Vitamin C is one of the essential nutrients that our body needs. There are many forms of vitamin C, and it is commonly known as ascorbic acid. But what does it do to our bodies?
Vitamin C helps our immune system to protect our body and keep our tissues repaired at all times. It is the standard treatment for common colds and allergies.
Given that vitamin C is essential in our daily vitamins, where can we get this? The most common sources for this vitamin are fruits, and some can be vegetables. For fruits, here are some sour yet full of vitamins:
- Citrus
- Kiwis
- Mangoes
- Pineapples
- Berries
- papayas
These are the sources of vitamin C, according to the National Institutes of Health. But if you are looking for the vegetables as a source of these vitamins, you have the following selections:
- Peppers, both red and green
- Spinach
- Cabbage
- Cauliflower
- Turnip greens
- Tomatoes
- Broccoli
- Winter squash
- Brussels sprouts
If you cannot choose either of the fruits and vegetables food selections for vitamin C, you can think about taking the supplement, but it’s wise and recommended to get it from fruits and vegetables. Read on to find many reasons why should you consider taking vitamin C?
Importance of Vitamin C
There are a million reasons why you should intake it, but we can only give you a summary of the most important ones as to what is the main reason why it is essential to your health?
Vitamin C for collagen
Our body needs to have collagen, which is significant to make our skin, tendons, ligaments and blood vessels in healing wounds and prevent the formation of scar tissue. It is one of the needs to repair and maintain cartilage, bones, and teeth.
Fights Cancer Cells
One way to block cancer cells is to have sufficient vitamin C in our bodies. The damage made by free radicals can be fatal when left untreated. The miracle in this vitamin is a vital antioxidant that helps protect cells from damage caused by free radicals, which we are exposed to overtime. According to the study, air pollution, especially coming from cigarette smoke and ultraviolet light from the sun, can be treated by it.
Lowers Risk of Diseases
Some diseases are believed to reduce the risk of having if we have enough daily dosage of this vitamin. Some of the illnesses are cancers, cardiovascular disease, diabetes, and macular degeneration or cataracts.
Vitamin C for your Eyes
According to a study, daily intake of 500 mg vitamin C daily, along with beta carotene, vitamin E and zinc supplements. This maintenance over time can slow down the progression of advanced age-related eye problems. The visual loss can be diminished by 19% even if you already have early signs of the disease.
Prevent Heart Attack
Yes, vitamin C is vital when it comes to your heart health. In a study, taking vitamin C can prevent heart attacks and slow down the hardening of the arteries and avoiding the bad cholesterol to proliferate. Also, another study supported that this has a slow yet effective way to lower high blood pressure without any supplements or medication maintenance needed.
Say goodbye to the common cold
Most of us mistakenly think the treatment for the common cold is antibiotics and other supplements that cater. A unique study shows that when you take vitamin c, you can still have sinusitis, but the good part is when you are sick, it can shorten the time when you have symptoms of being sick.
When to know you are Deficient
When you have vitamin C deficiency, do not be weary because this is normal. Vitamin deficiency happens when your diet lacks specific vitamins. According to medical professionals, the supplements help to cure smokers.
So how will you know if you are lacking? The following signs and symptoms can tell if you have a deficiency.
- Bruising
- Gingivitis
- Bleeding gums
- Dry Hair and Skin
- Slow healing of wounds
- Nosebleed
- Warding off infection
But if you have an advanced deficiency, you may also have a weak immune system, which can cause scurvy. It is a condition in which you will quickly get bleeding gums, joint pain, and poor wound healing. These symptoms can happen in an instant without forewarning.
Vitamin C Dosage
To skip getting deficiency, you should know the right dosage of it. According to research, 40% of men and 38% of women have a lack of it because not enough eating of vegetables and fruits can cause deficiency, not only vitamin C but others as well.
There are different vitamin C supplements – those called sodium ascorbate and ascorbic acid. These two kinds of vitamin supplements have different effects. Though both are water-soluble, ascorbate cannot upset your stomach if you will take more than the daily recommended allowance. But the ascorbic can upset your stomach.
The recommended daily allowance or RDA depends on age, gender and medical condition of an individual. For nursing and pregnant, we suggest taking a higher dosage to maintain the immune system.
If you take improper RDA of vitamins, it can lead to kidney stones, irregular heartbeat, and diarrhea. One thing you should learn before taking supplements, you should consult your doctor beforehand.
Our Insights
Indeed vitamin C is one of the essential vitamins that our body needs to increase the immune system. Do not take for granted this kind of vitamins because it enables other nutrients in your body to absorb quickly. It also has antioxidants and is suitable for your skin and hair. There are many benefits of taking this vitamin as it will give you a lasting effect.