Exploring the Wonders of Vitamin C: What Do You Know About Vitamin C?

Apr 6

Exploring the Wonders of Vitamin C: What Do You Know About Vitamin C?

Vitamin C has long held a significant place in dietary supplements. While its popularity may have waned slightly in recent years, with vitamin D and probiotics taking center stage, its importance remains undeniable. It is still a top-five seller, and people often have a lot of misunderstandings about it.

According to Consumer Labs, in their 2023 survey results, vitamin C dropped to #7 on the popularity list (from #6 in 2022) when just over 37% of the people who responded to their survey purchased vitamin C in the past year (almost 42% in the prior year).

What exactly is vitamin C, and why do we need it?

Vitamin C, also known as ascorbic acid, is a water-soluble vitamin found abundantly in fruits and vegetables. Contrary to misconceptions, ascorbic acid isn't a dangerous additive but a natural component crucial for our health. Just because something has “acid” in its name doesn’t make it harmful. For example, your stomach has hydrochloric acid, and acetic acid is vinegar.

Unlike many animals, humans cannot produce vitamin C, so obtaining it through our diet is essential.

Vitamin C has many roles in the body, including collagen synthesis, wound healing, and maintaining connective tissues. It is an antioxidant to combat free radicals and aids iron absorption from plant sources, enhancing our overall nutritional intake.

Interestingly, even though collagen is a popular dietary supplement, vitamin C is vital in making collagen in the body. Vitamin C’s other role of creating connective tissue is best explained by the medical condition known as scurvy, which includes bleeding gums and tooth loss, which can occur when people are significantly deficient in vitamin C. That connective tissue is partly what keeps our teeth held in place.

Vitamin C’s role as an antioxidant helps fight and neutralize free radicals, which contribute to aging in the body. (See below for the recommendations for SMOKERS.)
Vitamin C can also help improve iron absorption from plant sources, so the iron in your spinach needs vitamin C's help.

Dispelling Myths: Vitamin C and Immune Health

The association between vitamin C and immune function is well-established, but its role in preventing or curing the common cold often needs to be understood.

Vitamin C is vital for a healthy and well-functioning immune system. No question.

Despite past claims, mega-dosing vitamin C won't miraculously “cure” cold symptoms. While it can slightly reduce the duration of a cold, the overall impact is minimal. With all his accolades, including the Nobel Prize for Chemistry and the Nobel Peace Prize, Linus Pauling's suggestion that mega-dosing vitamin C can help prevent or “cure” the common cold was incorrect.

Even brilliant people get things wrong sometimes.

While vitamin C is essential for immune health and connective tissue, its effect on the common cold is minimal.

People who take vitamin C still get the common cold but with a reduced duration of 8% in adults and 14% in children. These percentages mean that a cold lasting 48 hours without vitamin C would only last 44 hours in adults and 41-42 hours in children.

When taken after the start of cold symptoms, it did NOT have any effect, positive or negative, on the duration or severity of the cold.

Many insist it is valid, but the data and research don’t support this.

Meeting Your Vitamin C Needs

Understanding your vitamin C requirements is crucial for maintaining optimal health.

The recommended daily intake varies based on factors such as birth sex and smoking status.

People are often surprised to learn that the recommended amount is relatively modest, less than 100 mg daily for most adults. Yet, many don’t even reach this goal due to inadequate fruit and vegetable consumption, highlighting the importance of a balanced diet.

Men need 90 mg per day + 35 mg if they are smokers.
Women need 75 mg per day + 35 mg if they are smokers.

Children need less, and the recommendations increase during pregnancy and lactation, though often the increased calories needed during pregnancy and lactation can cover that increased need. A prenatal vitamin would also provide for those increased needs.

Many people are surprised to learn their needs hover at around 100 mg a day, considering there are supplements that provide 500 mg, 1000 mg, or more.

Yup, it isn’t as high as most people think. I have seen plenty of people (college students) who are far below their recommended dietary allowance (RDA), mainly because their diet lacks fruits and vegetables.

There is no such thing as too much, right? It’s vitamin C!

This is a common misconception: if they sell supplements in that high dose, it is entirely safe—not even close.

Are you getting too much vitamin C from food? Not likely.

When we have micronutrients (vitamins and minerals) from foods, the body will often self-regulate absorption.

There is minimal risk of “too much” or toxicity from foods. Try eating ten oranges in one sitting – not juice oranges. This is why it is doubtful one would get too much from food.

That is different with supplements. Another food source, red bell pepper, is one of the best sources of vitamin C, with 95 mg of vitamin C per half a cup, but supplements start at 100 mg and go up to 1-2 grams, a significant difference. Again, which one is easier to over-consume?

Now, excessive supplementation can lead to adverse effects. GI distress, such as cramps, nausea, and diarrhea, may occur at high doses – best defined at about 2,000 mg.

Additionally, mega-dosing vitamin C could interfere with specific medical treatments, underscoring the need for caution and medical supervision and not simply based on your brother-in-law’s sister, who also sells supplements. For example, you don’t want to go through chemo and radiation and have a high dose of a supplement working against that treatment.

Note: Mega-dose is ten times the RDA – or about 750-1000 mg.

High doses of vitamin C may also reduce the effectiveness of certain medications and increase the risk of liver damage. They may also interfere with cholesterol, blood sugar tests, and stool blood tests.

There are other suspected, though not confirmed, risks of taking excessive doses of vitamin C, such as acting as a pro-oxidant (in test tube studies, not humans), which could increase the risk of cancer.

Beyond Oranges: Diversify

So many people think “oranges” when talking about vitamin C.

Yes, those are excellent sources of vitamin C. But strawberries, tomatoes, and kiwi are also excellent sources. And those veggies, too – broccoli, peppers, and potatoes.

Heat and age (long storage) of the food will affect vitamin C, so steaming works, as does eating things raw. However, it is okay to cook the food; don’t overcook it. If boiling in water, the vitamin C diminishes with that cooking water. So, have baked or roasted potatoes instead of boiled (or fried).

The bottom line is to eat your fruits and vegetables.

Additional Reads:

Real World Nutrition Refreshed: I am revitalizing and updating my archive of blogs and re-publishing them. Stay tuned as I review, update, refresh, and re-share these posts to provide you with even more valuable information on nutrition, health, and overall wellness – and keep things timely. A portion of this blog was originally posted just one year ago, on Apr 4, 2023 and is updated here.

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