Oranges are perhaps the most important example of foods rich in vitamin C.
Image: Unsplash
Oranges, kiwi, tomatoes: well-known examples of foods that contain a lot of vitamin C. Many people also know that it is healthy and supports your immunity, but what does vitamin C really do in our bodies? And: What foods contain a lot of vitamin C?
You may remember it from stories or tales of the past: scurvy. Nowadays, this almost no longer happens – certainly not in a country like the Netherlands – and vitamin C plays a very important role in this matter. And sodium deficiency, which we wrote about recently, rarely occurs in our community. However, vitamin D deficiency can occur regularly, especially in the winter months.
Why do we need vitamin C?
Vitamin C is a water-soluble vitamin also called ascorbic acid. You have to accordingly Nutrition center Your body needs it for the following things:
- It protects the body’s cells from damage as an antioxidant
- Ensures iron is absorbed more easily
- Helps form connective tissue
- It keeps your resistance up to standard
As mentioned, vitamin C plays an important role in fighting scurvy, but this did not become clear until later. Sailors already knew that fresh fruits and vegetables were indispensable on board a ship, but they had not yet realized that vitamin C was the key to staying healthy. You need about 75 milligrams of it daily, provided you are 14 years or older. Different guidelines apply to children and pregnant women.
Lots of vitamin C
Vitamin C is healthy, it shows. But you can also consume a lot of healthy things. Therefore, it is not recommended to eat a kilo of kiwi. If you take too much of the vitamin, you will urinate a large portion of it. If you consume too much vitamin C, you may experience intestinal problems and diarrhea, for example. This only happens if you consume more than two grams per day.
Vitamin C deficiency
A shortage is much more dangerous than a surplus. As mentioned previously, scurvy can develop, but this is only in very extreme cases. You don’t have to worry about it too much in daily life. You may have been advised to eat plenty of fruit when you are sick. This has to do with the fact that Vitamin C keeps your resistance level up to standard. So the lack of this can reduce that resistance.
Wounds that heal slowly can also be a sign of vitamin C deficiency. Symptoms of scurvy include bleeding gums and internal bleeding.
What contains a lot of vitamin C?
Fruits and vegetables are a good source of vitamin C, but while many people think of oranges, for example, when they think of this vitamin, that’s not where it’s most common. In fact, Brussels sprouts and peppers rank first and second on the top list. If you eat about 70 grams of Brussels sprouts, you’ll actually get 92 milligrams of vitamin C. Half a raw red pepper contains 90 milligrams.
This is followed by oranges (66 milligrams), a bowl of strawberries (60 milligrams), and kiwi (59 milligrams).
Sodium deficiency: what is it and what do you notice?
Warning about the ‘diabetes wave’, this is how you recognize type 2 diabetes
Spotted an error? Mail to us. We are grateful to you.
