Ferulic acid may not be the first when you’re thinking about your skin care. It may even be the first time you heard of it. But if you’re interested in skin care, you surely have heard of antioxidants. These are the class-SSS warriors you don’t want to miss in your team against free radicals. Put simply, they protect your skin and are great for prevention.
As you see below, ferulic acid is one of the superheroes. It protects your skin from elements that may harm it.
A little bit about the ingredient
Acids sometimes get a bad rep because some of the best known ones such as AHAs have bonds-dissolving effects and can be overexfoliate. Not so with ferulic acid that’s safe to use daily for most people.
Ferulic acid and similar compounds, known as hydroxycinnamic acids, are well known for their antioxidant properties. The environment has a lot going on for your skin. You can thank elements such as pollution, cigarette smoke, and the sun for fine lines, dull skin, hyperpigmentation, and other pet peeves. Antioxidants act to neutralise free radicals that are formed when you’re exposed to the environment.
Ferulic acid is an antioxidant phytochemical produced by certain plants. It helps them protect themselves from predators and external stressors such as UV rays and pathogens. For example, it increases the plant’s resistance to pests. It’s found in bamboo shoot, apple, orange seed, cereals, and some vegetables. In cereals such as rice and oats, it’s found in the bran, the hard out layer of grain.
The name ferulic acid comes from the botanical name of the giant fennel, Ferula communes. It’s classified as a phenolic phytochemical. Phytochemicals, also called phytonutrients are generally considered good for your overall health.
In case of phytochemical antioxidants, these can protect plant cells against environmental damage and keep them young and healthy. So the same applies to us when we consume them.
Ferulic acid is often used in cosmetics and skin care. It started out as a stabiliser for products containing vitamin C which is infamous for being finicky. For cosmetics, ferulic is usually lab-made for quality control, consistency, and consumer safety. Ferulic acid is a golden yellow, amber coloured solid.
How does it work
As a phenolic antioxidant, ferulic acid neutralises free radicals. It’s effective in intercepting different free radicals including superoxide, nitric oxide, and hydroxyl radicals.
It’s not far fetched to say that free radicals are one of the main reasons why you see premature signs of ageing like wrinkles around the eyes or lines above the lips. Free radicals are trigger-happy molecules and are part of normal life. They’re formed by UV light exposure, pollution, and your the body’s own metabolic processes. Your body also makes them as a response when it’s attacked by pathogens.
In order to understand why antioxidants such as ferulic acid are so good for your skin, you first need to know how free radicals cause mayhem to your skin.
The reaction-happy molecules are linked to the breakdown in collagen, the structural protein in your skin. Collagen keeps your skin tight and firm. Further, the free radicals may even impede the growth of new collagen proteins. As if that’s not bad, they also mess with elastin and degrade it. Elastin is the second protein in the supportive tissue but this one allows your skin to bounce back when stretched.
Ferulic acid seeks out the reaction-happy and damaging free radicals and then neutralises them. It has another effect: it can also hinder the production of enzymes that speed up the formation of free radicals. It’s a double-whammy against free radicals.
On your skin
Ferulic acid is a potent antioxidant in its own right. As an antioxidant, it repairs and protects skin cells from trigger-happy free radicals.
Protect from UV
Research has found that ferulic acid has significant photoprotective powers to shield against UV rays. This is one of the reasons, why it’s added to SPF.
Soothing
Ferulic acid is a powerful ally in soothing blocked pores and irritated skin. It has anti-inflammatory effects and can contribute to correcting and smoothening your skin texture.
Fading dark spots and uneven pigmentation
Since ferulic acid contributes to the healing process and is anti-inflammatory, it helps lessen dark spots that often come after a breakout.
It also has the ability to suppress the enzyme tyrosinase. This enzyme is needed when your body makes the pigment melanin. Which means it prevents your skin from making too much melanin and so reduces uneven pigmentation over time.
Boosts other actives
Ferulic acid started as a stabiliser in products containing antioxidants, namely vitamins C and E. All 3 antioxidants work alone, but when combined, ferulic acid enhances what the others can do. It especially boosts the photoprotection (defence against sun damage) the others offer.
What’s not so good
Well, you heard how ferulic acid not only works well with other actives but bolsters them. It also can be used by most people, though if you got sensitive skin, it’s especially a good idea to patch-test ahead of time.
But just like other antioxidants, ferulic acid is unstable. Just like other antioxidants, it needs to be protected from light and it can also break down quickly when exposed to air. So, you want a dark-coloured bottle and you want to store it in a cool and dry place to keep it working for longer.
When to use
There is no hard and fast rule for using ferulic acid. You’ll often find it in combination with vitamins A, C, or, E, and Resveratrol to enhance their effects.
If you use it as a standalone product, for example as a serum, considering that it’s an antioxidant, it makes sense to use it in the morning to increase protection from environmental factors. It’s even better when you apply it under SPF because it strengthens the protection against UV rays.
Of course, if it’s formulated with vitamin A, or you want to soothe irritation triggered by it, layer it with your vitamin A product at night. It helps your skin day or night.
Closing words
Do you see any effects from using your vitamin C serum? Do the other products work as you expect? Even if you do everything by the book and it doesn’t seem to work on your skin, rather than switching to another product or changing up your skin care altogether, try adding ferulic acid.
Just by adding ferulic acid to your daily skin care you may see a powerful results using the same product that you already own. Ferulic acid is definitely an SSS-class super hero without airs. It’s a team player and works well with other actives and even bolsters them.
