Spotlight On...

Antioxidants

In many ways antioxidants are like the super heroes of the skin care world. They kick (neutralize) free radical ass, those wrinkle-causing bad guys produced by sunlight, stress, air pollution and other environmental factors. Think of what a cut apple looks like after being left out for a few minutes. 

Antioxidants act like a squeeze of lemon juice.

If you think that 90% of ageing is caused by Antioxidants you get the gist of their importance.

They are heralded in the industry for both their preventative and reparative powers. We are encouraged to slather them on both our skin and salads. The ultimate skin food.

Some researchers have even suggested that Antioxidant-based products are more important than SPFs in fighting ageing and cancer. Vitamins A, C and E are earning their stripes as the skin care big guns.

While there’s no shortage of research and results illustrating the benefits of Antioxidants the issue is more problematic than it seems. Scientists are arguing that for Antioxidants oxygen is their kryptonite. According to some the moment you open your jar of moisturiser or pump your cleanser and the product comes into contact with air the potency of the ingredients are lost.

Revolutionary new skincare range Radical also argue that multiple Antioxidants are required to fight the numerous types of free radicals. According to them there are five types of Free Radicals and using the one or two Antioxidants present in most products is simply not enough. Furthermore, they claim that when Antioxidants are combined with reparative ingredients in skincare they break down and lose their power, rendering them mere humans when it comes to protecting your skin from Free radical assault. Radical have pioneered a new technology named Trylacel™ which effectively encapsulates the Antioxidants preserving their potency. Radical products are jam packed with 15 Antioxidants. Their hero Peptide Infused Antioxidant Serum was tested by a USDA lab and was proven to be 300% more potent in antioxidant protection than leading brands. Its effects on sun damage certainly make it worthy of a cape and a sidekick. However, the moisturizers are in jars- not exactly air tight (they say that the Trylacel protects the antioxidants so they don't need air tight packaging).

For the time being all of this is still speculation. The exact details are still being argued out by the masterminds (scientists). In the mean-time by all means carrying on using your products but don’t put your skin’s life in the hands of these creams. Be skin care savvy. A very common myth skincare companies have spread is that Retin-A makes skin more susceptible to sunlight. The truth is Retin-A degrades in the sun- making the product ineffective. That is why they are not recommended for daytime use.

Companies would have to jump many a hurdle to rebrand their products into airless packaging- watch out and applaud the ones who do. Don’t give up on proper sun care; it is your best hope for long reigning happy skin. And remember, beauty does come from within- even if their effectiveness in skincare is being questioned antioxidants are still essential – satisfy your snack attack and keep your skin healthy in one, eat them.

And if you can afford the purse crippling prices give Radical products a go they are Ah-mazing.

Available from Space NK.