Vitamin C is an essential nutrient, which means that the body cannot make it on its own, so you should take it regularly. What is the Vitamin C Intake Per Day?
42% of the U.S. adult population lives with vitamin C deficiency, nearly half of which fail to get enough vitamin C from their diet every day, and even with supplements, 33% of American adults are still less than they need.
This is a good indication that you may need to take more vitamins in addition, this is clear evidence that the supplement of your choice may need to be improved. If you are wondering how much vitamin C daily you need to live your best life. Read this article further!
How Much Vitamin C intake In A day?
How much vitamin C intake you need per day changes according to your age, gender, and stage of life.
The reference value of the diet for healthy adults is between 95-110 mg of vitamin C per day. During pregnancy and lactation, the need for vitamin C can rise to 105 mg and 155 mg per day.
We can get enough vitamin C from our diet by consuming a variety of foods. Following your guidelines on a healthy and balanced diet will help you meet your vitamin C needs.
What is the Recommended Dose of Vitamin C?
The Australian government publishes recommended diet consumption for each vitamin, allowing you to check if you are getting the right amount.
Adults need about 45mg of vitamin C daily, this equates to about half an orange or a cup of strawberries.
Nursing women need about 85mg every other day while children need less, about 35mg to 40mg every other day.
There is some evidence to suggest that people who smoke may need a greater amount of vitamin C intake than non-smokers to prevent a deficiency of one of the many reasons to consider quitting smoking.
What Is The Best Way To Take Vitamin C?
Experts emphasize that the best way to take vitamin C is through food or supplements. Whole foods include a complex of vitamins and micronutrients. If you're not sure you're getting enough from food, just try vitamin C supplements.
Vitamin C supplements provide the right amount and premium you need every day. In addition, they can actually help prevent disease, whereas vitamin C deficiency seems to make you more susceptible to infection.
What Is The Best Source Of Vitamin C?
The good news is that it is very easy to get enough Vitamin C intake in your diet. In fact, it is estimated that the average intake of Vitamin C is 85mg per day for women and more than 100mg per day for men!
Fruits and vegetables, particularly citrus fruits and chilies, are some of the richest sources of vitamin C you can get. To put things into perspective here is their Vitamin C concentration per 100 grams:
- Lime 347mg
- Orange 55mg
- Strawberry 45mg
Fruit juice also contributes a large amount of Vitamin C, but it is a concentrated source of energy and sugar, so it is best to stick to whole fruits.
Another interesting fact: Vitamin C is used as a preservative in food. You will see it on the packaging product label listed as ascorbic acid or the numbers 300 to 304.
What Is The Best Form Of Vitamin C To Take?
Vitamin C supplements are available in a variety of forms, the most common being ascorbic acid, followed by ascorbic minerals such as sodium ascorbate, calcium ascorbate, potassium ascorbate, and magnesium ascorbate.
Depending on the dosage, the bioavailability of vitamin C supplements can be different, which means some forms can enter your gut and circulation more easily, then start working, running to cells throughout the body to scavenge free radicals*
"Free radicals can cause damage to all parts of the body, including the brain and mind," says dietitian Joanna Foley, RD, CLT. But the right kind of vitamin C can combat oxidative compounds head-on.*
While ascorbic acid and mineral ascorbic certainly have definite benefits and efficacy in lower doses, research shows that at stronger doses, scientifically advanced vitamin C complexes that include lipid and citrus bioflavonoid components in particular, a vitamin C compound called PureWay-Chas superior absorption and the ability to ward off free radicalsand can increase blood vitamin C levels and support anti-inflammatory action more efficient than other forms of vitamin C such as ascorbic acid, calcium ascorbic, and calcium ascorbic-calcium threonate-dehydroascorbate .
Warnings And Contraindications For Vitamin C
If you are or may be pregnant, it is best not to exceed 6,000 mg of vitamin C daily. Levels above these can interfere with pregnancy. Some people may develop kidney stones at high doses of vitamin C intake.
Consult with your doctor before taking this supplement or anything else. Finally, constipation can be a sign of a serious illness and should be evaluated by the doctor before treatment.
How to Take It
The best way to take vitamin C supplements is 2 – 3 times a day, with meals, depending on the dosage. Some research suggests that adults should take 250 – 500 mg twice a day to get any benefit. Talk to your doctor before taking more than 1,000 mg of vitamin C daily and before giving vitamin C to a child.
The daily intake of vitamin C foods is listed below.
- Men over 18 years old: 90 mg
- Women over 18 years of age: 75 mg
- Pregnant women 14 – 18 years: 80 mg
- Pregnant women over 18 years old: 85 mg
- Lactating women 14 – 18 years: 115 mg
- Lactating women over 18 years of age: 120 mg
Because smoking consumes vitamin C, people who smoke may need an additional 35 mg per day.
The recommended dosage to prevent or treat many of the conditions mentioned in the Usage section is often 500 – 1,000 mg per day.
How Much Vitamin C Your Body Can Absorb At Once
If you stay within a reasonable amount of RDA, your body will absorb most of the vitamin C you consume. However, once you start taking more than 180mg per day, the absorption rate starts to drop. If you take a megadose of 1 gram or more, your body may only absorb about 50 percent.
Since vitamin C is water-soluble, consuming more than the recommended amount daily is not always harmful. Any excess that your body does not absorb is excreted in your urine.
That’s the information about what is vitamin C intake per day. Hope this article is helpful!
