Does Vitamin C Cause Purging? Separating Fact from Myth

Purging is a well-documented reaction to actives that speed up skin cell turnover, like retinoids and chemical exfoliants — it temporarily brings existing microcomedones to the surface faster. Vitamin C does not accelerate cell turnover in the same way, so what looks like 'purging' after starting a Vitamin C serum is usually one of two things: a genuine irritation reaction (redness, stinging, breakouts from a formula that's too strong or too low pH for your skin), or an unrelated coincidence. If breakouts persist past 2 weeks, it's more likely irritation than purging — consider dropping to a lower concentration or a gentler derivative like SAP or MAP.