Vitamin C (L-ascorbic acid) Essential Vitamins and Minerals for Optimal Health
When I started to look n this essential vitamin years ago I never imagined it could be so complex. I knew the RDA was insanely low and that we needed a couple thousand milligrams a day for optimal health but I never imagined it could be such a vital nutrient for our skin, fat metabolism, tendons ligaments and so much more. I never imagined that it was so powerful it could even save ones life in a trauma situation or help parents avoid the ICU when their child was sick. I am going to break this up into a few blogs because its a lot of information to digest and I had so many questions. So lets start with the answers I found.
What is L-ascorbic acid?
Vitamin C is also known as L-ascorbic acid sodium salt, naturally found in citrus fruits and other vegetables is a six-carbon compound related to glucose. It’s a water-soluble vitamin and the most widely recognized and used antioxidants in the world. It’s readily available as a dietary supplement and often supplemented in processed foods (made from GMO corn and/or made in China).
Vitamin C is an essential dietary component, unlike many animals and most mammals, humans do not make L-ascorbic acid and must obtain vitamin C from diet and supplementation. When the body is suffering from a trauma it is imperative to supplement in high doses because the amount of Vitamin C needed during time of stress is more than what you can obtain from natural food sources.
In the human body, Vitamin C is very highly concentrated in the pituitary gland, the heart, the skeletal muscle, adrenal gland, the eye, the kidney and the brain. Vitamin C promotes a healthy immune system and is widely used to prevent and treat symptoms of the flu and common cold. It plays a role in the production of the protein collagen, essential for healthy skin, blood vessels, tendons, ligaments and cartilage, helping maintain the elasticity of the skin, preventing wrinkles. Studies have shown that asthmatics tend to have a higher need for vitamin C and doses of 2,000 mg per day lessen the body’s production of histamine and inflammation associated with the lungs. Vitamin C is beneficial to Diabetics and in the prevention of getting diabetes, the same goes for high blood pressure. Maintaining high levels of Vitamin C prevent high cholesterol since cholesterol often rises when there are toxins in the body, Vitamin C is excellent at dealing with toxins and free-radicals. Vitamin C (antioxidant) acts to donate an electron to neutralize free radicals fixing damage and protecting us from everyday toxins such as car fumes, pesticide residue and chemical cleaning agents. It is an Enzyme co-factor for Carnitine, a protein that shuttles fat into the mitochondria (where most of the energy of the body is produced), giving us energy while keeping fat from accumulating where it doesn’t belong.
How much of this nutrient is needed?
Vitamin C is essential to our bodies’ everyday needs, making us dependent on it to function properly and yet we do not make any of our own. While an organic diet high in Vitamin C is ideal if you have no stress, consume no drugs (pharmaceutical or recreational) or alcohol, consume no fat or animal protein and are not a smoker. Not many people fall into this category so supplementation is a good idea and may save you a trip to the doctor’s office and possibly the emergency room. The Recommended daily allowance (RDA) set by our government in the U.S. is set so low it is just enough to keep us from getting scurvy, 75mg for females and 90mg for men with 35milligrams added per day for people who smoke. This is amusing because smoking just one cigarette consumes 25 milligrams of Vitamin C. One alcoholic drink a day consumes about 25 milligrams as well. Oxidative stress and illness all consume large amounts of Vitamin C. Dr. Steve Hickey & Dr. Hilary Roberts wrote the book Ascorbate, The Science of Vitamin C, in which they further explain just how ridiculous the governments daily recommended allowance is. We should always be eating a diet high in Vitamin C. Consuming 2,000 milligrams a day is recommended for daily maintenance. This amount varies depending on age, if a woman is breastfeeding or pregnant, how much oxidative stress the body is under or if someone smokes (cigarettes, hookah, marijuana), if you suffer from asthma, high blood pressure or diabetes. This amount is very hard to obtain with food alone and supplementation is recommended. Be aware of how your Natural or synthetic vitamin C is sourced and produced, much of the cheap supplements are coming from Cina and/or sourced from GMO corn.
“Good nutrition and Vitamin C in my opinion are two very key foundational principals to keep people healthy and out of hospitals and doctors’ offices no matter what your age.”
~Dr. Susan Humphries
Dr. Susan Humphries speech to
The Swedish Society for Orthomolecular Medicine,
Stockholm, Sweden 2014
“Animals use four sequential liver enzymes to convert glucose into L-Ascorbic Acid. This is the magic chemical that has so many functions in our body that enhance our health and can be very lifesaving in certain situations, and can be consumed very rapidly during illness.”
The fourth enzyme is missing from human beings as well as some other animals (bats, guinea pigs and some primates). This means that human beings are dependent on the food source in order to have this life saving nutrient.
Animals that make their own Vitamin C:
• Cows make 18 milligrams per kilogram (body weight) per day, with a daily total of 12,000 mg a day plus food.
• Cats make 20 to 40 milligrams per kilogram (body weight) per day, with a daily total of 180 mg a day.
• Goats produce 185 milligrams per kilogram (body weight) per day (13,000 mg/day) and when they are sick or stressed, they make up to 1400 mg/kg/day (100,000 mg/day). These animals rarely get sick.
