Tag: Vitamin C

Beautiful Skin from the Inside Out with Vitamin C

Who doesn’t want radiant, clear skin? Unfortunately, as we age, that healthy glow isn’t always so easy to attain. As our skin ages, it becomes thinner and more fragile. Fine lines begin to show.

While a “less perfect” appearance of skin is completely normal and a healthy part of aging, it’s important to note that we do have the ability to greatly influence our skin’s appearance and health through the food and beverage choices we make. One starring role in creating healthy, beautiful skin is the ever present and often abundant vitamin C.

Understanding Skin Damage

Skin damage happens because of stressors such as age, pollution, and UV radiation due to a process called oxidization. Oxidization occurs when a molecule that has been exposed to a stressor such as tobacco smoke becomes unstable. This molecule then seeks to steal an electron from a healthy cell in order to become stable. This is where vitamin C steps in.

Vitamin C is an Antioxidant

According to Gabriella Weisbom, Certified Nutritional Practitioner (CNP) at Elements Wellness Centre in Vancouver, Canada, antioxidants are our body’s natural mechanism to help neutralize free radicals. Weisbom explains that free radicals are reactive and unstable atoms that can damage cells throughout the body and that vitamin C and other antioxidants help prevent that damage. “Antioxidants protect skin by limiting the production of free radicals which reduces damage to the skin cells,” Weisbom says.

Basically, an antioxidant donates an electron to a free radical to prevent oxidization from occurring, so that a free radical becomes stable and leaves the healthy cells alone.

Vitamin C Helps to Synthesize Collagen

Collagen is an important part of our skin’s health. It’s a protein that creates our skin’s firmness, and as we age, we produce less of it. However, increasing your vitamin C intake helps collagen production because “Vitamin C is required for the synthesis of collagen, which is a structural component of skin,” according to Weisbom.

One thing to keep in mind: vitamin C is water soluble — meaning it’s not stored in our bodies — and needs to be replenished daily.  “If you don’t get the proper amount of vitamin C, collagen production will slow, making skin more susceptible to wrinkles and aging,” states Weisbom. Therefore, increasing your intake of vitamin C, will greatly help the production of collagen in your skin, as well as neutralize the harmful effects of antioxidants.

What are the best sources to get vitamin C? The grocery store is a great place to start. Weisbom mentions that oranges, grapefruits, lemons, limes, papaya, strawberries, pineapple, kiwifruit, and cantaloupe are all excellent sources of vitamin C. Vegetables like bell peppers, kale, broccoli, Brussels sprouts, squash, and green beans also provide vitamin C, according to Weisbom.

Because vitamin C is heat sensitive, “…it’s best if you consume these foods raw to get the most benefit! If you prefer them cooked, I suggest cooking them at a low heat without exposing them to too much water,” says Weisbom.

Eating fresh fruits and vegetables is a great starting point for many who wish to up their intake of vitamin C; however, what if someone isn’t able to eat enough of these regularly? Is the average vitamin C tablet a good option?

Vitamin C Tablet

Weisbom strongly suggests that consumers do their own research on tablets as a form of vitamin C supplementation. Along with double checking the vitamin C tablet’s ingredients, to make sure you’re not allergic or that other medications (you may be on) won’t negatively impact you, “You also want to be certain there are no filler chemicals added as binding agents,” says Weisbom. In order to figure out which tablet is best for you, always talk to your health care professional or nutritional store staff.

Traditional oral supplements don’t always provide the best vitamin C absorption because the vitamin is held in a capsule that is rapidly disintegrated by the acids in your stomach. This poses a threat to your body’s ability to absorb vitamin C, according to natural health’s website DrMercola.com.

There’s an alternative to tablets called liposomal vitamin C, which, because of its make-up, presents bioavailability advantages over traditional oral C supplements. It is more easily and fully absorbed by your body, explains Weisbom. In addition, with high levels of traditional oral vitamin C, gastrointestinal distress can occur, and liposomal technology reduces this.

With all of this in mind, how can the average person fit more vitamin C into their life? Weisbom suggests these three strategies:

  1. Be prepared. Always have fruit high in vitamin C on hand for snacking. Fruit such as oranges, grapefruits, and kiwis are a hand held one stop shop for increasing your intake of vitamin C.
  2. Supercharge your breakfast with vitamin C.  Add fresh or frozen berries to your smoothies.
  3. Get cultural. Eat fermented vegetables (such as kimchi and sauerkraut) because they are an excellent source of vitamin C.

What should you expect if you increase your intake of vitamin C? According to Weisbom, “Tighter, smoother and glowing skin.”

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