Vitamin C -- The Most Famous Of Vitamins!
By David Leonhardt

We call Vitamin C, also known as ascorbic acid, "the mostfamous of vitamins" because it really is the best known. It isthe first one schoolchildren learn. It is the most cited curefor the common cold. Most people can rhyme off at least a fewfoods that contain vitamin C. And vitamin C is the single mostsearched nutrient on the Internet.
HISTORY: Nobel Prize winning biochemist Dr. AlbertSzent-Gyorgyi first isolated vitamin C in 1928. (As someone ofHungarian descent, I find this a touch exciting.)
Vitamin C first got its reputation for beating the common coldin 1970, when fellow Nobel Prize winner Linus Pauling publishedhis bestselling book "Vitamin C and the Common Cold". In it, hesuggested that taking vitamin C at levels well above the USARDA (now 60 milligrams per day) could strengthen the immunesystem and help ward off the common cold.
BENEFITS: Vitamin C helps form collagen, a glue-like fibrousprotein in bone, cartilage, tendons and other connectivetissue. Vitamin C helps give structure and maintain such bodyparts as bones, cartilage, muscle, veins, capillaries andteeth.
But recent studies have also linked "adequate dosages" ofvitamin C to preventing a number of common cancers, of helpingboost the nervous system, of prolonging life, of reducing therisk of heart disease, of softening the symptoms of respiratorydiseases such as asthma and cystic fibrosis, and of keeping skinand glands healthy.
SOURCES: Most animals manufacture their own vitamin C.Primates, such as humans, gorillas, and monkeys, have somehowlost this ability.
Which is why we need to get our vitamin C from our diets.
It is well known that citrus fruits, such as oranges, lemons,grapefruits, tangerines, limes, mandarins and others containvitamin C.
In fact, vitamin C comes almost exclusively from fruits andvegetables. Other good sources are tomatoes, strawberries, raspberries,broccoli, asparagus, brussels sprouts, cauliflower, cabbage,peas, rutabagas, cantaloupe, kiwi, papayas, potatoes andwatermelon.
One place that is NOT a good source are vitamin C pills, whichthe body just cannot absorb properly. This is a water solublevitamin best taken in its natural juice or in a liquidsupplement.
OPTIMUM USAGE: Fortunately, if you consume too much of a watersoluble vitamin, your body will get rid of excess. It alsomeans that your body does not store it for long periods oftime. You can't "stock up" on it, and you can reach asaturation point quickly; you need vitamin C several times aday.
Being a water-soluble vitamin, you lose it when you boil foods.For instance, if you boil your broccoli, you will lose thevitamin C. However, if you boil your broccoli in a soup, youwill get the broccoli's vitamin C in the broth.
Do not soak or store fruits or vegetables in water, for you canlose the vitamin C that way. In short, the fresher cut the fruitor vegetable, and the less cooked, the more vitamin C you willget. Like all vitamins and minerals, Vitamin C is most effectivewhen combined with other nutrients. For example, one of the bigbenefits of vitamin C is that it helps the body digest andabsorb iron, an essential mineral for good health.
It has also been found that vitamin C and E work together tohelp stave off Alzheimer's disease.
This is one of the reasons it is so important to take vitaminsupplements that contain as many different nutrients aspossible, so the body can absorb them together and enjoy themaximum benefits from each one.
DOSAGE: Most experts agree that the US RDA is only a fractionof what it should be, and that daily vitamin C levels up to1,000 or even 2,000 milligrams per day are safe and healthy.
Essential Nectar contains 250% of the US RDA, mixing it with233 other natural, plant-based nutrients...making it a goodvitamin C supplement for your diet.
About the Author: David Leonhardt runs The Liquid VitaminSupplements Store: http://www.vitamin-supplements-store.netLearn more about vitamin C:http://www.vitamin-supplements-store.net/vitamins/vitamin-c.htmlOr read up on other nutrition information:http://www.vitamin-supplements-store.net/nutrition-information.html
Source: http://www.isnare.com