If you could have a favourite vitamin, mine would be Vitamin C! OK, I admit this sounds a little crazy, but the amount of benefits to the body is incredible!
First off, it is amazing for the immune system, helps to fight coughs and colds but even more impressive protects the body against diseases such as heart disease (the biggest killer in the UK btw!), cancer and can reduce the risk of stroke.
It is a water soluble vitamin, which means it is absorbed easily through the water in our bodies, but that which is not needed is excreted and not stored, meaning that we need to consume it every day to ensure that we get enough.
Vitamin C is contained in some of my favourite fruit and veg such as strawberries, citrus fruit, kiwis as well as peppers and broccoli. Eating these foods instantly makes me feel better as I know my body is being protected as well as enjoying the taste. It is really easy to get your daily dose of vitamin C by eating your 5-a-day.
Whenever I have a cold or feel run down, an intensive dose of Vitamin C always perks me up. I like to drink the effervescent 1000mg tablets dissolved in water. I continue to take these a few times a day, and any colds are quickly banished. A lot of people ask me “can you take too much of this?”. The answer is no, because this vitamin is water soluble, anything your body does not require, you will excrete. Some may find taking supplements controversial, and I really don’t consider them to be a replacement for food, but as a supplement to your diet when your body requires it, they can be extremely beneficial.
Another reason why I supplement Vitamin C, are the benefits to the skin. One of the main functions of Vitamin C is that it helps to produce collagen in the body, which is responsible for keeping the skin strong and firm and helping in the repair of it. Vitamin C is an antioxidant which slows down the rate of free-radical damage and thus helping to keep wrinkles at bay.
In addition to eating foods containing Vitamin C and supplementing, there are an array of beauty products on the market which can aid the skin topically. Murad and The Body Shop are two brands at different end of the price scale that have a range of Vitamin C products all targeted to repairing existing damage, brighten the skin and prevent any future damage. Murad’s Essential-C Day Moisture SPF30 £57.00 protects skin from UV rays, free radical damage and dehydration, and The Body Shop Vitamin C Microdermabrasion, £13.00 removes dead skin cells, improves skin tone and radiance.
Are you getting your daily dose of Vitamin C?