Vitamin C is one of the essential vitamins needed by our body as it is responsible for many functions in the body. When vitamin C supplements are given in high doses, vitamin C will convert from an antioxidant into an oxidative therapy.
High dose of vitamin C is beneficial for treating multiple conditions, including viral and bacterial infections, chronic fatigue syndrome, allergies, arthritis, auto-immune disease and many more.
Let’s see the complete list of health benefits of taking high dose of vitamin C for our body.
1. Boost our immune system
Vitamin C is well known for its ability to boost our immune system. There are many studies that show its efficiency in cases of infections, including bacterial and viral infections, such as lung inflammation caused by flu and pneumonia.
Vitamin C is able to support our immune system by helping the production of white blood cells. As we know, white blood cells are the body defenders against infection.
Immune system should be maintained well. You can do several things to keep your immune system healthy, such as consuming yogurt. Read more about it in health benefits of yoghurt for immune system.
2. Relieving stress and anxiety
Vitamin C is needed for making some stress hormones, such as catecholamines. There are some organs that have the highest concentration of vitamin C. One of which is our adrenal glands.
When you’re stressful, our adrenal glands increase the production of catecholamines. As a result, they are using more vitamin C. No wonder, some people get the benefits after taking high dose of vitamin C during the times of chronic stress.
Stress can lead to some serious health problems such as mentioned in health risks of stress.
3. Act as natural antihistamine
Histamines are inflammatory compounds that are a normal immune response. When they are overact, they cause allergic reaction. Vitamin C can help temper that allergic response of seasonal allergies, however, it is not a treatment for the severe cases. If you suffer from severe allergic reactions, you’d better ask for immediate medical care or doctor.
Histamines also play a role in PMS. Taking high dose of vitamin C regularly might help handling PMS symptoms, which are actually a result of inflammation.
4. Good for heart health
Even though there is no clear relation between vitamin C intake to healthier health, it seems that taking high dose of vitamin C may indicate better heart health.
There’s a study where the participants took 700 mg of vitamin C in supplement form for 10 years. The results indicated that they got lower chance of getting heart disease by 25%. There’s another review which showed that vitamin C supplementation decreased the chance of bad cholesterol and triglycerides.
Taking vitamin C itself doesn’t guarantee healthier heart. You should combine with healthier habits, such as exercising and taking a lot of fruits and vegetables.
5. Good for skin health
When your body gets low level of vitamin C, it is clearly seen in the skin. People with vitamin C deficiency often have rough, dry or even inflamed skin. For your information, vitamin C also helps make collagen. So, no wonder that many beauty industry professionals use vitamin C as one of the ingredients in their products.
If you want to know more about vitamin C for skin, health benefits of vitamin C for your skin. You’ll get complete explanation about it.
6. Help boost memory
There are some studies that showed that low level of vitamin C may correspond with impaired cognitive function. Oxidative stress may lead to Alzheimer’s disease. When the intake of vitamin C is increasing, the level of dementia and cognitive decline decrease.
7. Therapy for cancer
High dose of vitamin C once again protects the body from oxidative stress. We all know that oxidative stress may lead to damaged cells. Researchers found that using vitamin C along with chemotherapy and other cancer rehabs may improve the effectiveness of the treatments.
Cancer is a serious disease you need to pay attention to. Make sure to read these benefits of apricot seed for cancer treatment.
Foods that are rich in vitamin C
There are some types of food that are rich in vitamin C, especially raw fruits and vegetables.
Here are some of the examples of food that are rich in vitamin C:
- Strawberry
- Orange
- Broccoli
- Cauliflower
- Parsley
- Papaya
- Kiwi
- Lemon
- Mango
- Pineapple
- Grapefruit
- Tomatoes
- Guava
- Brussels sprouts
- Parsley
Vitamin C plays an important role in maintaining our body, including children. Read more about it in health benefits of vitamin C for children.
Our body needs a lot of nutrients so that it can be healthy. It is not only vitamin C, but many other vitamins too, such as vitamin D, vitamin B, calcium, and many more. In order to be healthy, you should also apply some healthy habits, such as doing exercises.