Vitamin C Function in the Body

How Vitamin C Functions in the Body to Keep You Healthy.

The function of vitamin C in the human body. Vitamin C is required for tissue inside the body to grow, expand, and regenerate. It also helps the body absorb iron, heal wounds, boost the immune system, make collagen, and keep bones, cartilage, and teeth healthy.

In addition, vitamin C functions as an antioxidant to defend the body against toxins, pollutants, and free radicals. Free radicals play a role in several diseases, including cancer, heart disease, and arthritis when they are allowed to accumulate.

Vitamin C is not a substance that our bodies store. There’s no need to be concerned about taking too much of the vitamin because any extra will be eliminated. But it’s important to follow the rules, because going over them can cause diarrhea and stomach pain.

Like every water-soluble vitamin, vitamin C needs to be regularly provided through the diet. Consuming a lot of vitamin C-rich fruits and vegetables is therefore essential. To prevent losing key vitamins and minerals, it’s crucial to cook them while evaporating as little water as possible. It is easily absorbed by the body, whether taken as a pill or in meal form, but when combined with iron, it can be improved.

How Vitamin C Function in the Body and Benefits Health.

According to the University of Maryland Health Center, vitamin C has a wide range of health benefits, some of which may surprise you.

The Common Cold: The Mayo Clinic claims that while there is no known cure for the common cold, there are ways to lessen its severity. Anyone who is frequently exposed to the cold, such as youngsters, teachers, healthcare workers, and those employed in the retail or hospitality sectors, can also benefit from it. Vitamin C can also prevent pneumonia or a lung infection from developing from a cold or flu.

Stroke: According to some research, people who have high amounts of vitamin C in their bodies are considerably less likely to experience a stroke than people who have low levels of the vitamin. People who consume lots of fruits and vegetables have high levels of vitamin C in their blood. However, the reason for this is currently unknown.

Stress – Vitamin C can effectively treat the symptoms of stress because stress affects the immune system. Because vitamin C is so sensitive to stress, it is depleted in people who smoke, drink a lot of alcohol, are overweight, or engage in other risky lifestyle choices.

Skin Health – It has an impact on both the inside and outside of your body. According to studies, nutritional consumption and skin aging are related. In the study, which involved almost 4,000 women between the ages of 40 and 74, individuals who consumed more vitamin C had smoother skin and were less likely to develop skin dryness.

Hypertension – People who have high blood pressure are more likely to have heart disease, and vitamin C can lower blood pressure.

Vasodilation: High blood pressure, atherosclerosis, angina pectoris, and high cholesterol can all be successfully treated with vitamin C. This is because vitamin C can enhance blood vessel dilatation, safeguarding the health of the heart.

Cataracts – Low vitamin C levels are frequently linked to cataracts, the most prevalent visual disorder. Blood flow to the body’s ocular regions can be improved by increasing consumption.

Healing Wounds – Vitamin C can speed up wound healing because, as was already discussed, it aids in the development of connective tissues.

Cancer – Several cancer types, including those of the esophagus, lungs, vocal cords, colon, stomach, mouth, neck, pancreas, and rectum, may grow more slowly as a result of vitamin C supplementation, according to studies published by the National Cancer Institute.

Mood – The vitamin is essential for the synthesis of neurotransmitters like norepinephrine. Your mood may be impacted by this, and these are essential for the healthy operation of the brain.

Immunity – We mentioned immunity as one of vitamin C’s significant health benefits earlier. It is well known for boosting the immune system and energizing the white blood cells.

Asthma – Your body can be shielded from the impacts of pollution with vitamin C, which will lessen asthma and asthma-like symptoms.

Heart Disease The defense of blood vessels against oxidative damage brought on by free radicals depends on adequate vitamin C levels. One of the main contributing factors to atherosclerosis may be this. In addition to other cardiac diseases, this one is prevented by vitamin C.

Vitamin C Recommended Daily Allowance

The National Institutes of Health says that people over 19 should get the following amount of vitamin C every day:

Men should ensure they get 90 milligrams of vitamin C every day.
Women should be consuming 75 milligrams of vitamin C every day.
Pregnant women: pregnant women need 85 milligrams of vitamin C every day.
Breastfeeding women: for women who are breastfeeding, it’s a much higher expectation to have 120 milligrams of vitamin C every day.
Smokers: Since smoking (and heavy alcohol use) depletes stores of vitamin C, smokers should aim to consume 250 milligrams of vitamin C every day.

When treating illnesses, vitamin C should be given daily in amounts of 1,000 mg. However, the recommended daily intake of vitamin C is 2,000 milligrams.

Final Thoughts

We can see how vitamin C works in our bodies, just as any vitamin is important to our health and well-being. It helps to produce collagen, slow down the effects of aging, and strengthen our immune system so that we can fend off many diseases and ailments. Although it’s unlikely that any contemporary Americans would die from a severe vitamin C deficiency, it may nevertheless lead to significant and unpleasant ailments.

The best way to get the recommended amount of vitamin C (and more) every day is to eat fruits and vegetables. You may want to think about taking supplements if you are unable to eat enough of them to meet your RDA. If you have any known ailments or are on any of the drugs mentioned above, you should speak to your doctor.

The significance of your food is made clear by the additional breakdown of how crucial this vitamin is. It is the cornerstone of your overall health and wellbeing. You won’t have to be concerned about supplements filling up the gaps if you make sure that your food is balanced and nutritious.

It’s time to take a good look at your diet and see if you’re always making the right choices. Are you one of the 31% of Americans who don’t consume the recommended amount of vitamin C each day?