Vitamin C is a strong antioxidant that can boost your blood antioxidant levels. Population studies show that people with high intakes of vitamin C have a lower risk of a number of chronic diseases, including heart disease, cancer, eye diseases, and neurodegenerative conditions.

Vitamin C is an antioxidant that can help to boost your body's natural defenses. Antioxidants are molecules that help the body's immune system function better. They do so by protecting cells against dangerous molecules known as free radicals. When free radicals build up in the body, they can cause oxidative stress, which has been related to a variety of chronic diseases. According to studies, increasing your vitamin C intake can boost your blood antioxidant levels by up to 30%. This helps the body's natural defenses in its battle against inflammation.

High blood pressure affects almost one-third of adults in the United States. Heart disease is the leading cause of death worldwide, and high blood pressure puts you at risk. Vitamin C has been demonstrated in studies to help people with and without high blood pressure reduce their blood pressure.

Taking a vitamin C supplement helped relax the blood vessels that carry blood from the heart, which helped lower blood pressure levels, according to one animal research. Furthermore, a review of 29 human trials indicated that taking a vitamin C supplement decreased systolic blood pressure by 3.8 mmHg and diastolic blood pressure by 1.5 mmHg in healthy adults on average. Vitamin C supplements lowered systolic blood pressure by 4.9 mmHg and diastolic blood pressure by 1.7 mmHg in adults with high blood pressure, on average. While these results are promising, it is unclear if the impacts on blood pressure are long-term. Furthermore, people with high blood pressure should not rely solely on vitamin C to treat their disease.

The major cause of death in the world is heart disease. High blood pressure, high triglyceride or LDL (bad) cholesterol levels, and low HDL (good) cholesterol levels are all factors that increase the risk of heart disease. Vitamin C may help to lower these risk factors, lowering the risk of heart disease.

For example, after 10 years, people who took at least 700 mg of vitamin C daily had a 25% lower risk of heart disease than those who did not take a vitamin C supplement, according to an analysis of 9 studies with a number of 293,172 participants. Another review of 15 studies discovered that getting vitamin C through foods, rather than supplements, was linked to a decreased risk of heart disease. Another research looked at the effects of consuming at least 500 mg of vitamin C daily on heart disease risk factors such as blood cholesterol and triglyceride levels. The researchers discovered that taking a vitamin C supplement reduced LDL (bad) cholesterol by 7.9 mg/dL and blood triglycerides by 20.1 mg/dL.

Gout is a type of arthritis that affects around 4% of adults in the United States. It's incredibly painful, and it includes inflammation of the joints, particularly the big toes. Gout patients endure swelling and sudden, severe pain attacks. When there is too much uric acid in the blood, gout symptoms appear. The body produces uric acid as a waste product. It may crystallize and accumulate in the joints at high levels.

Vitamin C has been proven in several studies to help lower uric acid levels in the blood and, as a result, protect against gout attacks. A study of 1,387 men discovered that those who consumed the most vitamin C had much lower uric acid levels in their blood than those who consumed the least. Another 20-year research followed 46,994 healthy men to see whether vitamin C consumption was associated with the development of gout. It was discovered that taking a vitamin C supplement reduced the risk of gout by 44%.

Iron is a vital nutrient that plays a number of roles in the body. It's needed for the production of red blood cells and the transportation of oxygen throughout the body. Supplementing with vitamin C can help in the absorption of iron from the diet. Vitamin C helps in the transformation of iron that is difficult to absorb, such as iron from vegetables, into a form that is simpler to absorb. This is especially beneficial for vegetarians and vegans, as meat is a key source of iron.

In fact, just 100 mg of vitamin C per day can boost iron absorption by 67%. As a result, vitamin C may help in the prevention of anemia in people who are iron deficient. A vitamin C supplement was provided to 65 children with mild iron deficiency anemia in one trial. Researchers discovered that only taking the supplement helped them control their anemia. If you have low iron levels, increasing your intake of vitamin C-rich foods or taking a vitamin C supplement may help.

Because vitamin C is involved in many parts of the immune system, it is one of the most common reasons people take vitamin C supplements.

For example, vitamin C promotes the production of white blood cells called lymphocytes and phagocytes, which help the body fight infection. Second, vitamin C improves the function of these white blood cells while also protecting them from potentially harmful molecules like free radicals. Vitamin C is also an essential part of the skin's defensive mechanism. It's transported actively to the skin, where it can work as an antioxidant and reinforce the skin's barriers. Vitamin C supplementation has also been demonstrated to reduce the time it takes for wounds to heal. Low vitamin C levels have also been related to negative health consequences. For example, people with pneumonia have lower vitamin C levels, and vitamin C supplements have been demonstrated to speed up recovery.

Dementia is a broad term that refers to symptoms of deterioration in thinking and memory. It affects about 35 million people worldwide and is most common in the elderly. Oxidative stress and inflammation near the brain, spine, and nerves (together known as the central nervous system) have been linked to an increased risk of dementia, according to studies.

Vitamin C is a very powerful antioxidant. Low levels of this vitamin have been related to memory and cognitive difficulties. Furthermore, some studies have found that people with dementia had lower vitamin C levels in their blood. Furthermore, increased vitamin C intake from food or supplements has been demonstrated to protect your brain and memory as you become older. If you don't receive enough vitamin C from your diet, vitamin C supplements may help you avoid problems like dementia.