Vitamin C, known as ascorbic acid, is a water-soluble nutrient found in certain foods. Importance of Vitamin C In the body, it acts as an antioxidant, helping to protect cells from damage caused by free radicals. Free radicals are compounds that form when the body turns the food we eat into energy. People are also exposed to free radicals in the environment from cigarette smoke, air pollution, and ultraviolet radiation from the sun.
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Also, the body needs vitamin C to produce collagen, a protein necessary for wound healing, and also improves the absorption of iron present in plant-based foods and contributes to the proper functioning of the immune system to protect the body against disease.
How much Importance of Vitamin C does a person need?
The amount of vitamin C you need per day depends on your age. The average daily amounts of vitamin C, expressed in milligrams (mg) that recommends for people of different ages are as follows:
| Stage of life | Recommended Amount |
| Babies up to 6 months of age | 40 mg |
| Babies from 7 to 12 months of age | 50 mg |
| Children from 1 to 3 years old | 15 mg |
| Children 4-8 years old | 25 mg |
| Children from 9 to 13 years old | 45 mg |
| Adolescents (males) 14-18 years of age | 75 mg |
| Adolescents (girls) 14-18 years old | 65 mg |
| Adults (men) | 90 mg |
| Adults (women) | 75 mg |
| Pregnant teens | 80 mg |
| Pregnant women | 85 mg |
| Breastfeeding adolescents | 115 mg |
| Lactating women | 120 mg |
If you smoke, you should add 35 mg to the above values to calculate the total recommended amount of vitamin C you need each day.
What foods are a source and Importance of Vitamin C?
Fruits and vegetables are the best sources of vitamin C. To eat the right amounts of vitamin C, eat a variety of foods such as:
- citrus fruits (for example, oranges and grapefruits/grapefruits) and their juices, as well as red and green peppers and kiwi, rich in vitamin C.
- other fruits and vegetables, such as broccoli, strawberries, melon, baked potatoes, and tomatoes, which also contain vitamin C.
- some foods and drinks fortified with vitamin C. Read the product label to see if a food contains added vitamin C.
The vitamin C content of food may decrease when cooked or stored for a long time. Vitamin C loss may be less when steaming or in microwave ovens. Fortunately, many of the best sources of vitamin C, like fruits and vegetables, are eaten raw.
What types of vitamin C dietary supplements are there?
Most multivitamin supplements contain vitamin C. Besides, and this vitamin is available alone as a dietary supplement or in combination with other nutrients. In general, the vitamin C present in nutritional supplements is in the form of ascorbic acid. However, some supplements contain different ways, such as sodium, calcium, other minerals, and bioflavonoid ascorbic acid. Scientific studies have not shown that any kind of vitamin C is more effective than others.
Do I get enough Importance of Vitamin C?
In the United States, most people get enough vitamin C from the foods and drinks they consume. However, certain groups of people are more likely than others to have difficulty getting enough vitamin C:
- Smokers and people exposed to cigarette smoke, in part because smoke increases the amount of vitamin C the body needs to repair damage caused by free radicals. Smokers need 35 mg more of vitamin C per day than non-smokers.
- Babies fed cow’s milk, evaporated, or boiled because cow’s milk contains minimal vitamin C, and heat can destroy this vitamin. Cow’s milk not recommended for babies under one year of age. Breast milk and baby formula contain sufficient amounts of vitamin C.
- People who consume a minimal variety of foods will not reach the daily dose of this vitamin.
- People with certain health disorders, such as cancer and kidney disease that requires hemodialysis, should consume more of this vitamin.
What happens if I don’t get enough vitamin C?
Vitamin C deficiency is rare in the United States and Canada. People who ingest little or no vitamin C (less than 10 mg per day) for several weeks can get scurvy. Scurvy causes tiredness, inflammation of the gums, small red or purple spots on the skin, joint pain, poor wound healing, and curly or “corkscrew” hair. Other symptoms of this disease include depression, inflammation, and bleeding of the gums and loosening or loss of teeth. People with scurvy can also be anemic. Without treatment, scurvy is fatal.
What are some of the health effects of vitamin C?
Scientists study vitamin C to determine how it affects health. Here are some examples of the results of these investigations:
Prevention and treatment of cancer
People who eat a lot of vitamin C when eating fruits and vegetables may be less at risk for various types of cancer, such as lung, breast, and colon cancer. However, taking vitamin C dietary supplements, with or without other antioxidants, does not appear to help prevent disease.
