Vitamin C Benefits

Vitamin C is one of the most important vitamins for your body.  It prevents a lot of diseases, and increases your body’s immune system.  You can take this vitamin with or without any food, as it can be found in supplement form or in many different juices.  Along with being found in supplement and vitamin form, you can find vitamin C in broccoli, peppers, oranges, lemon juice, mustard greens, cauliflower, papaya, and parsley.

Research in the past has shown that there really aren’t any advantages to taking excessive amounts of this vitamin.  Even though you shouldn’t take excessive amounts of vitamin C, you shouldn’t have a deficiency in the vitamin either.  The most common signs of a deficiency in vitamin C include swollen gums, an unexplained weakness, and nosebleeds.  Deficiency is common these days, with the most common reasons being alcoholism and a poor diet.

Tendons and ligaments throughout your body need vitamin C in order to remain healthy and strong.  Depending on your current health situation, it may be in your best interest to take vitamin C supplements along with vitamin E.  Together, the combination of the two will work side by side, and enhance their overall impact on your body and your health.

Vitamin C is well known as an antioxidant, protecting your skin from the harmful damage of UV rays.  If you skin suffers from radiation damage, vitamin C can actually help your skin to recover and reverse some of the harmful effects.  If you include vitamin C in your diet and take it every day, you’ll notice that your skin will benefit.  If you use vitamin E and C together, you’ll notice that scars and other harmful defects on your skin will start to heal as well.

You can find vitamin C in many fruits and vegetables, although oranges will give you the most amounts.  Orange juice is a great way to get your daily dose of vitamin C, as all you need to do is drink a few glasses of it a day.  Even if you drink a glass of orange juice in the morning with your breakfast then eat a few oranges during the day, you’ll get more than enough vitamin C.

If you want to get more vitamin C in your diet, you can use vitamin supplements.  When you look for supplements at the store, you should read the labels and see how much vitamin C is in the supplement, and how it works.  You should avoid time released supplements of vitamin C, as they haven’t been proven to work as well yet.  As long as you monitor your intake of vitamin C and use it on a daily basis, you’ll find that your health and immune system will be better than ever.

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Vitamin C - The Best Vitamin?

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Vitamin C (Ascorbic Acid) may possibly be a "wonder vitamin" in some people's books.  A lot of claims have been made for it in the past few years, not the least of which was Dr. Linus Pauling's claims for its ability to prevent and lessen the duration and intensity of the common cold when taken in large doses.

Unfortunately, although vitamin C is anti-viral and does support the immune system, it is not necessarily a magic bullet that will defeat the common cold or even cancer!  In fact, some recent studies seem to be indicating that Dr. Pauling's claims might be a little overstated.

Vitamin C, like most other vitamins and mineral supplements primarily helps the body do its job effectively.  Deficiencies of vitamin C CAN predispose the body to certain ills, and proper intake either through daily diet or vitamin supplementation can HELP prevent certain conditions and illnesses.  Vitamins and mineral supplements should never be used as the only path to health, but should be part of a lifestyle that includes overall attention to nutrition, activity (okay, exercise), proper rest and sleep, and enjoyable forms of recreation and relaxation.  I personally would throw in yoga and meditation, but those are MY enjoyable forms of recreation, relaxation, and exercise, I guess.  You will have to find what works best for you.


SOURCES:

Vitamin C is a water soluble vitamin, and, as such, is not stored in the body.  This means it must be regularly replaced by diet and/or supplementation. The most commonly recognized sources of vitamin C are citrus and other fruits - oranges, tangerines, limes, guava, lemons, papayas, strawberries, black currants, grapefruit and mangoes - as well as a wide range of vegetables. Some vegetables which contain Vitamin C include collard greens, sweet and hot peppers, broccoli, tomatoes, brussel sprouts, cabbage, potatoes, kale, spinach, and watercress.


AFFECTS:

Vitamin C is a nutrient valuable for tissue growth, protection of cell membranes from toxic wastes, wound healing, and, as mentioned, support of the immune system.  It supports the growth of collagen and cartilage, protecting in this way against many of the effects of aging.

As an antioxidant, vitamin C helps combat free radicals, and it may help with cancer, high cholesterol, cataracts, diabetes, allergies, asthma, and periodontal disease.

The effectiveness of vitamin C is believed to be increased when taken with vitamin E.


DOSES:

The recommended daily intake of Vitamin C is 60 mg per day for adults, although many people, following Dr. Pauling's lead, take much higher doses in hopes of preventing colds and warding off the effects of aging.  However, in higher doses there may be some toxicity with one of the side effects being diarrhea.  In some cases, higher doses of vitamin C may cause kidney stones or anemia, due to an interference with the absorption of vitamin B12.

A reminder:  vitamin C is water soluble, and unused portions will be flushed from the body, so daily intake of foods rich in vitamin C or supplementation with a multivitamin may be of value.

While there do not seem to be major problems associated with an high doses of Vitamin C, it might a good idea to stick within recommended daily allowances since the jury is still out on side effects.


DEFICIENCIES:

The most well-known result of a vitamin C deficiency is scurvy, a condition characterized by weakness, anemia, gum disease, and skin lesions.  Fortunately, scurvy is very rare in our modern society although still found to a greater degree in areas of poor nutrition.

Frequent infections, severe colds, nose bleeds, tiredness, and painful joints may also indicate a deficiency.

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