Arrrrrgggghhhh, Matey!
I don’t know about you, but I don’t personally know anyone
who has suffered from scurvy. Scurvy is now pretty rare, but it once ran
rampant among sailors, pirates, and others who spent long periods of time on
board ships. When voyages lasted longer then the supply of fruits and
vegetables, they began to suffer from vitamin C deficiency – which led to
scurvy.
Fortunately, we don’t have to deal much with scurvy these
days, as most people have sufficient access to sources of vitamin C. Vitamin C
has been associated with the treatment of a myriad of ailments, ranging from
wrinkled skin to reducing the risk of certain cancers of the mouth and breast.
This time of year, specifically, vitamin C dosing is associated with
treatment of the common cold and sore throats. However, it has been found that
vitamin C is not likely to prevent the common cold. Surprisingly, vitamin C has
been shown to only minimally help treat symptoms.
An excerpt from BBC on the
issue
“Researchers
at the Australian National University
and the University
of Helsinki concluded
that, for most people, the benefits of taking vitamin C daily were so slight
that they were not worth the effort or expense. Although they found it could
reduce the duration of colds by up to 8% in adults and 13.6% in children, as
most people only have two or three colds every year, this benefit is only very
small. Author Professor Harri Hemilä said: It doesn’t make sense to take
vitamin C 365 days a year to lesson the chance of catching a cold. However,
they say it may be justified in those exposed to severe cold (sub-arctic) or
physical stress (marathon runners, etc.).”
What this means to the typical adult is a cold may be
reduced in length from, say, twelve days to eleven days. For the typical child,
who suffers from cold symptoms twenty-eight days a year, taking daily vitamin C
supplements all year long would shave off about four days of cold symptoms.
How much vitamin C do I need?
Most people can get sufficient levels of vitamin C from
eating five servings of fruits and vegetables a day, but if you would like to
take supplemental vitamin C dosing, your local Hometown Pharmacy has a variety
of types in stock, including our own private-label vitamin line!
*Some experts recommend limiting your vitamin C intake to
the following thresholds:
400mg per
day for children, ages 1-3 years
650mg per
day for children, ages 4-8 years
1200mg per
day for children, ages 9-13 years
1800mg per
day for adolescents and pregnant and breast-feeding women, ages 14-18 years
2000mg per
day for adults and pregnant and lactating women
<Photo courtesy of huffinesinstitute.org>
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