How Vitamin C not only supports our general health now affects fetus brain
We all know that Vitamin C has many health benefits. This new research now confirmed that pregnant women should think twice about omitting the daily vitamin C pill. Before we find this useful information, let us see what other benefits of Vitamin C to our health are.
What is Vitamin C?
Vitamin C, also called ascorbic acid, is a water-soluble nutrient that is easily excreted from the body when not needed. It's so critical to living creatures that almost all mammals can use their own cells to make it. Humans, gorillas, chimps, bats, guinea pigs and birds are some of the few animals that cannot make vitamin C inside of their own bodies.
What can high-vitamin C foods do for you?
- Help protect cells from free radical damage
- Lower your cancer risk
- Regenerate your vitamin E supplies
- Improve iron absorption
- What events can indicate a need for more high-vitamin C foods?
When we know we need more vitamin C in diet?
- Poor wound healing
- Frequent colds or infections
- Lung-related problems
Best food sources of Vitamin C
Excellent food sources of vitamin C include broccoli, bell peppers, parsley, Brussels sprouts, cauliflower, lemon juice, strawberries, mustard greens, kiwifruit, papaya, kale, cabbage, romaine lettuce, turnip greens, oranges, cantaloupe, summer squash, grapefruit, pineapple, chard, tomatoes, collard greens, raspberries, spinach, green beans, fennel, cranberries, asparagus, watermelon, and winter squash.
What are health benefits of Vitamin C?
Most forms of cardiovascular disease, joint disease, cancer, eye disease, thyroid disease, liver disease, and lung disease require special emphasis on vitamin C intake. The process of aging itself requires special attention to vitamin C. In addition to these broader categories, several specific health conditions also require special emphasis on vitamin C. These specific health conditions include:
- Acne
- Alcoholism
- Alzheimer's disease
- Asthma
- Autism
- Depression
- Diabetes
- Irritable bowel disease
- Parkinson's disease
What are the current public health recommendations for intake of vitamin C?
In 2000, the National Academy of Sciences established the following Adequate Intake levels for vitamin C:
0-6 months: 40 milligrams
7-12 months: 50 milligrams
In 2000, the National Academy of Sciences established the following Recommended Dietary Allowances for vitamin C:
1-3 years: 15 milligrams
4-8 years: 25 milligrams
Males 9-13 years: 45 milligrams
Males 14-18 years: 75 milligrams
Males 19 years and older: 90 milligrams
Females 9-13 years: 45 milligrams
Females 14-18 years: 65 milligrams
Females 19 years and older: 75 milligrams
Pregnant females 18 years: 80 milligrams
Pregnant females 19 years and older: 85 milligrams
Lactating females 18 years: 115 milligrams
Lactating females 19 years and older: 120 milligrams
The National Academy of Sciences set a Tolerable Upper Intake Level (UL) for vitamin C at 2,000 milligrams (2 grams) for adults 19 years or older. For more details on this, see the Toxicity Symptoms section above.
New Research- Fetus suffers when mother lacks vitamin C
Maternal vitamin C deficiency during pregnancy can have serious consequences for the foetal brain. And once brain damage has occurred, it cannot be reversed by vitamin C supplements after birth. This is shown through new research at the University of Copenhagen just published in the scientific journal PLOS ONE. Population studies show that between 10-20 per cent of all adults in the developed world suffer from vitamin C deficiency. Therefore, pregnant women should think twice about omitting the daily vitamin pill. Even marginal vitamin C deficiency in the mother stunts the fetal hippocampus, the important memory center, by 10-15 per cent, preventing the brain from optimal development,” says Professor Jens Lykkesfeldt. He heads the group of scientists that reached this conclusion by studying pregnant guinea pigs and their pups. Just like humans, guinea pigs cannot produce vitamin C themselves, which is why they were chosen as the model. We used to think that the mother could protect the baby. Ordinarily there is a selective transport from mother to fetus of the substances the baby needs during pregnancy. However, it now appears that the transport is not sufficient in the case of vitamin C deficiency. Therefore it is extremely important to draw attention to this problem, which potentially can have serious consequences for the children affected,” says Jens Lykkesfeldt.
Too late when damage is done
The new results sharpen the focus on the mother’s lifestyle and nutritional status during pregnancy. The new study has also shown that the damage done to the foetal brain cannot be repaired, even if the baby is given vitamin C after birth.
When the vitamin C deficient guinea pig pups were born, scientists divided them into two groups and gave one group vitamin C supplements. However, when the pups were two months old, which corresponds to teenage in humans, there was still no improvement in the group that had been given supplements.
The scientists are now working to find out how early in the pregnancy vitamin C deficiency influences the development of foetal guinea pigs. Preliminary results show that the impact is already made early in the pregnancy, as the foetuses were examined in the second and third trimesters. Scientists hope in the long term to be able to use population studies to illuminate the problem in humans.
Vulnerable groups
There are some groups that may be particularly vulnerable of vitamin C deficiency; People with low economic status who eat poorly – and perhaps also smoke – often suffer from vitamin C deficiency. Comparatively speaking, their children risk being born with a poorly developed memory potential. These children may encounter learning problems, and seen in a societal context, history repeats itself because these children find it more difficult to escape the environment into which they are born,” says Jens Lykkesfeldt. He emphasizes that if pregnant women eat a varied diet, do not smoke, and for instance take a multi-vitamin tablet daily during pregnancy, there is no reason to fear vitamin C deficiency. Because it takes so little to avoid vitamin C deficiency, it is my hope that both politicians and the authorities will become aware that this can be a potential problem,” concludes Jens Lykkesfeldt.
(Source- PLOS ONE)
