Heart problems can cost you your life, so it's vital to do whatever you can to prevent or treat them. The American Heart Association reports that your dietary habits --- including the vitamins you consume --- affect your heart health. Making sure that you get enough vitamin C may help you avoid or alleviate heart problems.
Lowering Blood Pressure
If you have high blood pressure, you're at greater risk for developing heart problems than people with normal blood pressure, but vitamin C may help you lower your blood pressure to reduce your risk of heart problems. The National Institutes of Health reports that you may be able to lower your systolic blood pressure by taking vitamin C supplements along with the blood pressure medication your doctor has prescribed. However, the National Institutes of Health cautions that simply taking vitamin C supplements without any blood pressure medications doesn't affect blood pressure readings. Doctors sometimes advise patients to take vitamin C along with their medications to try to lower blood pressure, says the American Academy of Family Physicians, which suggests taking a 500 mg vitamin C supplement twice each day to fight heart disease.
Preventing Atherosclerosis
Vitamin C is an antioxidant vitamin that helps prevent the cholesterol in your body from going through a process called oxidation, in which oxygen reacts with the cholesterol and causes it to stick to the linings of your arteries, the American Academy of Family Physicians reports. When too much cholesterol sticks to your artery linings, your arteries can become blocked, which is a condition called atherosclerosis. Atherosclerosis restricts blood flow in your arteries, causing heart problems. So, doctors may suggest that patients take vitamin C supplements when they're trying to lower their cholesterol and prevent atherosclerosis to avoid heart problems, says the National Institutes of Health.
Dietary and Supplement Sources
You can take 1,000 mg of vitamin C daily in the form of two doses of 500 mg vitamin C supplements to fight heart problems, the American Academy of Family Physicians says. The National Institutes of Health reports that it's generally safe to take up to 2,000 mg of vitamin C every day, but beyond that amount, you may experience side effects such as diarrhea and kidney stones. You can also get plenty of vitamin C from eating a variety of fruits and vegetables, and the American Heart Association recommends getting vitamin C through your diet. Some of the best food sources of vitamin C are asparagus, tomatoes, broccoli, kale, peppers, berries, oranges, grapefruit and pineapple, says the American Academy of Family Physicians.
Cautions
The American Heart Association cautions that you shouldn't stop taking medications --- such as drugs used to manage cholesterol or blood pressure --- if you're taking vitamin C to try to fight heart disease, since there's isn't enough medical evidence to show that vitamin C can serve as an effective substitute for prescription medications.
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