Vitamin C was isolated by Dr.Szent-Gyorgyi in 1928. It plays an essential role in the formation of collagen that holds the body tissues together.
Vitamin C benefits are numerous and serve as health insurance policy these days. Dr. Pauling concluded that Vitamin C is used for reducing the duration of common cold. Even though the official RDA is about 60mg/day for normal adults, the RDA of nearly 1000mg/day is recommended for reducing the duration of cold.
Some researchers feel that the RDA for Vitamin C is actually too less for preventing certain health conditions and promoting healthy growth. Researches have recently found that a normal young man require about 1000mg per day for completely saturating the blood plasma with Vitamin C. They also found that the doses should be consumed in breaks as combined doses of more than 500mg per day is washed away from the body as this is a water soluble vitamin.
Functions of Vitamin C also include promoting healthy immune system and protecting against the damage caused by free radicals. It also aids in preventing secondary viral or bacterial complications and protecting against cancer and heart diseases.
High doses of vitamin C reduce asthma symptoms significantly and a dosage of about 500mg is believed to reduce the chances of bladder cancer almost by 60%. Breast cancer is caused by free radical damage that can be restricted by consuming large dosage of Vitamin C.
Promoting synthesis of collagen is also a principle Vitamin C function. This formation of collagen aids in reducing the chances of cancer. This is because collagen prevents the growth of tumors from invading the adjacent tissues. High levels of Vitamin C deactivate harmful free radicals that can damage DNA and initiate the growth of tumor.
Function of Vitamin C also involves lowering of blood pressure and cholesterol levels, protecting against oxidation, preventing atherosclerosis, lowering the risk of cataracts and glaucoma, reducing the risk of developing pressure sores and treating hemochromatosis to some extent.
Benefits of Vitamin C are numerous and have proved to show miraculous results to promote healthy living.