Vitamin C, also known as ascorbic acid, is an essential vitamin for the human body possessing high antioxidant properties. Some of its primary benefits include:

Immunity and wound healing
Growth and development of all body tissues
Collagen formation, including the maintenance of cartilage, bones, and teeth
Absorption of Iron

Vitamin C is probably something most have heard of being an importance since an early age. Just as it benefits supporting normal growth and development during early life stages, it continues to benefit life expectancy and preservation as we age.

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Vitamin C is perhaps historically best-known for the treatment and prevention of scurvy, though it has many other roles in the body. For example, vitamin C catalyzes or is a cofactor in eight enzymatic reactions involved in the synthesis of collagen, the nutrient carnitine, and several neurotransmitters necessary for the proper function of the brain.

In the contemporary context, vitamin C is best known as a potent antioxidant. In addition to its intrinsic activity as an antioxidant, vitamin C has been shown in in vitro trials to regenerate alpha-tocopherol (vitamin E). As an antioxidant, vitamin C combats the detrimental effects of a group of compounds called radical oxygen species that, when produced, degrade the lipid membrane of the cell and may cause internal damage. By “scavenging” these free radicals, vitamin C and other antioxidants form a defense against excess cellular damage.

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Vitamin C Label

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References:

1. “Ascorbic Acid”. The American Society of Health-System Pharmacists. Archived from the original on December 30, 2016. Retrieved December 8, 2016.

2. “Fact Sheet for Health Professionals - Vitamin C”. Office of Dietary Supplements, US National Institutes of Health. February 11, 2016. Archived from the original on July 30, 2017.

3. WHO Model Formulary 2008 (PDF). World Health Organization. 2009. p. 496. ISBN 9789241547659. Archived (PDF) from the original on December 13, 2016. Retrieved December 8, 2016.

4. Hemilä H, Chalker E (January 2013). “Vitamin C for preventing and treating the common cold”. The Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews (1): CD000980. doi:10.1002/14651858.CD000980.pub4. PMID 23440782.

5. Ye Y, Li J, Yuan Z (2013). “Effect of antioxidant vitamin supplementation on cardiovascular outcomes: a meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials”. PLOS One. 8 (2): e56803. Bibcode:2013PLoSO...856803Y. doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0056803. PMC 3577664 . PMID 23437244.

6. Duerbeck NB, Dowling DD, Duerbeck JM (March 2016). “Vitamin C: Promises Not Kept”. Obstetrical & Gynecological Survey. 71 (3): 187–93. doi:10.1097/OGX.0000000000000289. PMID 26987583.

7. “Ascorbic acid Use During Pregnancy | Drugs. com”. Drugs.com. Archived from the original on December 31, 2016. Retrieved December 30, 2016.

8. Institute of Medicine (2000). “Vitamin C”. Dietary Reference Intakes for Vitamin C, Vitamin E, Selenium, and Carotenoids. Washington, D.C.: The National Academies Press. pp. 95–185. ISBN 0-309-06935-1. Archived from the original on September 2, 2017. Retrieved September 1, 2017.

9. “Vitamin C”. Micronutrient Information Center, Linus Pauling Institute, Oregon State University, Corvallis, OR. January 14, 2014. Retrieved March 22, 2017.