The benefits of the “secret weapon” vitamin C are well known: It is involved in many metabolic functions, including the development of connective tissue, bones and cartilage. Furthermore, it is considered to be an essential support of the immune system. Together with vitamins A and E – better known as “antioxidants” – vitamin C can bind free radicals in the body that can cause cell damage.
However, vitamin C is very sensitive to heat and light. If one is deficient in vitamin C for a long period of time, the disease scurvy develops. Scurvy was common among seafarers for a long time; it was the cause, for example, that their wounds would not heal.
Vitamin C can speed up the healing process by improving the mood.
Why Vitamin C Lifts the Spirits
But vitamin C not only ensures strong connective tissue, keeps the blood vessels healthy, and gives pathogens “acidity”, it also improves mood, according to studies. Canadian doctors have found that the administration of vitamin C boosts the mood of hospital patients with acute symptoms. This not only benefits the psyche, but also promotes the physical healing process.
Vitamin C Provides a Bigger Boost than Vitamin D
The patients were admitted to hospital due to an acute emergency and received either 2 x 500 mg vitamin C or 2 x 1000 I.U. vitamin D over a period of 7 to 10 days. A questionnaire was used to assess the mood of the patients. It was found that vitamin C reduced mood swings in more than a third of the subjects. Vitamin D treatment, on the other hand, had no effect on the mood.
