Why Vitamin C

Colds, flu’s, bronchitis, and allergies seem to be at an all-time high this winter and many people are looking for relief.  As for myself, I’ve always had luck taking doses of Vitamin C and a product made from coconut called Lauricidin.  But does Vitamin C really work, and if so, why does it work?

Vitamin C is well documented to repair collagen – in fact, it’s necessary.  Collagen is fibrous connective tissue that lines the surfaces of the skin, blood vessels, bone, and tendons. Likewise, recent research showed that 3000 mg of Vitamin C had the same anti-inflammatory effect as the prescription Celebrex for symptoms of joint pain.  This is likely because Vitamin C helps the body produce the steroid hormone Cortisol.  This makes it a great supplement for joint injuries and inflammatory conditions.  Vitamin C is also proven to thin the blood and raise HDL – the good cholesterol.  At the same time, evidence shows that the nutrient helps clean artery walls thereby helping prevent arteriosclerosis.  Finally, an Oncologist named Dr. Simone reported that high doses of Vitamin C with its strong antioxidant properties deprives rapidly dividing cells such cancer cells, viruses, and bacteria of oxygen and glucose.  This is the key for fighting infections.

Vitamin C competes for the same receptor sites on the cell membrane as glucose.  These sugars are known to increase inflammation, stress the immune system, and feed the unpleasant cells just mentioned.  By blocking glucose from entering the cell, Vitamin C helps prevent these unpleasant consequences.  The lesson to learn here is that it’s sugar that is the real problem.  Yes, supplementing with Vitamin C appears to help your body fight off infection more quickly by diminishing the negative effect of glucose.  But you can accomplish the same results by eliminating or at least limiting sugar from your diet.  The last thing to remember about Vitamin C is that your kidneys will only process 1000 milligrams at a time and if you take too much during a day, water will be drawn into your colon resulting in loose bowel movements.