Vitamin C Best Sources, Dosage, and Key Benefits

Cold weather has finally arrived, and coughs and colds can't be far behind. Have you gotten your flu shot yet? Are you getting enough Vitamin C? These are two great ways for you to defend against getting sick. Learn more about marvelous Vitamin C; the vitamin every body needs in the short revealing guide that follows. Vitamin C, technical name ascorbic acid is a water-soluble vitamin present in certain foods, but that can also be obtained through supplements. Humans can’t synthesize Vitamin C in their bodies like other mammals and must get it elsewhere.  

The Benefits Of Vitamin C

• We need vitamin C in order to make L-carnitine, collagen, and some neurotransmitters.  
• Vitamin C is also involved in the metabolism of protein.  
• We need vitamin C for the formation of collagen that is part of the connective tissue in the body’s organs and plays a role in wound healing.  
• Vitamin C is also a good antioxidant, which makes it good in preventing cancer. It plays an important role in regenerating other antioxidants in the body.  
• There is research going on looking into whether vitamin C has cancer-fighting ability linked to its antioxidant properties or whether there is something else going on that makes this a good cancer fighter.  
• Vitamin C produces tissue and plasma concentrations that are tightly controlled. As a water-soluble nutrient, it is excreted in the urine.  

Recommended Intake of Vitamin C

The recommended daily intake of vitamin C has been set up by the Food and Nutrition Board. It sets up the Daily Reference Intakes for all types of nutrients.   According to this board, the recommended intake of vitamin C includes the following:

Table 1: Recommended Dietary Allowances (RDAs) for Vitamin C [8]

Age	Male	Female	Pregnancy	Lactation
0–6 months	40 mg*	40 mg*
7–12 months	50 mg*	50 mg*
1–3 years	15 mg	15 mg
4–8 years	25 mg	25 mg
9–13 years	45 mg	45 mg
14–18 years	75 mg	65 mg	80 mg	115 mg
19+ years	90 mg	75 mg	85 mg	120 mg
Smokers	Individuals who smoke require 35 mg/day more vitamin C than nonsmokers.

• Adequate Intake (AI)

For most people, a large orange or a cup of strawberries, chopped red pepper or broccoli provide enough vitamin C for the day. Any extra vitamin C will simply be flushed out of your body in your urine. Mayo Clinic

Vitamin C Best Sources

• Some of the best sources of vitamin C are fruits and vegetables.  
• Citrus fruits, tomatoes, and tomato juice, as well as potatoes, are good sources of vitamin C.
• Other foods that will give you vitamin C include red peppers, green peppers, broccoli, kiwifruit, Brussels sprouts, strawberries, and cantaloupe.  
• Vitamin C isn’t found in grains but it's often added to the cereal we eat.  

 Vitamin C is best when eaten in raw fruits, prolonged storage and cooking may destroy the vitamin. The good news is that many of the best food sources of vitamin C, such as vegetables and fruits, are usually eaten raw. Foods that you can eat that will give you’re the best sources of vitamin C include:

Table 2: Selected Food Sources of Vitamin C [12]

Food	Milligrams (mg) per serving	Percent (%) DV*
Red pepper, sweet, raw, ½ cup	95	158
Orange juice, ¾ cup	93	155
Orange, 1 medium	70	117
Grapefruit juice, ¾ cup	70	117
Kiwifruit, 1 medium	64	107
Green pepper, sweet, raw, ½ cup	60	100
Broccoli, cooked, ½ cup	51	85
Strawberries, fresh, sliced, ½ cup	49	82
Brussels sprouts, cooked, ½ cup	48	80
Grapefruit, ½ medium	39	65
Broccoli, raw, ½ cup	39	65
Tomato juice, ¾ cup	33	55
Cantaloupe, ½ cup	29	48
Cabbage, cooked, ½ cup	28	47
Cauliflower, raw, ½ cup	26	43
Potato, baked, 1 medium	17	28
Tomato, raw, 1 medium	17	28
Spinach, cooked, ½ cup	9	15
Green peas, frozen, cooked, ½ cup	8	13

*DV = Daily Value. DVs were developed by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to help consumers compare the nutrient contents of products within the context of a total diet. The DV for vitamin C is 60 mg for adults and children aged 4 and older. The FDA requires all food labels to list the percent DV for vitamin C. Foods providing 20% or more of the DV are considered to be high sources of a nutrient.  Source: National Institutes of Health Dietary Supplements Vitamin C can be taken in supplements. Supplements come in the form of ascorbic acid, which has the same bioavailability of naturally occurring vitamin C in food sources of vitamin C.   Vitamin C supplements also include calcium ascorbate, sodium ascorbate, ascorbic acid with bioflavonoids, dehydroascorbate, xylonate, threonate, and calcium ascorbate.   A few research studies using human participants found that the bioavailability is different depending on the form of vitamin C used.   Other studies have indicated that there are no differences in the bioavailability of the various types of vitamin C. Vitamin C supplements are incredibly cheap and can be used to increase your vitamin intake.   Vitamin C Deficiency A Vitamin C deficiency can result in scurvy.   The timeline for getting scurvy depends on the body’s initial stores of the vitamin in the body. Signs begin to show up within a month of withdrawing all vitamin C from the diet. Symptoms start out with tiredness, malaise, and other flu-like symptoms.   As it progresses, the individual can develop gum inflammation, poor healing of soft tissue, petechiae, purpura, and ecchymosis of the skin. Other signs of a deficiency include swollen and bleeding gums, depression, and corkscrew hairs. Guard your health this winter with the Bruce Lee of vitamins; Vitamin C. As mentioned above most people get enough vitamin C in their everyday diet. For times that think I need more vitamin C; I've found a reasonably priced supplement sold on Amazon that works great Nature's Bounty Vitamin C, 1000mg, 100 Caplets (Pack of 2) See you soon and don't forget to get your Flu shot.