Vitamin C Facts

Vitamin C is an essential nutrient for a balanced diet.  The suggested daily dosage of Vitamin C varies according to age, gender, overall health condition, and stressors such as alcohol intake, injuries, or smoking. Vitamin C is also known as ascorbic acid.  It is probably most known as a cure for the disease scurvy. Scurvy is all but eradicated today, but Vitamin C still holds a vital role in a balanced diet.

Vitamin C is one of the essential nutrients that should be a part of your diet.  It includes several different things that help with your bodies balancing and functioning.  You can help to determine how much of vitamins, food and supplements you should be taking by looking into the facts about that vitamin and nutrient and what it means in relation to your body. Here a variety of known things of what a daily dose of Vitamin C can do for you.

Vitamin C can be found in a variety of foods.  This includes blackberries, watercress, papaya, kale and brussel sprouts.  When looking for Vitamin C products, these contain the highest amounts of ingredients.  Oranges are also known to contain a high amount of Vitamin C, although it is not as much as the above mentioned products. The preparing and cooking process will remove some Vitamin C, but enough will remain to make these fruits and vegetables a good source of this nutrient.

When you digest Vitamin C, it moves through several areas of your body.  It is first moved into the gastro-intestinal tract. It is absorbed into a variety of places here to provide extra nutrients to your body.  From here, it moves into your blood stream.  It will stay in your blood stream for a very short amount of time, and then is eliminated from your body either through perspiration or urine. Vitamin C is a water soluble vitamin. These means that what is not absorbed through the gastrointestinal tract or blood stream is eliminated from the body through the urinary tract or perspiration and is not stored in fat tissue like some other vitamins. This lowers the risk of overdosing with Vitamin C.  However it is possible to take too much and a side effect of taking too much Vitamin C is diarrhea.

While Vitamin C is moving through your body, it provides for several different functions to move throughout your body.  One of the major things that Vitamin C is known for is helping to heal wounds that you may have.  It also is used to produce digestive enzymes, which help provide energy to your digestive tract, making it easier to move other nutrients and substances through your body.  Vitamin C is also a strong source for different types of nerve functioning, especially in relation to the brain.  Vitamin C is also known to help with bone functioning and formation, especially in relation to teeth. Its most important function may be in the production of collagen in the body. Symptoms of not having enough Vitamin C in the diet include bruising easily and loose teeth.

When deciding how much Vitamin C to take, there are several factors to consider. Everyone’s needs for their body will differ and provide different levels that are needed.  It is known that if you drink alcohol or smoke, have had surgery or an injury, have diabetes or have high levels of stress, then you will need to take more Vitamin C then is normally required.  With each of these, more Vitamin C is required in order to balance the nutrients in your body.  Balancing out your body by knowing if you will need extra Vitamin C from any of these factors will help in determining how much of Vitamin C to take. 

Vitamin C is an effective way for one to be able to remain healthy and help with the functioning of the body.  It is known that it is one of the most important nutrients that you can supply for your body.  Because of this, it is important to make sure that you have a daily intake of Vitamin C in your system.  You can do this through the eating of fresh vegetables or through vitamins and supplements.  Determining how much Vitamin C you need daily and sticking to it will help your body in functioning and balancing of nutrients.    

You can increase your daily intake of Vitamin C by increasing foods in your diet that contain high amounts of Vitamin C.  You can also take Vitamin C supplements which come in many forms including pills, liquids, or powders. Vitamin C is an important vitamin for keeping your body balanced and maintaining optimal health so when planning your menu and taking supplements, remember your daily dose of Vitamin C.