Vitamin C is probably best known for its role in the prevention of scurvy.  It’s why we think of pirates as limeys.  Early sea traders learned to supply their crews with citrus fruits to prevent this disease that can result in poor wound healing, loss of teeth, lethargy and more.

Humans, along with guinea pigs, fruit bats, and some other primates, are unique among mammals, as most mammals can create their own vitamin C. (1)  This is the result of a non-life threatening genetic mutation that has been able to survive since vitamin C is so easy to obtain from plants. 

So, we know we need it, we know we cannot make it on our own, and we also know that people tend to take more when they are feeling under the weather.  Let’s dive in and learn more about this key nutrient.

What is Vitamin C?

Vitamin C is also known as ascorbic acid and is a key molecule in many different functions essential for life.  It is a water-soluble nutrient, meaning it will dissolve in water (and not fat).  This also means if you boil your fruits and veggies and pour off the water, you are losing much of your vitamin C along with other water-soluble nutrients like flavonoids. 

What Does Vitamin C Do?

Vitamin C acts as an antioxidant similar to vitamin E and flavonoids.  It mostly plays its role in the blood plasma as well as tissue fluids.  It also helps recycle vitamin E, allowing it to keep on acting as an antioxidant in fatty tissues - like our cell membranes. 

Vitamin C is also needed to create several different molecules through the body such as collagen, carnitine, and neuropeptides. (2)  

Carnitine is needed to create energy and our neuropeptides are used throughout our nervous system to send messages between neurons (nerve cells). 

An Aside on Collagen Supplementation: 

Collagen has had a good marketing campaign lately and its sales are skyrocketing.  Is this good or bad?  Well, collagen itself isn’t bad; you will consume some anytime you eat animal proteins.  The source of the collagen and its processing should be carefully investigated in order to avoid contaminants, unethical practices, and exploitation.   The claims made about consuming collagen are not what they seem however.  When we consume collagen (a protein), our digestive system breaks it down into its smallest components: amino acids. (3)  Those amino acids are then used to make many different substances in your body based on what it currently needs, not on where you intend for them to go. 

But, what does the research say about collagen supplementation?  Let’s turn to the Harvard article referenced below for a great quote on collagen: 

“At this time, non-industry funded research on collagen supplements is lacking. Natural collagen production is supported through a healthy and balanced diet by eating enough protein foods, whole grains, fruits, and vegetables and reducing lifestyle risk factors.”  Those lifestyle risk factors include: sun damage, cigarette smoke, lack of sleep, lack of exercise, and high stress levels.  

If you are interested in keeping your skin looking healthy and your joints freely moving, I recommend following this advice and steering away from collagen supplements. 

Vitamin C & Disease:

When it comes to vitamin C and disease prevention, there is one clear connection: scurvy.  If you don’t want scurvy, make sure you eat at least 10 mg of vitamin C daily. (2)  Other than this very clear and direct correlation, we don’t see evidence for supplementation of vitamin C preventing any specific disease.  However, we do see people with higher levels of circulating vitamin C suffering fewer strokes, having less coronary artery disease, and having lower blood pressure.  Is this the result of vitamin C or a healthy diet that includes vitamin C?  This question comes up a lot when looking at nutrition, and one could argue that a person’s overall diet makes far more of a difference than any individual nutrient ever could.  

Now, let’s look at the research on treatment with Vitamin C:

• Reduction of tissue damage after heart procedures - vitamin C, along with standard treatment, does seem to reduce long-term damage and arrhythmia following heart surgery or other procedures. (2)

• Cancer - no conclusive evidence here, but IV administration shows more promise (2)

• The Common Cold - vitamin C supplementation can reduce the duration of a cold, but not prevent one. (2)

• Sepsis - there has been some really amazing research involving IV use of high dose vitamin C for the treatment of sepsis, which can be deadly. (2)

• Asthma - not supported by evidence (2)

• Lead toxicity - vitamin C can lower blood levels of lead (2)

• Iron deficiency - vitamin C increases the absorption of plant-based (non-heme) iron in the intestines. 

• Endothelial dysfunction - vitamin supplementation of 500mg or more daily seems to help with this precursor to hypertension and atherosclerosis. 

• Diabetes - the more vitamin C found in subjects’ blood, the lower the risk of diabetes - again, is this vitamin C or a healthy diet that includes vitamin C? (2)

• All causes of death - the better the vitamin C concentration, the lower the risk of all causes of death.  Is this the vitamin or the diet? (2)

Where to Find Vitamin C:

Vitamin C is abundant in plant foods, especially fruits and vegetables.  Citrus fruits are particularly high in vitamin C, but some other good sources include strawberries, kiwi, bell peppers, and broccoli!

Applications: 

Vitamin C is important for our healthy bodily functions; our physical structure (through collagen); plays a role in iron absorption and vitamin E recycling; and when eaten as part of a healthy diet, seems to reduce many different disease processes.  We humans cannot make our own due to a genetic mutation that occurred long ago, so we need to consume it.  The next question is, how much?

The USDA recommends adult males consume at least 90mg daily, adult women should aim for 75mg or more, and smokers should increase this to 125mg for men and 110mg for women.  This is a low bar.  1 cup of strawberries contains 85 mg of vitamin C.   The Linus Pauling Institute recommends a target of 400mg daily for all adults.  If one is eating a whole-foods, plant-based diet, they should be getting plenty of vitamin C.  

If supplementation is needed, oral vitamin C is best absorbed 200mg at a time; anything over this will be, at least partially, excreted - sometimes very quickly and uncomfortably in the form of diarrhea!  As to form, find one that doesn’t upset your stomach that you will take.  You don’t need to get fancy with vitamin C supplementation. 

Well, there we have it: a short, sweet, yet detailed look at vitamin C.  If you are interested in a great herbal source of vitamin C that you can make your own supplement from, I encourage you to play with rose hips.  One tablespoon of cut up hips contains about 34 mg of vitamin C plus many different flavonoids and other nutrients.  You can make tea, bake these into snacks, grind and mix with honey, or my favorite, add to elderberry syrup to make an easy jam to help you quickly recover from respiratory illnesses.  

To our health!

References: 

1. Cell Press. (2008, March 21). How Humans Make Up For An 'Inborn' Vitamin C Deficiency. ScienceDaily. Retrieved September 14, 2021 from www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/03/080320120726.htm

2. Higdon, J, “Vitamin C” Linus Pauling Institute, 2000, accessed September 16, 2021  https://lpi.oregonstate.edu/mic/vitamins/vitamin-C

3. Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health, “Collagen” accessed September 16, 2021 https://www.hsph.harvard.edu/nutritionsource/collagen/