Adapting your skin-care routine could be difficult, particularly when you’ve got delicate, acne-prone pores and skin like mine. However now that it’s fall, my magnificence routine wants a little bit of a refresh to adapt to my seasonal skin-care targets, that are as follows: brighten my complexion, scale back post-inflammatory hyperpigmentation (PIH) from pimples, and steadiness out my pores and skin tone total.
Reaching all of this with out inflicting any irritation can look like a tall order. However once I was requested to check out the brand new Paula’s Selection 25% Vitamin C + Glutathione Medical Serum ($65), I used to be pumped! This light-weight serum is formulated to focus on varied pores and skin considerations, together with solar harm, uneven pores and skin tone, discoloration, and dullness (aka, all the pieces on my checklist)—all whereas being appropriate for delicate pores and skin.
Key components: vitamin C, glutathione, GAP expertise
Execs:
- Medical-level system
- Brightens, fades, and reverses indicators of oxidative stress
- Boosts pores and skin resiliency over time
- Highly effective but light and sensitive-skin pleasant
- Hydrating
- Perfume-free
Cons:
- Expensive
Formulated with a strong punch of 25 p.c vitamin C, the Medical Serum is designed to spice up the pores and skin’s antioxidant provide, to brighten, fade, and really enhance pores and skin resiliency over time. Meaning delicate pores and skin like mine can be much less delicate, or at the least, higher ready to cope with stressors in the long term. Extra on all of that beneath.
The way it works
The star components are proper within the title: a potent mixture of 25 p.c vitamin C and glutathione. However how does this formulation assist delicate pores and skin?
Julio Lamberty, director of innovation and system growth at Paula’s Selection, explains that vitamin C—which is among the fundamental antioxidants in your pores and skin—improves delicate pores and skin’s means to resist seen adjustments from exterior stressors (suppose: UV rays, blue gentle, and pollution.) However the advantages of a robust vitamin C prolong past surface-level safety. “Vitamin C and its derivatives additionally assist bolster pores and skin’s immune system by defending Langerhans cells from UV radiation. These specialised immune cells assist defend pores and skin’s residing layers from extra severe, irreversible harm,” says Lamberty. Whereas your pores and skin naturally accommodates some vitamin C from dietary and supplemental sources, environmental publicity can erode these reserves over time.
Lamberty underscores that topical software of vitamin C is more and more important, particularly as we age. It’s a proactive step you may take to make sure your delicate pores and skin stays resilient and radiant regardless of the challenges it might face. Every bottle of Medical Serum is mixed with a burst of the super-potent antioxidant ergothioneine, which has been linked to stopping irritation in its tracks. Mixed with glutathione (which helps even out pores and skin tone) and the model’s GAP expertise (amino acids that assist enhance the pores and skin’s pure glutathione ranges), it is a light elixir that works to, “enhance pores and skin’s response to oxidative stressors that may in any other case chip away on the pores and skin’s barrier and improve sensitivity.”
My evaluation
Having been an fanatic of Paula’s Selection merchandise for some time, my expectations have been naturally excessive once I acquired to check the Vitamin C + Glutathione Medical Serum. Paula’s Selection has constantly stood out for me on account of its dedication to ingredient transparency, to the extent that they’ve even supplied a skin-care ingredient search engine, making it simpler for shoppers like me to make knowledgeable decisions.
My expectations weren’t simply met—they have been exceeded. The serum goes on like a dream. It’s fragrance-free, light-weight with a milky texture that my pores and skin shortly drinks up and it makes my pores and skin really feel smoother and softer even earlier than I add my moisturizer.

Other than immediate hydration, it was arduous to inform the outcomes instantly; the product is designed to provide you brighter, extra even pores and skin over time, not essentially immediately. It’s been just a few weeks since I began utilizing the serum, and I can undoubtedly see an total enchancment in tone and brightness. I’ve been preserving my skin-care routine easy; Throughout the day, I apply the 25% Vitamin C + Glutathione Medical Serum and comply with up with SPF to guard from UV harm. I cleanse and use it at evening earlier than making use of my moisturizer and eye cream. You may also use it as a remedy in areas the place discolorations (reminiscent of post-acne marks) are a priority.
Should you’re in search of a serum that gives a one-stop resolution to numerous skin-care considerations whereas specializing in light, clear components, this serum is undoubtedly price including in to your routine.