LONG TIME NO C? WHY YOUR IMMUNE SYSTEM NEEDS VITAMIN C

In our daily pursuit of healthier habits, hitting our intake of vitamins and minerals is often understated in its importance. We all tend to focus on things such as food groups and calories, neglecting these humble building blocks of our bodies. In fact, loads of us may be overlooking them in our current diet plans. But when it comes to keeping everything functioning on top form, there’s one vitamin in particular every body loves to C…

Yes, today we’re doing to take a closer look at good old Vitamin C and answer some of the most pressing questions. Things like: is it really that essential to our bodies and immune systems? How much of it do we actually need? How can we maximise its impact? And most importantly… will it give me superpowers? You’d better read on to find out.

Firstly, and most importantly: your body needs it. Vitamin C is an essential vitamin (something that your own body can’t produce), and you might not be getting enough of it. This matters because it provides a vital boost to your immune system, and therefore can play a huge part in protecting you from colds (and their effects) and other common illnesses.

Vitamin C also has many other verified health benefits, and not all of them are common knowledge. These include (but are not limited to) reducing tiredness and fatigue and protecting your cells from oxidative stress, which is particularly beneficial to those living an active lifestyle. Vitamin C has also been shown to restore healthy plasma levels and improve general immune cell activity – both of which have their role to play in keeping us in tip-top health.

Furthermore, when it comes to why we should be taking Vitamin C, the benefits are clear and proven. Over the years, multiple studies have confirmed the benefits that Vitamin C brings to vital bodily functions and how it can improve daily performance. This is particularly relevant for those who lead active lifestyles – whether that is at a casual or competitive level.

Vitamin C can be taken in supplements. But, as a general rule, consuming it in amazing and deliciously craveable natural products cough MOJU cough is a much better way for your body to use this vitamin. This works because your body recognises these natural sources better, and also because it increases the amount of Vitamin C you can absorb per food source.

Finally, the actual amount of Vitamin C you take is also important. Taking at least 85mg will ensure that you get the full benefits, whilst upping the dosage to 1,000mg may be more suitable for those looking for a higher Vitamin C intake. Whilst there are adverse effects of taking too much Vitamin C, they are relatively minor, and it’s something that is pretty hard to do accidentally. Phew.

First things first: what is an ‘essential’ vitamin? Well, being classed as an ‘essential’ vitamin is quite an important property. It means that your body doesn’t, and can’t, produce it on its own. So, you have to take it onboard externally, consuming it either via food or in a supplement.

When it comes to essential vitamins, such as Vitamin C, you do have to think about things a little bit more and ask yourself questions like:

● Am I getting enough Vitamin C in my diet already?

● If not, how else can I get Vitamin C into my body, and how much do I need to be taking?

● Why is it important that I make sure I am getting the right amount of Vitamin C?

If these are the sort of questions you’re asking already, you’re on the right path. Leading an active, healthy lifestyle means that you need to be conscious of macronutrients and vitamin levels. So, with all this talk about Vitamin C, you’ve probably guessed that it is pretty important for your overall health. The question, then, is why?

Vitamin C and the Immune System

One of the major benefits of regularly taking Vitamin C is its boost to your immune system. It does this in a variety of ways.

The first way is by lending a helping hand to your body’s first layer of defence against outside infection: the skin. Vitamin C is a key catalyst in collagen production, a tough protein found in skin and connective tissues, which not only helps to fortify the skin against injury, but also promotes healthy muscles, bones and tendons. At the same time, Vitamin C may also bolster the fatty membranes in the skin, further protecting your body from outside pathogens that could cause infection.

Inside your body, another way Vitamin C works its magic is by supporting the production and operation of cells in the immune system. It performs a vital role in defending these cells and protecting them from various harmful molecules and oxidative stress, which is often caused by free radicals. Free radicals are charged particles generated by the body's regular metabolism and exposure to environmental stress, including ultraviolet radiation and air pollution.

In addition, when the body does find itself under attack from infection, Vitamin C helps direct immune cells, known as neutrophils. Vitamin C facilitates their efforts in destroying the pathogens, which could lead to further tissue damage - a more serious issue.

In contrast, various studies have demonstrated that those lacking in ‘good’ levels of Vitamin C are often also more likely to struggle to fight off infection and remain ill for longer when they get sick.

