Uses for Vitamin-E Skin Oil
Vitamin E not only provides a plethora of benefits to the internal body, but it also provides numerous benefits when topically applied to the skin in the form of vitamin-E oil. There are many different uses for vitamin-E skin oil that serve the health of the superficial surface layer of the skin, as well as the skin tissue beneath the surface layer. Does this Spark an idea?
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Antiaging Uses
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Vitamin-E oil is often used for antiaging purposes, since it penetrates the surface of the skin and works to ensure proper cell functioning beneath. Vitamin E stimulates and contributes to the production of collagen and elastin, two proteins necessary for healthy skin that is supple, youthful, and "plump." When collagen and elastin production declines, the skin begins to thin and lose its protective abilities, bringing on wrinkles and skin discoloration more easily. Vitamin E combats this part of the natural aging process, and works to keep the skin healthy from the inside out. The oil reduces the appearance of fine lines and wrinkles.
Antioxidant Uses
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Vitamin E's ability to serve the skin from the inside out enhances its function as an antioxidant. Antioxidants protect the skin by fighting off harmful free radicals, and vitamin E provides antioxidant benefits by protecting the skin from sun exposure, pollution, and other skin-cell-damaging environmental influences. The oil form of vitamin E is, in fact, highly effective in this way, since the oil absorbs deeply into the skin.
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Sunburn Protection and Treatment
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Vitamin E's antioxidant functionality helps to protect the skin against sunburn, and topical application of vitamin-E oil can also treat existing sunburns, helping the skin to heal, and alleviating discomfort with the vitamin's emollient properties offered in its oil form. Vitamin-E oil also works with sunscreens to increase their effectiveness.
Healing and Restoring Moisture in the Skin
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Many people apply vitamin-E oil at night to allow it to seep into the skin for softness and radiance. Vitamin-E oil is also used in overnight applications for scar treatment, as well as other textural irregularities of the skin; its ability to keep the skin supple helps maintain the skin's natural functions so that it can repair damaged cells by "bumping" them off with new cell generation. (Dead, useless cells will naturally shed from the skin when replaced with healthier, new cells.) Psoriasis is a chronic condition that causes dry, scaly, red patches on the skin, and this condition is often treated with overnight topical vitamin E application, which helps to repair the dry skin and improve its appearance.
Other Uses
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Vitamin-E oil is also applied to the skin to help reduce the appearance of stretch marks and skin discoloration, usually in the form of age spots. Nighttime application helps the skin maintain proper oil balance during morning cleansing. Vitamin E also reduces water loss from the skin and strengthens the skin barrier.
Considerations
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Vitamins in the form of oils have a downside: They are subject to degradation as soon as the oil is exposed to the air. Oxygen can weaken and damage the vitamin very quickly, making it useless. This is why vitamin-E oil, which usually comes in oil-containing capsules, must be applied immediately. Vitamin-E oil that comes in bottles and containers is often blended with another ingredient, such as grapeseed oil, and often does not contain vitamin E in its natural form (which doesn't necessarily mean it is not effective). Also, vitamin-E oil is often thick and sticky, which is why many opt to treat the skin at night.
Other Forms of Vitamin E
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Natural sources of vitamin E are green, leafy vegetables and fortified cereals. Vitamin E supplements are also widely available, and many people address skin conditions by taking vitamin E orally, either instead of, or in conjunction with topical applications. The popular skin-care ingredient retinol is a derivative of vitamin E, and retinol's "cousin," Retin-A, is chemically similar to vitamin E and provides many of the same benefits.
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