Is vitamin C a potent antioxidant?
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Another role of vitamin C, which is receiving more and more attention today, is that of antioxidant. Antioxidants serve as lines of protection against free radicals, which are linked to diseases such as heart disease and cancer as well as aging. That makes vitamin C rich foods, such as citrus and strawberries functional foods. Antioxidants provide protection against free-radical activity that can lead to heart disease, cancers, and other medical concerns, so this role of vitamin C is more of a nutraceutical role. Not only does vitamin C serve as potent antioxidant it can also reactivate other antioxidants, namely vitamin E. |
What happens if we don’t get enough vitamin C?
Poor consumption of fruits and vegetable sources of vitamin C as well as smoking can reduce vitamin C status in the body. This in turn can lower antioxidant protection and over time could reduce the efficiency of other vitamin C roles in the body. Meanwhile, true vitamin C deficiency syndrome is referred to as scurvy. For adults, scurvy will appear approximately one to three months after discontinuing vitamin C consumption. Medical signs and symptoms include impaired wound healing, fluid buildup in ankles and wrists (edema), swollen bleeding gums with tooth loss, fatigue, lethargy, and joint pain. In infants who are not breast-fed, deficiency can be recognized at around six months of age when the vitamin C stores transferred from the mother during pregnancy have been exhausted. Medical signs of this syndrome (Moeller-Barlow disease) include abnormal bone character and development, severe joint pain, anemia, and fever. The abnormalities in bone are directly related to vitamin C’s involvement in the proper manufacturing of collagen.
What happens if too much vitamin C is consumed?
If you set out to increase your vitamin C intake through the use of supplements, a couple of possible side effects and a practical issue should be considered. First, as discussed, as vitamin C intake increases, the efficiency of absorption decreases. This still leads to more vitamin C absorbed per day, but a proportionate increase in urinary loss of vitamin C and its metabolites also occurs. Perhaps one of the biggest concerns associated with consuming gram-size doses (“gram dosing”) is gastrointestinal discomfort since it is an acid. Also, large concentrated doses can promote diarrhea. Otherwise supplementation of a couple grams of vitamin C daily is pretty safe. The latest DRI Upper Limit is set at 2 grams for adults.
Can vitamin C prevent or treat colds?
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As an antioxidant and also an immune function potentiator vitamin C has been suggested for use in decreasing the incidence and severity of the common cold. Research to date suggests that vitamin C supplementation probably won’t decrease the incidence of colds; however it might lessen the severity, especially for some athletic populations. However, starting vitamin C supplementation at the onset of symptoms does little to decrease the severity. |
