Vitamin C functions in the capacity of an antioxidant and structural component of various tissues. It also participates in energy production, normal brain function and a number of other important reactions that have widespread implications. Since your body cannot synthesize vitamin C, you must obtain it from your diet.
History
Vitamin C or ascorbic acid was originally identified as an antiscorbutic, or a substance that prevents scurvy. Citrus fruits were accepted as a cure for scurvy by around the beginning of the 19th century. Although the work of scientists in different fields contributed to the isolation and identification of the vitamin, it was not until the 1930s that it was finally given the name ascorbic acid. Furthermore, its synthesis from simple sugars was not understood until the early 1950s.
Antiscorbutic
Although many plants and animals can make vitamin C, humans lack a necessary enzyme called L-gulonolactone oxidase that other organisms have. The role that vitamin C plays in making collagen and large starch-protein molecules called proteoglycans is believed to be instrumental in its ability to prevent scurvy, which involves lesions in connective tissue. Symptoms of scurvy include such problems as bleeding gums, easy bruising, hair and tooth loss, and poor wound healing. Scurvy can be prevented by taking at least 10 milligrams of vitamin C a day, according to the Linus Pauling Institute Micronutrient Information Center.
Carnitine and Norepinephrine
Vitamin C is also necessary to make carnitine, a molecule that helps transport fat into cells to be broken down for energy; and an important neurotransmitter called norepinephrine, which allows nerve cells to send signals. As an antioxidant, vitamin C helps prevent damage to cells caused by free radicals, unstable by-products of normal metabolic reactions, report researchers at the National Cancer Institute. In addition, the vitamin may also help control cholesterol levels in your blood, according to the Linus Pauling Institute Micronutrient Information Center.
Additional Information
Vitamin C occurs widely in foods, especially in fresh fruits and vegetables. The recommended daily allowance for adults is 75 to 90 mg, according to J. Anderson, Colorado State University Extension foods and nutrition specialist and professor. Since it is a water-soluble vitamin, taking doses in excess of your daily requirements means that your body will eliminate what it doesn't use through your urinary system. Whether megadoses of vitamin C have any therapeutic value for diseases such as cancer remains a controversial subject.
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