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What is Vitamin C ? It is an important antioxidant vitamin that plays a mainly protective role in the body. It is also known as ascorbic acid. It has also been the subject of more scientific study, scrutiny, and hype, than any other nutrient. It has been claimed to prevent or cure so many disorders and diseases, that, inevitably, some of the claims fall short. Some studies on vitamin C's benefits show conflicting results, but there still remains a solid body of scientific evidence that vitamin C does indeed play many important health-enhancing roles. The body cannot make vitamin C and relies completely on intake from diet and supplements. Intake requirements vary greatly from person to person and within the same person, depending on age and state of health. Vitamin C is easily depleted by air, water, freezing, and cooking. About 25-50% of the vitamin content in food can be lost in freezing/thawing or cooking. Canning and reheating causes even more, up to 2/3, to be lost. How Vitamin C Benefits Health Dangerous free radicals are released in our bodies as by-products of the conversion of food to energy, and when we fight off the toxic effects of stress, prescription drugs, and pollutants like pesticides, cigarette smoke, car exhaust, UV rays, and radiation. These free radicals cause oxidative stress to cells and damage them. Free radicals that build up in our bodies over time are the main cause of aging, and contribute to a whole host of diseases linked to oxidative stress, such as cancers, diabetes, arthritis, cataracts, and cardiovascular diseases. Antioxidants play a vital role as they block such damage by free radicals, and neutralize them. Vitamin C is one of the most important antioxidants. In addition, vitamin C benefits our body and is important to health in many other ways.
TOP Vitamin C Deficiency Symptoms and Causes Vitamin C needs to be consumed every day as the body does not store it. Deficiency is usually caused by a diet low in it, such as one short of fresh fruits and vegetables. One third of all adults in the US take less vitamin C in their diet than is recommended in the RDA. In addition, illnessness that cause high fever or inflammation, surgery, oral estrogen, prolonged high alcohol consumption, smoking, pollutants, burns, antibiotics, steroids, aspirin, and barbiturates, tend to deplete vitamin C, which means a higher intake of it is needed. Vitamin C is essential for the synthesis of collagen. The classic vitamin C deficiency symptom is scurvy, where the body stops making collagen and so falls apart – joints fail due to breakdown of cartilage and tendons, gums ulcerate, teeth fall out, blood vessels break open, and the immune system deteriorates. In severe cases the person dies. Signs of scurvy and other vitamin C deficiency symptoms are listed here.
TOP Vitamin C Foods High vitamin C foods · guava · lychees / litchis · papayas · strawberries · vegetables like broccoli, Brussels sprouts, cabbage, cauliflower, collards, kale, mustard greens, bell peppers, turnip greens, spinach. Other food containing vitamin C · berries such as blueberries, cranberries, raspberries, blackcurrants · citrus fruit such as grapefruit, lemons, limes, oranges, tangerines · fruits such as cantaloupe, kiwifruit, mangos, melons, persimmons, pineapple · onions · herbs such as fennel, parsley, peppermint · rose hips · radishes, turnips, potatoes and sweet potatoes (baked with skin) · vegetables like asparagus, beet greens, chard, garden cress, green peas, lettuce, tomatoes, winter squash, zucchini. TOP Vitamin C Supplements Taking vitamins and minerals in their correct balance is vital to the proper functioning of all vitamins. They work synergistically, which means that the effectiveness of any one nutrient requires or is enhanced, sometimes dramatically, by the presence of certain other nutrients. For this reason, if you are looking to take supplements for maintenance of optimal health, the recommended approach is to take a multi-vitamin that has the proper balance of all the necessary nutrients your body needs. For a list of reputable top ranked vitamin and mineral supplements chosen in an independent supplement review, see Best Multivitamin Supplements. Many of these are manufactured to pharmaceutical or nutraceutical GMP compliance, which is the highest multivitamin standard possible. Keep in mind, however, that while vitamin supplements are useful to plug nutritional gaps that are almost inevitable in modern diets, and to ensure we get optimal doses of nutrients, they are no substitute for a good diet. Instead, use them to complement a healthy diet and lifestyle. TOP Vitamin C RDA (Recommended Dietary Allowance) The Food & Nutrition Board of the Institute of Medicine, National Academy of Sciences, in their 1997-2001 collaboration between the US and Canada, set the daily Adequate Intake (AI) of Vitamin C as follows.
These dosages are the minimum required per day to ward off deficiency. In therapeutic use of this nutrient, dosage is increased as necessary for the ailment, keeping in mind Vitamin C toxicity levels. Legend 1 µg = 1 mcg = 1 microgram = 1/1,000,000 of a gram 1 mg = 1 milligram = 1/1,000 of a gram * Indicates AI figures based on Dietary Reference Intake (DRI) figures TOP Vitamin C Overdose Symptoms, Toxicity Level & Side Effects Toxicity is very rare as the body does not store it. However, avoid doses higher than 2000 mg daily, as too much vitamin C can cause nausea or an upset stomach. Prolonged vitamin C overdose can also cause gastritis, or kidney failure or stones in those with kidney disease. In its guidelines, the Food and Nutrition Board of the Institute of Medicine set the Tolerable Upper Intake Levels (ULs) for vitamin C as listed below. These are the highest average daily intake levels above which there is risk of vitamin C overdose.
**Includes pregnant and breastfeeding women. Go to top of this page :: Vitamin C | Benefits | Deficiency Symptoms « Back to Health Supplements Nutritional Guide Home page |
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