Can Vitamin C Make You Sick?
Written and Researched by Ronald J. Grisanti D.C., D.A.B.C.O.
Vitamin C is
probably the nutrient that has been most recommended, for the most people, with
the greatest diversity of health problems, for many, many years.
Vitamin C, you are told, works its magic by virtue of its anti-oxidant
properties. It has been promoted as
“good for” almost any condition you can name.
It is hyped over and over again by the pill peddlers as something that everyone
should take in supplemental doses, and even in mega doses.
Along with all the promises of cures and prevention from taking Vitamin C
you are assured over and over again that no amount of Vitamin C can be harmful
to you. After all, Vitamin C is all
“natural,” so your body can use what it needs, while any excess is “harmlessly”
excreted in your urine.
PREPARE
YOURSELF FOR A STRONG DOSE OF THE TRUTH
Do you know that Vitamin C depletes your body of many mineral and trace mineral nutrients?
The truth is
that your kidneys cannot excrete Vitamin C at all without combining it with an
important mineral nutrient such as calcium or magnesium or zinc.
Every single
molecule of excess Vitamin C that gets dumped in your urine steals from you an
important mineral nutrient.
Do you know
that Vitamin C will particularly cause
a deficiency in the essential trace mineral copper?
Do you know
that excess Vitamin C will actually cause
high cholesterol?
Do you know that excessive Vitamin C can destroy the pH control of certain patients making them more susceptible to certain physical and mental conditions?
Do you know that Vitamin C depletes the body of important minerals such as calcium and magnesium?
Do you know that Vitamin C can so deplete a person of copper that the blood vessels begin to break down and the heart is weakened?
Do you know that Vitamin C can elevate cholesterol in certain patients?
Do you know that excess
Vitamin C can damage the DNA (the
genetic material inside each of your cells) and also damage
cell membranes because of its oxidant (not anti-oxidant)
activity?
Do you know that because it is such a strong oxidant (not anti-oxidant) more than 500 milligrams of Vitamin C will cause the formation in your DNA of oxoadenine, a powerfully damaging toxin which particularly will harm the heart and other organs?
Do you know that Vitamin C will convert the mineral iron to a form that damages the blood vessels and leads to hardening of the arteries and heart blockage?
Do you know that Vitamin C can auto-oxidize, and instead of being an anti-oxidant to protect you against free radical damage, will actually cause free radical damage?
This oxidation of Vitamin C
occurs most easily in the presence of minerals such as iron, manganese, and
chromium. When excess Vitamin C is
taken with these mineral nutrients you are particularly likely to suffer free
radical damage.
Do you know that excess
Vitamin C will cause the formation of the toxic chemical pentosadine,
a marker of premature aging and tissue destruction?
Do you know that Vitamin C causes destruction of proteins in your body that will accelerate the aging process?
This
acceleration of aging by Vitamin C is particularly pronounced in anyone with a diabetic
tendency. The protein destructive
effects of Vitamin C are particularly associated with cataract
formation.
Do you know that Vitamin C in doses greater than 180 milligrams is a total waste of money because it is not absorbed and tends to cause gas and bloating in your intestinal tract?
Eighty to
ninety percent of Vitamin C is absorbed up to a dose of 180 milligrams,
but beyond that, absorption decreases rapidly so that at 5000 milligrams
doses only 24% is absorbed, while the rest just irritates your digestive system.
Do you know that Vitamin C (which is supposed to be “good for the immune system”) will actually increase the incidence and spread of cancer?
Are you
beginning to get a little nervous about the Vitamin C that you have been taking?
Do you see how you have been mislead by the health food industry about Vitamin C? Or, should we quit pulling our punches and tell it straight.
YOU
ARE BEING LIED TO BY THE HEALTH FOOD INDUSTRY
You are
being deliberately deceived. You
are being cheated out of the health you’ve invested so much in preserving.
It is you, the health-conscious person who is being cheated the most,
since the more nutrition supplements you take the more you are being damaged by
a viciously deceptive industry -- one that has won you over with promises of
health, youth and vitality, all the while taking your money for pills and
potions that actually make you weaker and sicker.
Dr. Grisanti's Comments:
Although many people may find this article hard to swallow (excuse the pun), the facts are the facts. Vitamin C in excess of 200mgs. is strongly discouraged. The continued consumption of excessive Vitamin C will undoubtedly cause significant biochemical imbalances leading to a number of health challenges.
References:
1. DB Milne, ST Omaye, and WH Amos, Jr Effect of ascorbic acid on copper and cholesterol in adult cynomolgus monkeys fed a diet marginal in copper Am J Clin Nutr 1981 34: 2389-2393. [Abstract]
2. EJ Root and JB Longenecker, Brain cell alterations suggesting premature aging induced by dietary deficiency of vitamin B6 and/or copper Am J Clin Nutr 1983 37: 540-552. [Abstract]
3. KM Brown, PC Morrice, and GG Duthie Erythrocyte vitamin E and plasma ascorbate concentrations in relation to erythrocyte peroxidation in smokers and nonsmokers: dose response to vitamin E supplementation Am J Clin Nutr 1997 65: 496-502. Abstract]
4. MD Festa, HL Anderson, RP Dowdy, and MR Ellersieck Effect of zinc intake on copper excretion and retention in men Am J Clin Nutr 1985 41: 285-292. [Abstract]
5.
FEBS Letter. 1998 Oct 16; 437 (1-2): 24-28.
© 2001 Ronald J. Grisanti
D.C., D.A.B.C.O
NOTICE: This information is provided for educational
purposes. Any medical procedures, dietary changes, or nutritional supplements
discussed herein should only be undertaken on the advice of a qualified
physician.
Ronald J. Grisanti, D.C.,
D.A.B.C.O
The Grisanti Center for Integrative Medicine
4200 East North Street, Suite 14 • Greenville, SC 29615
(864) 292-0226 • FAX: (864) 268-7022