Vitamin C is getting a lot of attention from functional and alternative medicine doctors, as well as the growing health community seeking to overcome their health challenges so they can enjoy a thriving lifestyle. This is all well deserved of course, given vitamin C has a strong history of destroying deadly diseases, and more recently being heralded as a key cancer killer.
Of course, one doesn’t have to wait until disease sets in to get the benefits of vitamin C. After all, if it’s powerful enough to help knock off these deadly diseases, imagine what that does for those in a relatively good state of health! So whether you are dealing with a chronic disease or simply want to upgrade your health, vitamin C is a key nutrient you’ll want to look into for improved well-being.
To determine your vitamin C needs, let’s look at the signs of a vitamin C deficiency, some of its miraculous healing feats, and the foods and supplements that will help you effectively harness its miraculous powers.
Signs of vitamin C deficiency
Although a severe vitamin C deficiency may be rare, many people do exhibit low levels of this critical nutrient. If you are elderly or a smoker (past or present), you may also require extra vitamin C due to absorption issues and increased oxidative stress.
Some subtle signs that you may be really short on vitamin C include:
Rough, dry, or scaly skin
Decreased inability to ward off infections
Weakened immune system
Dry and splitting hair
Nosebleeds
Gingivitis
Wounds heal slowly
Bruise easily
Bleeding gums
Swollen and painful joints
Digestive disorders (leaky gut and autoimmune disease)
Should a vitamin C deficiency be prolonged, more serious issues can crop up such as:
High blood pressure
Gallbladder disease
Stroke
Certain cancers
Atherosclerosis
A historic example of a severe deficiency was seen in the 18th century when two million sailors were suffering from scurvy. The simple addition of citrus to their diets resulted in quick remediation of their symptoms. This provides a glimpse of the healing power of vitamin C, even in low doses.
The health benefits of vitamin C
Vitamin C isn’t just a nutrient for the chronically ill and debilitated. In fact, a smart approach to avoiding the litany of diseases listed above is to prevent them from happening in the first place with appropriate vitamin C uptake.
Some of the health benefits you could experience from regular vitamin C intake include:
Healthy skin and collagen formation
Effective elimination of colds and flu
Improved overall immune system function
Lowered risk of gout
Lowered risk of stroke
Improved physical performance
Improved results in cancer treatment
With such a tremendous upside to vitamin C, with little to no risk of overdose (see more on that below), it simply makes sense to add it to your current health plan.
Now you just need to know the best sources through food and supplementation.
Foods high in vitamin C
Fortunately, there are plenty of vitamin C rich foods that you can partake in on a daily basis to ensure your levels are adequate. Some of the most powerful sources include:
Acerola cherry
Guava
Bell and chili peppers
Kale
You can also get a good dose of vitamin C from the following sources:
Black currant
Kiwi
Oranges
Strawberries
Papaya
Broccoli
Pineapple
Brussels sprouts
Grapefruit
Cauliflower
Mango
Working these into your diet regularly can greatly assist with raising your vitamin C levels, but sometimes you need a bit more power, better absorption, convenience, and something that doesn’t interfere with food sensitivities or diets. In that case, supplementation makes a lot of sense, IF you do it correctly.
For starters, that means taking a non-GMO vitamin C that is NOT made in China, and those products are far more common than you think, as it is cheap to derive ascorbic acid from GMO corn. But don’t expect it to show up on the ingredient label as “GMO Corn”, but more commonly, as maltodextrin, which shows up in many products including the popular line of fizzy drinks known as Emergen-C, which also use citric acid in their products, which is commonly derived from black mold grown on a GMO substrate like corn or HFCS.
Secondly, if you have sensitivities to vitamin C, a buffered version is more therapeutic as it is non-acidic and easier on the digestive system.
To get the best of both worlds, try the Health Ranger’s wide range of vitamin C products.
Try the Health Ranger’s Vitamin CSources for this article include:
Was Linus Pauling Right About Vitamin C’s Curative Powers After All?
Vitamin C Foods, Signs of Deficiency, & Health Benefits
Vitamin C Proven To Cure Over 30 Major Diseases