Tyler Bray

Cause and Effect: The Power of Vitamin C

As the most popular single nutrient, vitamin C plays an important role in the human diet. Vitamin C is a

powerful antioxidant, widely known for its unique ability to boost and maintain healthy immune function, fight

the common cold and protect against infectious diseases and toxins. It has also been clinically shown to protect

the eyes and prevent cataracts, shield the body against radiation exposure and aid in the production of collagen,

a protein essential to the renewal of connective tissues and healing of various wounds. Although vitamin C is

required for proper growth and development, severe deficiencies of this vital nutrient can cause serious

debilitating and life-threatening diseases including staph infections, malaria, typhoid fever and scurvy. We will

examine how these diseases impact the human body and discuss treatment options through the use of high-

dosage vitamin C.

We must obtain vitamin C from our diet, for our bodies do not produce this nutrient on its own. The

majority of dietary supplements on the market today incorporate a synthetic form of vitamin C known as

ascorbic acid. Therefore, the best bio-available form of vitamin C is natural, full-spectrum from whole food

sources such as citrus fruits and berries, which also contain other beneficial antioxidants. The best route for

vitamin C supplementation is in the form of liposome technology or intravenous (IV) administration, both of

which can be taken at high dosages without adverse side-effects (Levy 436). Higher intake levels may be used to

treat certain vitamin C deficiencies.

There are several signs that attribute to a vitamin C deficiency, such as scurvy. Loss of energy and

fatigue, depression or rapid mood changes, bleeding gums, bruising and deterioration of tissues and chronic

joint pain are early signs of scurvy. People suffering from anemia and neurological problems may also be vitamin

C deficient. Vitamin C is also present in fermented foods such as sauerkraut, and was once used by ancient

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sailors on long voyages to help ward off scurvy. During the late 1770s, Captain James Cook carried sixty barrels

of sauerkraut onboard his ship and didn’t lose a single sailor to scurvy as he circumnavigated the world.

Vitamin C has been shown extremely effective against treating various types of skin infections, including

staph infections. Staph infections are very contagious and are found mostly on the surface of the skin, causing

redness, swelling and pain. Staph infections are resistant to many antibiotics and therefore are more effectively

treated through the use of natural remedies, including vitamin C. The application of vitamin C directly onto skin

infections in a topical fashion increased the bacteria-killing effect of antibiotics, which had been antibiotic-

resistant prior to vitamin C being applied (Nakanishi 31). Antibiotics in conjunction with vitamin C prove to be

effective in treating skin infections.

In conclusion, vitamin C proves to be a very effective natural remedy in the prevention and treatment of

many different diseases and aliments. It is useful in both oral and topical applications, ranging from simple

illnesses to more deadly infections and diseases. Vitamin C is safe at high dosages, and there appears to be no

overdose factor limiting potential usage. Everyone should include this important vitamin into their everyday diet

because the positive effects on ones’ health is truly incredible.

Continue to page three for Works Cited . . .

Tyler Bray

Works Cited

Levy, Thomas E. Curing the Incurable: Vitamin C, Infectious Diseases, and Toxins. Henderson, NV: LivOn

Books, 2009. Print.

Nakaishi, T. “A Report on a Clinical Experience of which has Successfully Made Several Antibiotic-resistant

Bacteria (MRSA etc.) Negative on a Bedsore.” Article in Japanese. Igaku Kenkyu. Acta Medica. 62.1

(1992): 31-37. Print.