we want antioxidants in our skincare? And one last question, what are the best ways to incorporate and use antioxidants into our skincare routine? I’m answering all these questions for you!
What Are Antioxidants & How Do They Work?
An antioxidant is a substance, either from the earth or scientifically made, that protects cells from oxidative damage. What is oxidative damage? When an unstable molecule, called a free radical, destroys a cell, proteins, or part of our DNA. Free radical - oxidative damage can come from environmental pollution, UV light, light from our devices, certain chemicals, processed foods, high stress, and cigarette smoke.
So essentially, antioxidants protect the different cells and proteins in our skin and body, defending them against this damage that is difficult to avoid.
Benefits of Antioxidants in Skincare
Antioxidant ingredients in skincare products help prevent collagen and elastin loss, keeping our skin firmer for longer. They also prevent skin from pigment damage and loss of moisture by helping to stabilize these unstable free radicals that cause so much damage. Everyone, every type of skin, benefits from antioxidant ingredients, because their function truly is to preserve our cells’ health.
When to Use Antioxidants in Your Skincare Routine (Morning vs Night)
Using an antioxidant product in the morning, the most popular and well-known would be vitamin C serum, which helps defend skin against damage from UV, fluorescent light, HEV light, and air pollution. Helping your skin to incur less damage throughout the day.
Using an antioxidant product in the evening, like a mist, cream, or serum, helps repair your skin by stopping any free radical damage from free radicals that have been absorbed or that are already in your body.
Antioxidant skincare = more radiant, firmer, brighter, healthier functioning skin.
scrub me secret: I personally love using my antioxidant-rich face mist or toner in the Morning and a moisturizer and facial oil with some antioxidant ingredients in the evening. I feel like this routine has preserved my skin well.
Common Antioxidant Ingredients in Skincare
Vitamin C - A powerful antioxidant that helps support collagen production and defend against environmental damage like UV and pollution, thus brightening the skin. It’s especially loved for improving uneven tone and bringing a natural glow to the skin. I love daytime vitamin C serum. Check out my blog on vitamin C for a deeper dive on the different kinds.
Vitamin E - A nourishing, oil-soluble antioxidant that helps protect the skin barrier and lock in moisture. Often found in oils and creams, and also paired alongside vitamin C, enhancing its effectiveness while calming and softening the skin.
Polyphenols - Plant-derived antioxidants known for their soothing and protective properties.
Common sources in skincare: green tea extract, grape seed extract, chamomile, rosemary, pomegranate, cacao (so many of my favorite things 😍)
Anthocyanins - A specific type of polyphenol responsible for the rich red, blue, and purple colors in plants, offering strong antioxidant protection and helping to support skin resilience and brightness.
Common sources in skincare: blueberry, blackberry, raspberry, acai, elderberry, basically all the good berries
Polysaccharides - Naturally occurring sugar molecules that deeply hydrate and help the skin retain moisture while also offering antioxidant support. They create that soft, plump, dewy look we all love.
Common sources in skincare: tremella mushroom, aloe vera, seaweed, flaxseed, snow mushroom extracts (you’ll find these items in hydrating serums and other hydration products)
Amino Acids - The building blocks of proteins like collagen and elastin, helping to support skin structure, hydration, and repair. They also play a role in maintaining a healthy skin barrier and overall skin function.
Common sources in skincare: rice extract, silk amino acids, oat extract, soy, fermented ingredients
scrub me secret: Red maple leaf extract is a skincare ingredient I recently learned about while trying some new skincare from a line called Purity Woods. This extract has a high amino acid content and phenolic compounds, which are antioxidants that reduce damage from UV and other light rays. Studies have been done on red maple leaf extract that show it’s helpful in firming skin and preventing collagen loss.
My Go-To Antioxidant Skincare Picks
Herbivore Tremella Mushroom Cleanser - I love tremella extract! This hydrating and antioxidant-rich ingredient is great for our skin. This jelly/creamy cleanser feels great and contains a ton of protective and hydration-binding ingredients.
Josh Rosebrook Vitamin C serum - My absolute favorite vitamin C serum! It’s gentle, yet very effective in protecting the skin. And leaves skin healthy and radiant looking. A lot of my customers love this one.
Josh Rosebrook Hydration Mist - A hydrating mist packed with antioxidants from vitamin E and various plant extracts. I love that this mist adds lightweight hydration but also feeds skin antioxidants.
Rosewater Mist - Rosewater spray is such a perfectly simple way to add hydration and antioxidants to your skin’s surface. Rosewater contains rejuvenating and free radical-fighting antioxidants and adds hydration molecules to your skin cells
Peach & Lily Matcha Pudding Cream - This green tea extract moisturizer helps prevent signs of aging by enriching skin with protective antioxidants as well as delivering firming properties from caffeine. This is a lovely night cream for those wanting to preserve skin and prevent signs of aging.
Therapi Ultra Radiance Cream - I’ve loved this cream for years! This hydrating, honey-enriched moisturizer is such a powerhouse. Its healing and antioxidant-rich ingredient profile is why I chose to try it in the first place. And it’s extremely rich, moisturizing texture is what keeps me coming back.
Nourishing Serum Facial Oil - This oil has a really specific ingredient profile. I wanted it to be calming, moisturizing, and healing. Thats why I chose antioxidant-rich carrot seed and lavender as the essential oils in this facial product. And added grapeseed for even more protection benefits.
True Botanicals True Radiance Oil - True Botanicals chooses really luxurious antioxidant ingredients, and unique ones too! This oil contains kiwi extract, passionfruit oil, red algae, evening primrose, and one of my favorites: raspberry seed oil. It’s a lovely last step to your nighttime skincare routine.
Multipurpose Balm - A balm that contains a blend of antioxidant-rich and omega-rich oils. Castor, pumpkin seed, and extra virgin olive oil. This is what makes it so healing! These antioxidant-rich oils that can fight free radicals and repair damage.
Scrub Me bar soaps - All of my soap bars contain different blends of essential oils, plant oils, and other plant extracts. This ensures that every soap has some type of healing and skin-strengthening properties.
scrub me secret: you’ll see a lot of skincare with antioxidant benefits advertised. Thats because SO many different ingredients and plant extracts contain antioxidants, which is great. We just want to make sure we look at the full ingredients list of an item and check for any red flags or harmful ingredients before purchasing. Just because a skincare item says it contains antioxidants doesn’t automatically deem it good.
Antioxidants for the Body: Foods That Support Healthy Skin
Just like antioxidant skincare ingredients, antioxidant-rich foods neutralize and stabilize those unstable free radicals that float around and cause damage. Free radical damage in the body is linked to heart disease, chronic inflammation, accelerated aging, cancer, and other health issues. This is why we want to eat antioxidant-rich foods and drink antioxidant-rich teas/juices.
Foods like berries, leafy greens, pecans, walnuts, sweet potatoes, carrots, tea, peppers, spices, and herbs all contain amazing antioxidants.
I think something that contributes to really healthy, smooth, firm, clear skin is feeding your cells with antioxidants both externally and internally. Antioxidant skincare items + antioxidant-rich foods daily equals healthy-looking and feeling skin/body.