Who Needs Extra Vitamin C?

Vitamin C should be fairly available from a healthy diet fruits and vegetables, but it is more common than we think to be deficient, and in some cases we have health factors that make us need extra.

Vitamin C (Ascorbic Acid), cannot be synthesized by humans and other primates, and has to be obtained from diet. 

Vitamin C is essential for fifteen mammalian enzymes, for instance two of the most important ones for the transport of salt through our physiology

Vitamin C concentrations are dependent on amount taken in, the form it is in for the body’s use, how much is excreted through the kidneys, and how much the body has used. , bioavailability, renal excretion, and utilization.

Deficiency in Vitamin C can be detected by testing the levels in our blood stream. But, a normal blood level of this vitamin may not mean you have as much as you need as vitamin C can be less available as there are potential disruptions of our vitamin C nutrition by common health concerns and mistakes. Thus specialized tissue level tests may be more accurate.

Vitamin C is used for healing. Healing can be post surgery or post illness, but think about how your muscles ‘heal’ after a long workout: that will make you need extra Vitamin C.

If you are exercising a lot, if you have recently had a medical procedure, or sustained an injury. 

Vitamin C is important for fighting infections, cancers, and repairing and healing after an injury, and your body will burn through it’s usual C supplies if you have had any recent illness or health issue.

Not only will adequate vitamin C help the healing, it helps fight the inflammation that causes pain. With the keeping your body from being deficient in vitamin C you can help reduce pain medication use.  

Aspirin increases the secretion of vitamin C and thus reduces the ability of your cells to grab and use the vitamin C, thus taking extra aspirin may just send your C into the urine.  Common causes of interfering with levels and function of vitamin C are: contraceptives, estrogen hormone use, smoking, tetracycline antibiotic.

Vitamin C also helps oxytocin and other hormones function well.

Long term extra Vitamin C has been shown to protect your eyes, both macular degeneration and cataracts are less likely if you get enough.

Women who haven’t had their vitamin C levels checked might think about getting them measured. This can be measured by a blood level test or a functional tissue test at Women’s Health Practice.