Articles from Logon Prozis

The Importance of Vitamin C

2010- 01- 13 10:01:21 admin

Since it was discovered in 1932, Vit amin C

has been on t he spot of scient ist s. Even bef ore t hey knew about it s
exist ence, nut rit ion specialist s recognized t hat t here was somet hing on f ruit s
belonging t o t he genus Cit rus t hat prevent ed scurvy, a disease causing gum
hemorrhage and wounds scarring. Scurvy killed around 2 million sailors f rom
1500 and 1800 [*1]. In 1970, Linus Pauling Nobel Prize Laureat e in Chemist ry in
1954 promot ed t he megadoses of Vit amin C (equivalent t o 12 t o 24 oranges)
as a way of prevent ing colds and several chronic diseases.
Nobody doubt ed t hat Vit amin C had an import ant role on t he cont rol of
inf ect ions. Nowadays, we also know t hat it is a powerf ul ant ioxidant t hat can
neut ralize t he negat ive act ion of f ree radicals [*2], and t hat it helps producing
collagen, a necessary t issue f or healt hy bones, t eet h, gum and blood vessels
[*3].

Rejuvenating properties
A recent research published on Cell Stem Cell showed t hat Vit amin C may be
an essent ial compound f or reprogramming old cells and make t hem younger
when act ivat ing cert ain genes. T his research enhanced t he role of Vit amin C
as an ant i-ageing agent [*4].

What Is the Required Amount of Vitamin C?

T hough t here are many st udies f ocused on Vit amin C, it st ill does not exist a
general consensus about t he required daily amount . T he Medicine Inst it ut e
recommends a daily consumpt ion of 90 mg of Vit amin C f or men and 75 mg
f or women (act ive smokers should t ake 110 mg). Nevert heless, t he general
opinion is t hat t he maximum limit is 2 grams.
Sources of Vitamin C: cit ron, orange, lemon, t angerine, red and green
pepper, t omat o, broccoli and spinach. Many breakf ast cereals also include
Vit amin C.

Prozis products with vitamin C:

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REFERENCES OR NOTES:
[*1] Carpe nt e r KJ . The history of scurvy and vitamin C. Cam bridge : Cam bridge
Unive rsit y Pre ss, 1986 (LINK)
[*2] In Che m ist ry, radicals are m o le cule s re le ase d by t he m e t abo lism o f t he bo dy
wit h highly unst able e le ct ro ns. Radicals can cause aging-re lat e d de ge ne rat ive
dise ase s and ce lls de at h.
[*3] Inst it ut e o f Me dicine , Dietary reference intakes for vitamin C, vitamin E, selenium, and
carotenoids, Washingt o n, DC: Nat io nal Acade m y Pre ss, 2000 (LINK)
[*4] Est e ban et. al., Vitamin C Enhances the Generation of Mouse and Human Induced
Pluripotent Stem Cells, Ce ll St e m Ce ll Vo l. 6 Issue 1 pgs. 71-79, De ce m be r 2009
(LINK)