And we as human make none of our own and yet 1.2 milligrams per kilograms a day (in body weight) is the recommended daily amount per day by National Institute of Health. With the amount of oxidative stress our body endures daily, natural, environmental, physical and mental I really don’t think you need to be a scientist to realize that we need much more than a mere 75 to 90 milligrams per day to maintain optimal health.
We make many other antioxidants in the body, but this one has more power. Ascorbic acid is very bitter and it is what we find in the natural food. The body likes to bring in sodium ascorbate because our intestines need sodium to bring the ascorbate into the body. We can either take it as ascorbate acid and we will use the sodium from something we have eaten or we can take sodium ascorbate (ascorbic acid blended with sodium).
The amazing power of high dose Vitamin C
• There is no known amount of Vitamin C that can cause illness or death so Vitamin C is safer than water (you can die from too much water intake)
• Promotes normal growth and development
• Imperative in maintaining a healthy pregnancy for mother and infant
• Helps the body form and maintain connective tissue (skin, bones, blood vessels)
• Acts as an Anti-histamine (high histamine levels = low Vitamin C levels, high Vitamin C = low histamine levels)
• Assists in the production of the protein collagen, essential for healthy skin, blood vessels, tendons, ligaments and cartilage
• Helps maintain the elasticity of the skin (prevent wrinkles)
• Helps the body repair damaged tissue
• Improves overall oxygenation and lung function inside the body.
• Promotes a healthy immune system
• Helps to fight off cold and flu symptoms
• Protects against immune system deficiencies
• Aids in the Prevention and Treatment of Scurvy
• Maintains hormone at steady levels
• Lowers Hypertension
• Lowers and prevents high blood pressure
• Improves the healing process of cuts, wounds, burns, sprains/strains and broken bones.
• Improves blood sugar stability (important for individuals with heart disease and diabetes)
• Prevents cardiovascular disease
• Fights inflammation in the skin after sun intense sun exposure
• Prevents the oxidation of cholesterol in the bloodstream.
• Helps to protect the arterial walls throughout the body, reducing infections and other forms of oxidative stress (coronary arteries that feed the heart muscle)
• Helps to reverse liver damage and aids in detoxify the liver of existing cirrhosis
• Aids in the prevention of liver damage
Signs of Vitamin C deficiency
• Bleeding Gums
• Decreased Ability to fight infection
• Decreased wound healing rate
• Dry and Splitting Hair
• Easy Bruising
• Possible weight gain, slowed metabolism
• Rough, dry, scaly skin
• Swollen and painful joints
• Weakened tooth enamel
Foods that containing Vitamin C
Guava: ½ cup 188mg
Kiwifruit: 2 kiwis 140mg
Broccoli: 1 cup chopped 82mg
Kale: 1 cup chopped 80mg
Orange: 1 medium 70mg, ¾ fresh juice has about 93mg
Grapefruit: half a fruit 39mg, ¾ cup fresh juice has about 79mg
Papayas: 1 cup chunks 88.3 mg
Green Bell Pepper: ½ cup raw 60mg, cooked 51mg,
Red Bell Pepper: 1 whole pepper 300 mg, ½ cup raw 142mg, cooked 166mg
Strawberries: ½ cup 49mg
Broccoli: ½ cup cooked 48mg
Cantaloupe: ¼ fruit 47mg
Turnip Greens: 1 cup boiled 39.5mg
Winter Squash: 1 cup baked 31mg
Butternut squash: 1 cup baked 31mg
Raspberries: 1 cup 32.2mg
Blueberries: 1 cup 14.4mg
Cranberries: 1 cup 13.3mg
Pineapple: 1 cup chunks 78.9mg whole pineapple 432mg
Grapefruit: ½ medium 39mg
Lemons: 1 fruit 18.6mg
Limes: 1 fruit 19.5mg
Tomatoes Juice: ¾ cup fresh 33mg
Parsley: 1 cup 33.25 mg
Brussel Sprouts: ½ cup cooked 48mg, 28 calories
Parsley: 1 cup 33.25 mg
Tomatoes: ¾ cup fresh 33mg
Cabbage: ½ cup cooked 28mg
Cauliflower: ½ cup raw 28mg
Sweet Potatoes: 1 medium baked 22.3mg
Watermelon: 1 cup diced 12.3mg
Spinach: ½ cup cooked 9mg
Peas: ½ cup cooked, frozen 8mg
Romain Lettuce: 1 cup chopped 1.9mg
Butter lettuce: 1 cup shredded 3.3mg
Paprika: 1 tablespoon 0.1mg
Disclaimer: The strategies, suggestions and techniques expressed here are intended to be used for educational purposes only. The Author, Kira Miller, is not rendering medical advice nor is she trying to diagnose, prescribe or treat any disease, condition, illness or injury.
If you are under the care of a physician, it is imperative that you consult their advice before beginning any new exercise or nutrition program.
Kira Miller claims no responsibility to any person or entity for any liability, loss or damage alleged to be caused directly or indirectly as a result of the use, application or interpretation of the material presented here