Vitamin C
Vitamin C is a nutrient your body needs to make blood vessels, cartilage, muscle, and collagen. Vitamin C is also important in the body's healing process.
Vitamin C helps protect your cells from the effects of free radicals. These molecules are produced when your body breaks down food or is exposed to tobacco smoke and radiation from the sun, X-rays, or other sources. Free radicals might be involved in heart disease, cancer, and other illnesses. Vitamin C helps the body to absorb and store iron, which helps prevent other diseases.
You need to get vitamin C from your diet. Vitamin C is found in citrus fruits, berries, potatoes, tomatoes, peppers, Brussels sprouts, broccoli, and spinach. Vitamin C is also available as a pill or supplement typically in the form of capsules or chews. Tablets.
Most people get enough vitamin C from a healthy diet. Vitamin C deficiency is more likely in people who do not eat a variety of foods or who do not get enough exercise.
- Smoking or being around people who are smoking can cause health problems.
- Some gastrointestinal conditions or types of cancer are associated with each other.
- A limited diet that doesn't include fruits and vegetables is unhealthy.
A severe vitamin C deficiency can lead to a disease called scurvy, which causes anemia, bleeding gums, bruising, and poor wound healing.
It is important to remember that taking a vitamin C supplement might not offer the same benefits as consuming antioxidants found in foods.
The recommended daily amount of vitamin C for adults is 90 milligrams for men and 75 milligrams for women.
Evidence
Studies on the use of vitamin C for specific health conditions show:
- Cancer. Eating a diet that is rich in fruits and vegetables might lower your risk of many types of cancer. However, it's not clear whether this protective effect is related to the vitamin C content in the food. Taking oral vitamin C supplements does not appear to offer additional protection. The same benefits will be achieved.
- Common cold.Taking oral vitamin C supplements won't prevent the common cold. Studies also show that the benefits of taking vitamin C supplements to reduce the duration or severity of a cold are very minimal.
- Eye diseases.Taking oral vitamin C supplements in combination with other vitamins and minerals seems to prevent age-related macular degeneration (AMD) from worsening. Some studies also suggest that people who have a high level of vitamin C in their diets have a lower risk of developing cataracts.
Our take
Generally safe
Most people get enough vitamin C from a healthy diet. If someone is susceptible to vitamin C deficiency, they may benefit from taking supplements.
Safety and side effects
Oral vitamin C supplements are generally considered safe when taken in the appropriate doses. Taking too much vitamin C can cause side effects, such as:
- Nausea, vomiting and diarrhea
- Heartburn
- Stomach cramps or bloating
- Some people experience fatigue or sleepiness after working out or when they are trying to get to sleep.
- Headache
- Skin flushing
Oral vitamin C supplements can sometimes lead to kidney stones. In high doses, long-term use of these supplements can also have side effects.
Before having any medical tests, tell your doctor that you're taking vitamin C supplements. This will help to avoid any interference from high levels of vitamin C in the results of certain tests.
Interactions
Possible interactions include:
- Aluminum.Taking vitamin C can increase your absorption of aluminum from medications that contain aluminum. This could be harmful for people with kidney problems.
- Chemotherapy.Some people are worried that using antioxidants such as Vitamin C during chemotherapy might reduce the effect of chemotherapy drugs.
- Estrogen.Taking vitamin C with oral contraceptives or hormone replacement therapy might increase your estrogen levels. Estrogen is a hormone that can increase your risk for developing breast cancer.
- Protease inhibitors.The use of vitamin C might reduce the effect of antiviral drugs.
- Statins and niacin.Taking niacin and statins with vitamin C might reduce the effects of these medications on people with high cholesterol.
- Warfarin (Jantoven).Taking high doses of vitamin C might reduce your response to this anticoagulant.