PSA: Don't Use Old Products & Review: Oz Naturals 20% Vitamin C Serum

Any online shopper knows the feeling. That frustrated impatience you get while waiting for an order to arrive. Uggh, come onnn, I want it noooooww! The week before last I was waiting for my new sunscreen, and my Oz Naturals 20% Vitamin C & Amino & Hyaluronic Acid serum*. THE AGONY. I was especially irritated because the sun had really started to shine, and my SPF 20 moisturiser had ran out. I needed to do something because I had to leave the house, and sunlight cannot be allowed to touch my unprotected skin. I will get wrinkles. I will get a tan and then my face won't match my make-up, let alone the rest of my body. Rummaging in the bathroom, I found my tube of SPF50 face lotion from last year. I thought to myself. "It's a year old, but I'm sure it'll be fine." Those were my famous last words.Three days later and my face was a bumpy mess of blocked pores, blackheads and angry red dots. 

My reaction when looking in the mirror.

Conveniently my orders turned up, but at that point I was too scared to try anything new out and anger the skincare gods further. I patch tested them, one behind each ear, and tried to sort out my facial mess using the oil cleansing method (sunflower oil) and also my Aztec Secret Indian Healing Clay mask. 

After a few days of this, the blocked pores were clearing up, but the red spots were as angry as ever. So I figured it was time to try out my new Vitamin C Serum from Oz Naturals.

The packaging.

The serum is a clear liquid, which is quickly absorbed into the skin. Importantly, it contains ferulic acid, which helps stabilise the vitamin C so that it doesn't oxidise too quickly, losing its efficacy.  You are supposed to let it dry before applying moisturiser, and it dries fast with no sticky texture. 

It comes in a brown glass bottle, to protect the serum from UV rays. The dropper means you can accurately control how much product you want to dispense.

I've been applying it morning, before my (new) sunscreen, and evening, before my night cream. It's not terribly moisturising, but I don't mind as that's what my moisturiser is for. As long as it's not drying, which it isn't. There is no discernible scent, and it plays well with my sunscreen and makeup - some serums can ball up when you apply products over them. 

The serum - clear, and very liquid. Dries quickly and doesn't ball up under other products.

I've been using it for a while now, and I really think it's helped the red spots fade much faster than spots usually do for me. My skin usually gets hyperpigmentation for months after a zit, but this seems to be greatly reduced in the short time I've been using it. I have also noticed an overall brightening effect, which I'm rather pleased about!

Unfortunately, I haven't noticed any improvement in my fine lines, or dark circles. During my online research, I may have found the reason. From a post by 'shewh0mustnotbenamed' on reddit's skincareaddiction -

"SAP isn't as good at stimulating collagen synthesis as L-ascorbic acid (LAA) or magnesium ascorbyl phosphate (MAP). To achieve the same amount of stimulation of collagen synthesis, the amount of SAP used must be 10 times the amount of LAA that would be used (Source: [1]).

...

SAP has anti-acne properties (Sources: [1] [2] [3]). AFAIK, LAA and MAP don't."

Oz Naturals Vitamin C Serum contains vitamin C in the form of sodium ascorbyl phosphate, or SAP. This explains why it has been great for my zits and marks, but had little affect on my dark circles and fine lines, which require the collagen boosting forms of L-ascorbic acid or magnesium ascorbyl phosphate. 

My conclusion 
Oz Naturals 20% Vitamin C & Amino & Hyaluronic Acid serum is a good product for sufferers of acne or post-inflammatory hyperpigmentation. However if you primarily want a vitamin C serum for anti-aging or dark circles, I would try a serum containing one of the other forms of it. Would I buy another bottle when this runs out? I'm not sure, I do like the results, but I'm looking for a product to boost my collagen levels, which I don't think this one does enough. I'm thinking of trying the DIY Vitamin C Serum next.

Oz Naturals 20% Vitamin C & Amino & Hyaluronic Acid serum is £15.95 at Amazon UK.

Til Next Time,

Emma
xXx

*This product was sent to me for review purposes. My reviews and opinions will always remain unbiased and impartial. Please see skimlinks disclosure in the sidebar.