Vitamin C

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Basics

• Summary
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Research

• Clinical Trials
• Journal Articles

Resources

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Summary

Vitamins are substances that your body needs to grow and develop normally. Vitamin C is an antioxidant. It is important for your skin, bones, and connective tissue. It promotes healing and helps the body absorb iron.

Vitamin C comes from fruits and vegetables. Good sources include citrus, red and green peppers, tomatoes, broccoli, and greens. Some juices and cereals have added vitamin C.

Some people may need extra vitamin C:

• Pregnant/breastfeeding women
• Smokers
• People recovering from surgery
• Burn victims

Start Here

• Facts about Vitamin C (University of Florida, Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences) - PDF
• Too Much Vitamin C: Harmful? (Mayo Foundation for Medical Education and Research) Also in Spanish
• Vitamin C (National Institutes of Health, Office of Dietary Supplements) Also in Spanish
• Vitamin C (Harvard School of Public Health)

Clinical Trials

• ClinicalTrials.gov: Ascorbic Acid (National Institutes of Health)

Journal Articles References and abstracts from MEDLINE/PubMed (National Library of Medicine)

• Article: Comparative efficacy of combination of 1 L polyethylene glycol, castor oil...
• Article: The safety and effectiveness of 2-liter polyethylene glycol plus ascorbic...
• Article: The SLC2A14 gene, encoding the novel glucose/dehydroascorbate transporter GLUT14, is...
• Vitamin C -- see more articles

Find an Expert

• Find a Registered Dietitian Nutritionist (Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics)
• Food and Drug Administration
• Food and Nutrition Information Center
• National Institutes of Health, Office of Dietary Supplements

Patient Handouts

• Scurvy (Medical Encyclopedia) Also in Spanish
• Vitamin C (Medical Encyclopedia) Also in Spanish