The best vitamins for winter skin health
Dark, cold, and grey outside? It’s no wonder your skin – and probably your mood – have lost their glow. When temperatures plummet and sunshine’s in short supply our immunity, mood and skin are affected. That means we’re more prone to coughs, colds and infections, winter blues and dry, sensitive skin. Your most valuable winter allies? Hardworking vitamins that work topically, and through food and supplements, to keep you and your skin strong and healthy.
Here’s all you need to know to incorporate a daily dose of essential vitamins into your winter skincare routine and diet...
Vitamin A: Supports healing and smooth skin
Essential for fighting illness and infection, bone growth, and good vision, vitamin A also plays an important role in skin health — helping prevent breakouts, speeding up healing, and keeping skin moisturized.
Find vitamin A in:
Yellow, red and orange fruits and vegetables such as carrots, squash, bell peppers, sweet potato, mango, papaya, and apricots; spinach, mackerel, salmon, cheese, eggs, milk, yoghurt, and liver.
What vitamin A does in skincare
In topical form, vitamin A is most commonly used as a retinoid — a go-to for smoothing fine lines and supporting collagen renewal. But while effective, it can come with downsides: flaking, redness, irritation, and for women of color, a risk of post-inflammatory hyperpigmentation. Six Gldn takes a different approach. Instead of retinoids, our formulas harness the power of adaptogenic botanicals like astragalus, ginseng, and angelica — long used in Traditional Oriental Medicine to support collagen synthesis, improve firmness, and restore vitality to tired, dull or mature skin, gently, and without irritation.
Try: Six Gldn Super-G Youth Serum
Vitamin B complex: For barrier repair and hydration
The 8 different B vitamins help the body release energy from food (which is why when levels are low we feel tired and sluggish), and keep the eyes, blood and nervous system healthy. The B complex is also vital for bright, hydrated skin – a lack can lead to a compromised barrier, dry, cracked skin and lips, and acne. B vitamins are water soluble, meaning the body doesn’t store them, so top them up from nutrient-dense food regularly.
Find vitamin B in: Chicken, beef, fish, eggs, cheese, mushrooms, avocado, bananas, wheatgerm, peas, broccoli, chickpeas, fortified breakfast cereals.
What vitamin B does in skincare
Niacinamide (vitamin B3) is a key vitamin for every skin type that brightens, soothes, restores the barrier, hydrates and reduces excess oil. Vitamin B5, pantothenic acid, helps skin retain water, keeping it soft, smooth, healthy and protected.
While ingredients like niacinamide and panthenol are widely used for hydration and barrier repair, Six Gldn takes a different approach. We use nutrient-dense whole plants known for their skin-calming and barrier-supportive properties.
Botanicals like astragalus, burdock, ginseng and angelica have been used for centuries to help restore skin vitality. Rich in naturally occurring B vitamins and skin-replenishing compounds, these ingredients work to soothe irritation, support skin’s resilience, and lock in moisture, without the need for synthetic isolates.
Try: Six Gldn Essential Moisturizer
Vitamin C: Brightens and protects winter skin
As the body doesn’t produce vitamin C, it’s essential that your daily diet is packed with the goodness of this nutritional workhorse. It helps bolster the immune system, fight inflammation and infections and lower blood pressure. It’s also vital for keeping skin and hair healthy. Without enough skin becomes dry and cracked, and hair dry, brittle and split.
Find vitamin C in: Broccoli, cauliflower, spinach, potatoes, bell peppers, tomatoes, guava, pineapple, strawberries, mango, kiwi and citrus fruit.
What vitamin C does in skincare
Vitamin C is a superstar skincare ingredient. One of the most powerful antioxidants for skin, it helps protect against cell damage and premature aging caused by daily stressors such as UV exposure, screen time, and urban pollution. Other benefits include brightening the complexion, and boosting collagen and elastin production to smooth and firm the skin.
Try: Six Gldn Super-G Youth Serum
Vitamin D: Soothes and strengthens stressed skin
Vitamin D is an unsung hero, whose importance to all-round good health and wellbeing is only just being unravelled. Mainly made by the action of sunlight on skin, it’s crucial for strong bones and skin health, and has been shown to improve sleep and boost immunity. It also has potent antioxidant and anti-inflammatory benefits, that can help soothe and calm skin prone to acne and psoriasis.
Find vitamin D in: Oily fish like salmon, sardines, herring and mackerel, mushrooms, whole milk, red meat, egg yolks, and fortified foods such as cereals and bread.
What vitamin D does in skincare
Skin in need of soothing? Topical vitamin D is ultra-calming for red, stressed, sensitized skin. It conditions and helps restore the barrier, making skin stronger, also helps protect against damage from UV, screens and airborne pollutants. Best sources? Oils like jojoba and sweet almond are packed with nourishing vitamin D.
Try: Six Gldn Nourishing Face Oil
Vitamin E: Calms, hydrates and defends
Immune-booster and powerful antioxidant, vitamin E helps strengthen our defences against infection, protect cells against free radicals, prevent heart disease, and keep eyes and skin healthy.
Find vitamin E in: Sunflower seeds, butternut squash, spinach, avocado, extra virgin olive oil, shrimp, broccoli.
What vitamin E does in skincare
Another stellar antioxidant, vitamin E helps skin by neutralizing free radicals. This skin all-rounder also strengthens the barrier, soothes, calms and hydrates.
Try: Six Gldn Essential Moisturizer