What is Vitamin C?

The discovery so ascorbic acid, better known as vitamin C in 1928 by the Hungarian Dr. Szent-Gyorgyi, a later Nobel Prize winner, was one of the biggest achievements in the biochemical area. 

Vitamin C is a water-soluble nutrient essential for life and is used by the human body for many purposes.

The most well known of all of vitamin C’s benefits are its powerful antioxidant properties that protect human being from the damaging effects of oxidation.

Reduction and oxidation chemicals signal cells to divide to change their structure and behavior or to die. One of the most critical controlling factors is the availability of vitamin C. High doses of vitamin C, in combination with related nutrients may prevent or even cure cancer.

Another most vitamin C’s vital roles in human health is in the production and maintenance of collagen. Collagen is a protein that makes up the connective tissues found throughout the body, especially in the skin, ligaments, cartilage, bones and teeth.

In some observational studies, vitamin C consumption from both food and supplements correlated with reduced mortality and with lower risk for ischemic heart disease, particularly when subjects had low vitamin C.
What is Vitamin C?

Ascorbic Acid

Ascorbic acid was recognized as early as 1734 as the factor in fresh fruit and vegetables that prevent the development of scurvy.

Ascorbic acid or vitamin C is required for the formation of intercellular substances in the body, including dentine, cartilage, and the protein network or bone. Hence, it is important in tooth formation, the healing of broken bones, and the healing of wounds.

It may be important to oxidation –reduction reactions in the body and to the production of certain hormones.

In the brain, ascorbic acid may perform important functions related to the metabolism and release of several neurotransmitter.

Vitamin C is not only an important nutrient but is also used as an antioxidant in various foods.

Vitamin C recharges fat soluble vitamin E and water soluble glutathione, allowing them, to be reused many times.

Tomato juice, if it has been processed properly, is a fair source of this vitamin. Green peppers, cabbage, broccoli, and sprout are excellent to good sources of vitamin C, while other vegetables such as peas, spinach, and lettuce are good to fair sources. Many fruit contain fair amounts of vitamin C.

Overdoses of vitamin C induce perspiration, nervous tension, and lowered pulse rate.
Ascorbic Acid