Growing up I was always told to drink my orange juice to stay healthy. After learning more about the reason why, it totally makes sense!
The reason I, like many others, was told this is because of vitamin C. As you may already know, oranges are a great source of this essential vitamin.
What you may not know is just how important vitamin C actually is. For one, vitamin C can help support healthy skin, immune system function, and much more which we'll discuss.
Because of its importance, a lot of people opt to taking vitamin C in the form of a supplement.
However, the question remains: are vitamin C supplements effective? Also, what should you look for in a vitamin C supplement?
Today, you'll walk away with everything you need to know about vitamin C supplements!
What Is Vitamin C?
Before we get into the nitty-gritty, it's important to know exactly what vitamin C is. Well, vitamin C is a water-soluble vitamin.
That means, for vitamin C to be absorbed and utilized properly, it requires water. Vitamin C is also an essential vitamin, meaning your body can't make it on its own. Because of this, vitamin C is something you need to get through your diet.
For the most part, fruits and vegetables are going to contain the highest concentrations of vitamin C. Other than oranges, you can also get a good amount of vitamin C from:
- Peppers
- Limes
- Lemons
- Tomatoes
- Potatoes
- Grapefruit
- Kiwi
- Broccoli
- Strawberries
- Brussel Sprouts
For most of us, these aren't the most appetizing foods. While I do like strawberries, I don't know that I'd want to eat them every single day. That's one reason why a lot of people will turn to supplements for vitamin C.
This, along with other factors such as pollutants, could also be part of the reason why vitamin C deficiency is the fourth most common vitamin deficiency in the United States (1).
But, what is it that makes vitamin C so important?
What Are The Benefits of Vitamin C?
One of the main reasons why vitamin C is so important is its role in immune health. Vitamin C is a powerful antioxidant that can help your body's immune system in multiple ways. For one, it can help support immune cell functioning (1).
Secondly, as a powerful antioxidant, vitamin C helps protect important bio-molecules from oxidative stress and damage (1). This could be part of what helps vitamin C contribute to overall cellular health and immune function.
Last but not least, vitamin C is important for the health of skin (1). Being that skin is among the first lines of defense against pathogens, that could help explain how vitamin C can be so beneficial for our overall health and immunity.
As if that's not enough, vitamin C also plays a role in collagen synthesis. This is an important protein your body uses to make skin, tendons, blood vessels, and cartilage.
How Much Vitamin C Do We Need?
The Recommended Dietary Allowance (RDA) for vitamin C is 90 mg/day for adult men and 75 mg/day for adult women. For smokers, it's recommended to increase that amount by 35 mg/day because of the increase in oxidative stress smoking causes (3).
In the case of vitamin C deficiency, even more can be recommended. Either way, it's important to stay on top of regular vitamin C consumption.
Now, if you're someone who's unable to get enough vitamin C regulary thorugh you diet ... that's where a vitamin C supplement may be helpful.
Vitamin C Supplements
Vitamin C supplements can be an effective way to make sure you get enough vitamin C every day. That being said, there are several different types of vitamin C supplements out there.
Most of the vitamin C supplements you'll find come in a powdered form. Whether it's a heat-compressed powdered tablet, a powder-filled capsule, or just straight powder ... these vitamin C supplements are common and can be helpful.
Where a lot of these vitamin C supplements can fall short is in the process of digestion. This is where liposomal forms of vitamin C, and any other vitamin, can really shine.
Let me explain what I mean by this...
What is Liposomal Vitamin C?
Liposomal vitamin C is a form of vitamin C that is 177% more bioavailable than non-liposomal vitamin C (4). If you don’t know what bioavailable means, don’t worry!
Bioavailability just refers to how easily your body can absorb and utilize nutrients. But, what makes liposomal vitamins more bioavailable?
Let’s talk about how and why this is…
You see, liposomes are phospholipid layers that encapsulate the nutrients inside. In a way, they're a lot like a shield. They are designed to protect nutrients from oxidative stress and breakdown during digestion (3).
How cool is that? The liposomes protect and deliver nutrients (in this case vitamin C) to your tissues more effectively. That means your body can absorb and utilize far more of the vitamin C!
This can be very advantageous over powdered, non-liposomal forms of vitamin C.
Try 1st Phorm Liposomal Vitamin C
At 1st Phorm, we are founded on quality, and measured on results. We stand tall in that statement with each and every supplement we make. That's why our vitamin C supplement comes in a liposomal form.
With each serving of our Liposomal Vitamin C, you get 1000mg to help support a healthier you.
Our Liposomal Vitamin C is a liquid that you can add to just about any drink to get in your daily dose of vitamin C. All you need is one teaspoon for the full serving.
If you ever have any questions, feel free to reach out to us! We have a full team of NASM Certified Personal Trainers and Nutrition Coaches available from 6 AM to 10 PM Central, right here in St. Louis, Missouri. Just give us a call at 1-800-409-9732 or shoot us an email at CustomerService@1stPhorm.com.
We're here to help real people like you and me get real and long-term results.
Try Liposomal Vitamin C today and experience the difference for yourself!
References:
(1) Carr, Anitra C, and Silvia Maggini. “Vitamin C and Immune Function.” Nutrients vol. 9,11 1211. 3 Nov. 2017, doi:10.3390/nu9111211
(2) Valdés, F. “Vitamina C” [Vitamin C]. Actas dermo-sifiliograficas vol. 97,9 (2006): 557-68. doi:10.1016/s0001-7310(06)73466-4
(3) Institute of Medicine (US) Panel on Dietary Antioxidants and Related Compounds. Dietary Reference Intakes for Vitamin C, Vitamin E, Selenium, and Carotenoids. Washington (DC): National Academies Press (US); 2000. 5, Vitamin C. Available from: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK225480/
(4) Gopi, Sreerag, and Preetha Balakrishnan. “Evaluation and clinical comparison studies on liposomal and non-liposomal ascorbic acid (vitamin C) and their enhanced bioavailability.” Journal of liposome research vol. 31,4 (2021): 356-364. doi:10.1080/08982104.2020.1820521
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