It has been proven in studies many years ago that vitamin C, discovered during the 17th century, is very essential to our body for immunity, preventing common colds, and for helping to fight certain viruses and other kinds of diseases especially in our modern times. Many experts prefer to recommend the ascorbic acid form in 500mg for daily supplements; and it’s better to have other vitamins for your daily intakes too. But in hospital treatments, doctors use high doses, depending on the disease and the patient’s capacity. However, there are still many skeptics on this claim despite the overwhelming clinical evidences of its health benefits. In a study presented by the National Center for Biotechnology Information (NCBI) for example, it was stated that:
“Ascorbic acid is one of the important water soluble vitamins. It is essential for collagen, carnitine and neurotransmitters biosynthesis. Most plants and animals synthesize ascorbic acid for their own requirement. However, apes and humans cannot synthesize ascorbic acid due to lack of an enzyme gulonolactone oxidase. Hence, ascorbic acid has to be supplemented mainly through fruits, vegetables, and tablets. Many health benefits have been attributed to ascorbic acid such as antioxidant, anti-atherogenic, anti-carcinogenic, immunomodulator and prevents cold etc.”
In addition, NCBI also stated that data shows no connection between “excess ascorbic acid” and “kidney stone formation, pro-oxidant effects, excess iron absorption”. However, it is still best to make your own thorough study and get more information from many experts for you to come up with a solid conclusion before you take a high doses of vitamin C, especially prolonged consumption, if you are having ‘kidney troubles’ because of aluminium compounds that are also present on it. Too much supplementation might also interfere with other medications or certain medical conditions (for example women on oestrogen therapy, etc.) so it’s better to educate your self and take precaution. But nonetheless, since our body cannot produce vitamin C on its own, we really need to get this from various sources such as fruits, vegetables, and supplements to replenish our supply on a daily basis.
In today’s society, it can be very challenging for some people to find fresh sources of vitamin C due to many underlying factors such as too much urbanization/metropolitanization, not enough agricultural farms, etc. This is the reason why many people these days are vitamin C deficient. You can tell if you are deficient in vitamin C when you have dry scaly skin, chronic gum bleedings, aches on muscles and joints, and muscle weakness. You can also tell if you have a serious vitamin C deficiency if you are having scurvy. Symptoms of scurvy include anemia, body weakness, bruising, arms and legs soring, skin bleeding, and chronic tiredness. This is why vitamin C is very important especially for patient’s recovery from wounds, surgeries and other kinds of injuries
So for you to have an idea here are some fruits and vegetables that has great sources of vitamin C:
Lemon, oranges, grapefruit, citruses, papaya, kiwi, guava, strawberries, pineapple, apple, sweet pepper, broccoli, thyme, parsley, kale, spinach, lychees, cherries, cabbage, cantaloupe, cauliflower, tomato, garlic, etc.
Aside from increasing the absorption of iron (non-heme) that can be found in fruits and vegetables, Vitamin C is also a powerful antioxidant that protects our cells from free radicals. Free radicals are present everywhere in our daily social and environmental interactions and this is the main reason why our body contacts diseases such as cancer, heart disease, etc. Some sources or causes of free radicals are air pollutions, cigarette smoke, “too much” UVA rays (sunlight) and unhealthy foods. Vitamin C also helps our body creates collagen. Collagen supports regeneration of tissues on our body that promotes healing in wounds. It is very important for our blood vessels, muscles, bones, cartilage, etc. However, to ensure the safety and quality, it is very important to get your vitamin C supplements from very reliable sources.
References:
- 20 Foods That Are High in Vitamin C
- Top food sources of vitamin C
- The Truth About Vitamin C and Cancer
Studies:
