We’ve all done it, either deliberately or unintentionally gone outside with insufficient sun protection. Maybe we wanted a “healthy” tan or maybe we just were going out for a moment that turned out to be longer than expected, leaving us unprotected. But what are we really risking?

Until recently, it was believed that dry skin, fine lines, wrinkles and brown spots were just normal signs of aging, but we now know, much of this is preventable sun damage. Excessive ultraviolet radiation can cause mutations to the skin’s cellular DNA, these mutations can slow the cells ability to repair themselves, slow energy metabolism (cell division), cause oxidative stress, destroy collagen and may lead to skin cancer. Applying a high quality sunscreen with an SPF (Sun Protection Factor) of at least 30 can help prevent future damage, but what if you’ve already been exposed?

Luckily, Vitamin B comes to the rescue! Niacin, nicotinic acid, niacinimide and B3 – are all forms of Vitamin B and can play a significant role in helping to prevent and reverse skin damage. Vitamin B helps stimulate the skin’s own repair process at the cellular level, creating generations of healthier skin cells. It also increases energy to the cells, which in turn increases cell turn over, strengthening the skin barrier and helping to prevent moisture from evaporating from the skin. Vitamin B helps your skin act like it did when it was younger!

Where do we get it? Vitamin B is an essential nutrient, meaning it is essential to our health but not one that our bodies can make so it must be absorbed by outside sources. Eating foods high in Vitamin B is a good start but it must first be digested then circulated through the blood stream and therefore, unable to be provided in high concentrations to the cells. However, when applying Vitamin B topically to the skin, it bypasses the digestive process and delivers concentrated amounts directly to the skin’s basal cells.

Not all topical B Vitamins are created equal! Vitamin B is water soluble making it challenging to pass the fatty layers of the stratum corneum. NIA24® Niacin Powered Skin Therapy professional skin care products each contains Pro-Niacin®; a lipophilic, micro-nutrient delivery system, clinically proven to increase the amount of active Vitamin B to the cells.

The benefits don’t end there. When you combine Pro-Niacin® with other active ingredients such as Vitamin A and Vitamin C, you help enhance the efficacy of anything you use it with! Two great picks to try; NIA 24® Intensive Retinol Repair combines 5% Pro-Niacin® with Vitamin A for smoother texture and healthier skin. Or try NIA 24® Rapid Depigmentation Serum, which combines 5% Pro-Niacin with Vitamin C and hexylresorcinol, for help lightening dark spots and all over brightening giving you more glowing, luminous skin.