Vitamin C acts as a powerful antioxidant in the body, helps improve the absorption of iron from plant-based foods, contributes to the proper functioning of the immune system and is also a key nutrient for skin health.
The body needs vitamin C to produce collagen, a protein used to make connective tissue, an important component of bones, skin, muscles, tendons and cartilage.
Not getting enough vitamin C can affect your skin
Harvard Nutrition Source notes that vitamin C is a powerful antioxidant that can neutralize damaging free radicals .
Without antioxidants that protect the skin from free radical damage, the skin can suffer from premature aging.
Free radicals are compounds formed when our bodies convert the food we eat into energy. People are also exposed to free radicals in the environment from cigarette smoke, air pollution, and ultraviolet light from the sun.
Environmental exposures can damage collagen fibers by reducing their thickness and resistance, which causes wrinkles on the surface of the skin.
The deficiency of Vitamin C can also cause poor wound healing. The collagen that helps produce vitamin C is necessary to help heal wounds, as explained by the National Institutes of Health.
Severe vitamin C deficiency causes a disease called scurvy whose symptoms include it causes swollen and bleeding gums, as well as skin hemorrhages that can be seen as red or purple spots on the skin and mucous membranes.
How much vitamin C is needed per day
The recommended daily intake of vitamin C for adult women is 75 mg and for men it is 90 mg. This amount can be obtained through the diet, among the foods richest in vitamin C include: red peppers, oranges, kiwi, green peppers and strawberries. In half a cup of red bell peppers there are 90 mg of vitamin C.
When vitamin C is consumed through supplements, the upper limit is 2000 mg for adults. Too much vitamin C can have negative effects.
The NIH Office of Dietary Supplements notes that taking too much vitamin C can cause diarrhea, nausea, and stomach cramps. In people with a condition called hemochromatosis, which causes the body to store too much iron, high doses of vitamin C could worsen iron overload and damage body tissues.
With intakes above 3000 mg daily of vitamin C promotes kidney stone formation in people with existing kidney disease or a history of stones, shares the Harvard Nutrition Source.
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