It is not known for sure whether high vitamin C intake is beneficial for cancer treatment. The effects of vitamin C appear to depend on how it will administer to the patient. Oral doses of vitamin C cannot raise vitamin C levels in the blood to nearly the levels of intravenous injections. Some animal studies and test tubes indicate that very high levels of vitamin C in the blood may shrink tumors. However, additional studies are required to determine if high doses of intravenous vitamin C contribute to cancer treatment.
Dietary supplements of vitamin C and other antioxidants could interact with chemotherapy and radiation therapy for cancer. People receiving cancer treatment should consult with the oncologist before taking vitamin C supplements or other dietary supplements, especially in high concentrations.
Cardiovascular disease
Those who eat fruits and vegetables in abundance appear to be at less risk of cardiovascular disease. The researchers believe that the antioxidant content of these foods could be partly responsible for this association because oxidative damage is one of the leading causes of cardiovascular disease. However, scientists still cannot say with certainty whether vitamin C itself, present in foods or supplements, helps protect people against cardiovascular disease. It is also not known with certainty whether vitamin C contributes to avoiding the aggravation of cardiovascular disease in those who suffer from it.
Age-related muscular degeneration and cataracts are two of the leading causes of vision loss in the elderly. The researchers do not consider that vitamin C and other antioxidants influence the risk of age-related muscular degeneration. However, research studies indicate that vitamin C, combined with other nutrients, may slow the progression of age-related muscular degeneration.
Older adults with age-related muscular problems will have a daily supplement with 500 mg of vitamin C. Furthermore, and they had less vision loss than those who did not take the dietary supplement. However, starting disease talk to their doctor about the possibility of taking nutritional supplements.
It is not clear what is the relationship between vitamin C and the formation of cataracts. Some studies indicate that people who consume more vitamin C present in food are less at risk of cataracts. However, more studies are required to clarify this association and to determine if vitamin C supplements influence the risk of cataracts.
Common cold
Vitamin C is a remedy for the common cold; research studies show that vitamin C supplementation does not reduce the risk of catching colds for most people. However, those who take vitamin C supplements regularly may experience chills of slightly shorter duration or somewhat milder symptoms when catching a cold. Taking vitamin C supplements doesn’t seem to be helpful once severe symptoms start, either.
Can vitamin C be harmful?
Intake of vitamin C is too high concentrations can cause diarrhea, nausea, and stomach cramps. In people with hemochromatosis, a disorder that causes excessive iron accumulation in the body, vitamin C in high doses could worsen excess iron and damage body tissues.
Below are the daily upper limits for vitamin C:
| Stage of life | Recommended maximum limit |
| Babies up to 12 months of age | Not determined |
| Children from 1 to 3 years old | 400 mg |
| Children 4-8 years old | 650 mg |
| Children from 9 to 13 years old | 1,200 mg |
| Teens 14-18 years old | 1,800 mg |
| Adults | 2,000 mg |
Are there interactions with a vitamin?
Vitamin C dietary supplements can interact or interfere with the medications you take. For example:
- In Case, dietary vitamin C supplements may interact with cancer treatments, such as chemotherapy and radiation therapy. Because It not proven that it has the unwanted effect of protecting tumor cells from cancer treatments or if it could protect healthy tissues from damage. If you are receiving cancer treatment, talk to your healthcare provider before taking vitamin C supplements or other antioxidants, especially in high concentrations.
- However,In one study, vitamin C combined with other antioxidants (such as vitamin E, selenium, and beta-carotene) reduced the cardiac protection effects of two drugs taken in combination (a statin and niacin) to control cholesterol levels—is not known whether this interaction also occurs with other statins.
- Health professionals should monitor lipid levels in people taking statins and antioxidant supplements. Talk to your doctor, pharmacist, and other health professionals about the dietary supplements and medications you take.
Importance of Vitamin C and healthy eating
According to the federal Dietary Guidelines for Americans, people must get most of the nutrients from food. The food contains vitamins, minerals, dietary fibers, and other substances beneficial to health. In some cases, consuming fortified foods and nutritional supplements could provide nutrients that would not otherwise consume in the minimum amounts.
CONCLUSION in Importance of Vitamin C
There is hardly any other vitamin that has been researched as much as vitamin C. Even though, This water-soluble vitamin contributes normal function of immune system and protects your body from oxidative stress (this is especially important to be protected against colds). So, If you train intensely, your body will need nutrients and minerals. Therefore, it is especially important that you consume enough vitamin C during the training phases.
Finally, Vitamin C deficiency is generally rare in Spain. Hence, it is essential to know the fundamentals of a healthy and balanced diet so as not to expose yourself to this disease.