It’s Not Just For Fighting Off Infection

Vitamin C has been shown to provide various other health benefits, thanks to its chemical properties. For example, it has been shown to help in reducing the levels of the hormone cortisol. Cortisol is the stress hormone, so reducing cortisol levels can be vital to preventing excess stress, which can have a long-term impact on our overall state of health.

Vitamin C once again steps in to save the day when exercising in more ways than one. Firstly, various reports have demonstrated that Vitamin C helps with reducing post-exercise muscle soreness. It’s theorised that Vitamin C protects us against reactive oxygen species during periods of intense exercise. Then there are the possible negative effects of exercise. For instance, periods of heavy exercise can increase the risk of upper respiratory tract infections, but Vitamin C plays a part in reducing this possibility. The science behind how it does that is similar to how it helps the immune system fight off infection.

As already mentioned, Vitamin C helps the body to produce collagen. Collagen is found all over the body, playing an essential role in the formation of:

● Blood vessels

● Bones

● Cartilage

● Gums

● Skin

● Teeth

Vitamin C also helps the body to take onboard iron and foods high in Vitamin C can enhance iron absorption. This is important because of the role that iron plays in many of our usual bodily functions. For example, iron is an essential part of the oxygen system within our bodies, being found in both haemoglobin (found in red blood cells) and myoglobin (which transfers oxygen to within our cells). Iron also plays a role in generating energy from oxygen, vital to all of our daily activities.

And it doesn’t stop there. Vitamin C contributes to so many useful and required bodily functions and biological processes. These include our metabolism, nervous system, brain function, and the regeneration of other essential nutrients and vitamins.

It feels like we really have gone through a lot of material here. Essentially it comes down to the fact that there are so many vital nutrients, minerals and other chemicals essential to our body's normal, daily functions. Vitamin C, in turn, is crucial to both their creation and function.

It’s really an understated nutrient considering the many roles and challenges it takes on all over the different parts of our body. It makes you wonder why we aren’t talking about Vitamin C more, right?

It’s good to give some real-world context to all the science backing Vitamin C as vital for our bodies and immune systems. Emma Tester of Munster Rugby was part of a test group for MOJU’s Vitamin C-rich shots and reported back on her experience:

“MOJU helped keep our squad healthy as players drank the Acerola Cherry shots on a daily basis. These are an excellent way of giving our players a boost to their immune systems. By helping them meet their vitamin C requirements, consumed daily Vitamin C reduces the incidence and duration of colds. Compared to previous seasons, there has been a reduction in the number of illnesses we’ve had, this is fantastic as consistent training is the biggest impacting factor for our on-field performance!”

The proof is in the pudding, as they say. Vitamin C is something that can be useful at all skill levels as well. When the International Olympic Committee looked into supplements, including Vitamin C, they found that, when used correctly, they “May help athletes to meet sports nutrition goals, train hard, and stay healthy and injury-free,” and that they can be used to “Directly enhance competition performance.”

There’s another thing that’s worth noting, as well. Whilst you may feel like you are fighting fit and not really at risk of getting ill regularly, it’s a simple fact that we all need a little boost at times, especially when seasonal illnesses are going around. Being able to fight those bugs effectively, or getting over a cold quickly, will bring numerous benefits. What’s not to love about that?

So our bodies need to ingest Vitamin C regularly. We can see already that it’s good for the immune system. So how much of it do you need to be taking? Well, it’s generally recommended to take no more than around 1,000mg per day, based on the cautious guidance found within the NHS guidelines.

The thing is, though, Vitamin C is a very safe supplement with numerous health benefits, and it doesn’t cost a lot to produce. So you’ll find that the manufacturers of good sources of Vitamin C will be fairly flexible with their levels.

For example, take the MOJU Vitamin C shot, which contains over 200mg per serving. If you lead an athletic lifestyle, you may find that a higher amount per day is better for you. Regular, high-intensity exercise puts the body under stress, increasing the turnover of red blood cells and the generation of muscle fibres. Essentially, studies with athletes have tended to show that they aim for a higher amount of Vitamin C every day to achieve the same results as other people.

It doesn’t matter where you get your essential vitamins from, as long as you get them into your diet. That’s not actually the case – it’s pretty important how you go about consuming your daily dose of Vitamin C. According to the Department of Health, the ideal situation is to absorb all of our vitamins and nutrients through the regular food we eat.

