The Roles of Vitamin C in Skin Health

The primary function of the skin is to act as a barrier against insults from the environment, and itsunique structure reflects this. The skin is composed of two layers: the epidermal outer layer is highly cellularand provides the barrier function, and the inner dermal layer ensures strength and elasticity and givesnutritional support to the epidermis. Normal skin contains high concentrations of vitamin C, which supportsimportant and well-known functions, stimulating collagen synthesis and assisting in antioxidant protectionagainst UV-induced photodamage. This knowledge is often used as a rationale for the addition of vitamin Cto topical applications, but the efficacy of such treatment, as opposed to optimising dietary vitamin C intake,is poorly understood. This review discusses the potential roles for vitamin C in skin health and summarisesthe in vitro and in vivo research to date. We compare the efficacy of nutritional intake of vitamin C versustopical application, identify the areas where lack of evidence limits our understanding of the potentialbenefits of vitamin C on skin health, and suggest which skin properties are most likely to benefit fromimproved nutritional vitamin C intake.

کلیدواژه ها:

ascorbate ، dermis ، epidermis ، skin barrier function ، vitamin C status ، skin aging ، wound healing ، collagen ، UV protection