GSE
Vitamin C for Health
Vitamin C - "God's Medicine"
"There are more than ten thousand published scientific papers that make it quite
clear that there is not one body process (such
as what goes on inside cells) and not one disease or syndrome
(from the common cold to leprosy) that
is not influenced directly or indirectly by vitamin C"
Drs. Cheraskin, Ringsdorf, and Sisley - "THE VITAMIN C CONNECTION"
Important Vitamin C attributes
Antioxidant.
A t
physiological doses; may act as an oxidant at
higher doses.
Required for collagen production in connective
tissue throughout the body
Water soluble. E.g. vitamin C will remain in soup water;
vitamin C
can not be made in the human body:
Most creatures and plants synthesize their own
Vitamin C - Man does Not
Needed Daily. Can not be stored in the body long-term. The adrenal
glands have the highest concentration of vitamin C , which peaks under any type
of stress, when vitamin C is mobilized from other body tissues; also, the brain
has high priority for the body's
vitamin C, which is concentrated in the fluid
around neurons up to 100 times higher than blood plasma;
In plants, humans, all animals and fish.
From the largest whale to the
smallest amoeba;
Excess, unabsorbed C is
excreted from the body. In sweat and
feces, but mainly in the urine;
Overview of Vitamin C Functions
in the Body
•
Water-soluble antioxidant.
• Aids
healing of wounds and burns
• Acts
in the synthesis of collagen in connective tissue, cartilage, bone &
teeth / Strengthens the walls of the capillaries and other blood
vessels
•
Detoxifies heavy metals, pesticides, and other pollutants
•
Required in the synthesis of bile acids from cholesterol
•
Participates in metabolism of certain amino acids to
neurotransmitters and steroid hormones
• Helps
reduce cholesterol levels and high blood pressure
• Prevents blood clotting and bruising
• Aids
iron absorption
•
Maintains your adrenal cortex and ovaries
•
Maintains normal tissue growth and repair, cellular oxygen turnover
and cell membranes
•
Stimulates white blood cell immune activity / partially protective
against colds and flu, and all infections
•
Promotes proper calcium absorption
•
Stimulates interferon (an immune system "weapon")
• Needed for healthy gums
• Aids healing of wounds and burns
More details on vitamin C functions
Most humans
suffer from chronic subacute scurvy. Dr. Linus Pauling and his
research partner Dr. Mattias Rath determined that cardiovascular disease (CVD) is a symptom of a chronic
ascorbate deficiency. This author
surmises that many other symptoms, including bleeding gums, random nosebleeds,
slow healing wounds (E.g. in diabetics), hemorrhages in disease such as Crohn's and ulcerative colitis , are
also consequences of a low-grade C deficiency, enough to cause weakened
connective tissue, but not full-blown scurvy.
Health problems associated with Vitamin C deficiency
•
Adrenal Insufficiency
•
Fatigue
•
Osteoarthritis
•
Alcoholism
•
Gallbladder disease
•
Parkinson's disease
•
Allergies
•
Gingivitis
•
Periodontal disease
• Any
tissue-related malady
•
Glaucoma
• Peptic
ulcers
• Asthma
•
Hepatitis
•
Peripheral vascular disease
•
Atherosclerosis
• Herpes
simplex
•
Preeclampsia
•
Auto-immune disorders
• Herpes
zoster
•
Menopause
• Cancer
• High
blood pressure
• Mitral
valve prolapse
•
Candidiasis
• Hives
•
Multiple sclerosis
•
Capillary fragility
• Infections
•
Osteoarthritis
•
Cataracts
• Infertility
•
Parkinson's disease
•
Cervical dysplasia
• Inflammatory disorders
•
Radiation exposure
•
Crohn's disease
• Eczema
•
Rheumatoid arthritis
• Common
Cold
•
Macular degeneration
• Risk
of death (all causes)
•
Coronary Heart Disease
•
Menopause
• Skin
ulcers
•
Depression
• Mental
Illness
• Skin
sun damage
•
Diabetes
• Mitral
valve prolapse
• Sports
injuries
• Disk
Herniation
•
Multiple sclerosis
• Wound
healing
• Eczema
Details
on C Deficiency
Vitamin C
Tissue Distribution
Blood Plasma vitamin C level is 10-20 μg /mL
Generally, the metabolically active and
developing/fast growing tissues have the highest levels of
vitamin C .
Biological tissues accumulating > 100 times the level of blood plasma vitamin C
include: adrenal glands (1600-1700 μg /mL), pituitary, thymus, corpus
luteum (involved in
estrogen /Progesterone production during pregnancy), and retina.
Those tissues with > 10-50 times the concentration present in blood plasma
include: brain (has a
double-pump to ensure its
vitamin C supply), spleen, lung, testicles, lymph
nodes, liver, thyroid, small intestinal mucosa, leukocytes, pancreas, kidney and
salivary glands.
Other tissues levels: skeletal Muscles (3-5 x plasma), RBC (3-4 x plasma), WBC
(20-30 x plasma), Healing Wounds (high levels)
Pregnancy. Vitamin C
crosses the placenta; cord blood concentration is ~ 2- 4 times the concentration
in maternal blood; Vitamin C
is distributed into milk, which contains 40 to 70 µg/mL with mother on normal
diet
McEvoy
GK, Drug Information The American Hospital Formulary Service, American Society
of Health-System Pharmacists, Inc., MD., 1993