Unfortunately, however, this is not always the case for a couple of reasons. Firstly, modern foods are vastly less nutritious than they used to be, thanks to plummeting nutrient levels in our soils where we grow nearly all of our food. Secondly, there are times when your requirements for essential vitamins such as Vitamin C are dramatically increased, such as when feeling under the weather or pressure (thanks to work or other life factors).

This means that we need to supplement our regular diet with other sources of this essential vitamin when it comes to Vitamin C. This can either be through synthetic supplements (pills) or ones derived from natural food sources.

And, according to modern studies, this is where the key difference arises. When you ingest Vitamin C that has been derived from a natural source, it lasts much longer in the body when compared to its synthetic counterparts. This longer period of ‘bioavailability’ to the body makes it much more effective as a supplement. So, what causes this stark difference between the two types of supplements? It’s probably because natural Vitamin C is much closer to the natural state in which it is usually found in our diet.

Products such as MOJU Vitamin C dosing bottles go down this natural route while packing as much Vitamin C as possible into one liquid shot. This is done through one special ingredient: acerola. Rarely found in modern western diets, this berry is naturally very high in Vitamin C. Combined in the shot with other ingredients such as elderberry, this method proves to be a good way of getting your regular dose of Vitamin C whilst packing some banging flavour.

The taste factor may sound trivial, but it is something that shouldn’t be overlooked. Suppose you will be taking additional vitamins to boost your body’s natural levels and maintain overall performance. In that case, enjoying the product simultaneously is essential, as it will make you want to keep drinking or eating that product. Another benefit of these natural products is that they remain low in sugar compared to alternatives such as orange juice. (We should probably mention that a single shot of MOJU does the job of four whole glasses of that, FYI.)

So now we know that natural food sources are the way to go when looking to max out your vitamin C intake. But, aside from acerola, which natural food sources are the best to go for? Here are our top five:

1. Blackcurrants

Blackcurrants are a tasty way of upping your regular Vitamin C intake. Blackcurrants contain 181 mg of vitamin C per 100 grams, meaning that just a small cup could provide you with your recommended daily dose of Vitamin C. This fruit is actually healthy for a number of reasons, such as they are high in antioxidants, which are responsible for the fruit’s dark colour.

2. Oranges

One of the most popular fruits – either eaten whole or crushed into fresh juice – oranges are also very high in Vitamin C. This tasty citrus fruit contains 53 mg of vitamin C per 100 grams. So, simply eating one medium-sized orange can provide over three-quarters of your daily Vitamin C intake needs. Citrus fruits, as a group, actually have many beneficial properties – grapefruits, mandarins and limes are excellent sources of Vitamin C.

3. Bell Peppers

It’s maybe not the first food that springs to mind when it comes to thinking about Vitamin C, but peppers are a great way to boost your immune health. Bell peppers provide 83 mg per 100 grams of the vitamin, which means that one whole pepper is more than enough to get your recommended dose of Vitamin C. It’s a pretty versatile vegetable too, found in a number of dishes.

When choosing your bell peppers, make sure to opt for the red or yellow varieties. This colour is a sign that they are fully ripe – which also means that they are the highest in Vitamin C.

4. Lemons

Like oranges, lemons are a very commonly available fruit. Historically, they were known for being given to sailors as one of the best ways to prevent the onset of scurvy. Lemons contain 77 mg of vitamin C per 100 grams. Looking at your daily Vitamin C intake, a medium lemon is able to provide almost all of that (92%).

5. Kakadu Plums

Finally, something a little different. The Kakadu plum is a superfood native to Australia and makes this list because it contains an astonishing amount of Vitamin C. You wouldn’t even need to eat one whole plum to get your daily dose of Vitamin C. With 5,300 mg per 100 grams, this plum contains around 100 times more vitamin C than oranges! Don’t mind if we Kaka-do…

So there’s your lowdown on Vitamin C and all its superpowers. Whilst the results of regularly taking a high dosage of Vitamin C will vary from person to person, there are key benefits that are scientifically proven and applicable to every body.

You don’t need to be nutrition nerds like us to get excited about Vitamin C. From the way it boosts the immune system and improves recovery time from exercise, to how it assists in the production of other vital ‘bio-molecules’ such as iron and collagen, it really is pretty awesome.

If you’re ready to C off your daily vit hit, picking up a pack of MOJU Vitamin C is an easy way to start. Head to our webstore and give it a shot!