Vitamin C acts 
as an antioxidant, anti-inflammatory agent, assists in collagen formation, boosts the immune system and is necessary in the synthesis of stress hormones. Additionally, Vitamin C allows other vitamins and minerals to become more absorbent in the body! It is a very necessary vitamin in our body’s.
There are a couple of things to know before you go choose your source of Vitamin C. Here is what I have learned:
1. The source matters!
Here is what that means: Almost 100% of the vitamins sold to consumers are vitamins that come from a synthetic (chemical) source. What this means is they are not getting vitamins and minerals from the earth and natural sources. They are instead making them in a lab.
That is not bad all the time, but here is one thing to think about: When something is not sourced from a natural source your body will have a more difficult time recognizing it.
When your body does not recognize it, then it does not know how to use it and will simply dump it or store it. Waste. Not just your money but your time and energy.
If there is one thing you will pick from my blog, it is that I do not like to waste my time, energy and money. Who does? But what we do not recognize is that we do it way more than we know because we do not know a better way.
2. Ascorbic or Ascorbate Acid
At your local health food store or grocery store the Vitamin C label will read: “Vitamin C as Ascorbic Acid or Ascorbate” for the main ingredient. Do not be tricked by the ones that say “with rose hips!” They are still mostly made up of ascorbic or ascorbate acid.
Contrary to what most pharmaceutical companies or health companies want you to believe, ascorbic acid is not a natural Vitamin C. Ascorbic acid is only a fraction of the factors that make up a whole food Vitamin C.
Without the other components of Bioflavonoid, Rutin and J & K factors this type of Vitamin C is incomplete.
This forces the body to seek out from its own reserves these nutrients to complete the Vitamin C complex before absorption can take place. This then actually depletes Vitamin C from the body and can cause harmful effects.
The companies that sell you ascorbic acid as Vitamin C make this up synthetically in a laboratory. Instead of extracting from the whole food so they can save money. Ascorbic acid is very easy and inexpensive to mix together. It is comprised of two basic ingredients:
- corn syrup
- hydrochloric acid!
Yes! It is true ascorbic acid (ascorbate) is literally corn syrup and hydrochloric acid bound together!
The Research on ascorbic acid
There was an interesting study done at the University of Southern California. It was conducted by the lead researcher, James Dwyer, an epidemiologist from the Keck School of Medicine.
The study was done with a group of 573 men and women. People who had taken a supplement of Vitamin C “as ascorbic acid” over the past year and a half, and then some that had not. The study results showed that those who had consumed the Vitamin C had more evidence of possible future atherosclerosis (hardening of the arteries) compared to those who did not take Vitamin C pills at all!
How can they see these effects?
- To gauge the Vitamin C affects the researchers performed ultra sound measurements of the subject’s carotid arteries, which are in the neck. This method is a medically accepted substitute for probing coronary arteries directly.
- The study was performed by using just 500 mg per day of Vitamin C “as ascorbic acid” for six months. This is half the recommend dose of 1000 mg by the RDA.
- Ultra sounds were then performed a second time and the results showed that after consuming only 500 mg a day, the inner artery wall lay
er was 2.5 times thicker than that of those that did not take any of the synthetic Vitamin C. Among smoking supplement takers, the inner artery walls were 5 times thicker. Physicians say such thickening precedes atherosclerosis.
This was because the Vitamin C was in the form of ascorbic/ascorbate acid. Their body had to pull the other nutrients in reserve to absorb and complete the ascorbic acid. This left their body’s depleted and in a weak position for future complications.
What the article failed to point out however, is that true whole food Vitamin C is very beneficial as an antioxidant. It assists in collagen formation, boosts the immune system and is necessary in the synthesis of stress hormones.
This study was published as an article in the Los Angeles Times, in 2000 on March 3rd by Terrence Monmaney.
3. Knowledge is power
Millions of Americans like those in the study are consumers of ascorbic acid and corn syrup type “Vitamin C”. They do not know it and thus are being recipients of the harmful and negative side effects. Why then do these companies continue to sell them to the public? The answer is “Profits.” Health companies and pharmaceutical companies can make larger profits by selling cheap imitations of Vitamin C and other supplements. Corn syrup is very cheap, this is why is it is used as a sweetener in everything.
The Solution!?
There ARE whole natural forms of Vitamin C available.
The Vitamin C options below deliver a high potency amount from organic whole food sources. Such as: acerola cherry, organic oranges, blueberries, and cranberries. Additionally, they contain bioflavonoid’s such as organic amal fruit, organic rosehips and organic green pepper. Now those your body will recognize!
- These are not synthetic and contain NO ascorbic/ascorbate acid.
- They contain the highest quality of unprocessed fruits, fruit juices & flavonoids.
- None of these are not processed to separate any of the whole food constituents out.
- Very low temperatures are used as well in the dehydration of the fruits in order to keep in tact the nutrient and enzyme content.
I have found several options in different forms for different ages.
SHOP
- Powder form for shakes and babies: Dr Shultz Super C, the taste is not as good as the others on this one
- For babies and kids: Dr Christophers vitamin and mineral liquid tincture, I have not tried this one.
- For adults and kids in a capsule form: Divine Nature Vitamin C , you can open these and have a powder. It tastes better than Dr Shultz but not as good as the chewable.
- Chewable for babies and kids: Natural Vitamin C is a chewable and you can easily crush it into powder with a spoon for babies, oh… and it tastes amazing. Adults, save these for your kids!