HUMANS LOST THEIR ABILITY TO PRODUCE VITAMIN C LONG AGO

I recently read Bill Sardi's 2003 book, The New Truth About Vitamins & Minerals.  It is the perfect book for anyone wanting to pinpoint specific amounts of vitamins to take for this or that ailment so that you can get more effective use out of your supplements and make your dollars go further.  He gets you there by eloquently sorting through the hype, the fears, the exaggerated claims about vitamins.  I have read lots of online articles about this or that vitamin, what it can do for you, how it will work, and so forth and no one delivers on specifics the way Sardi does.  No one.  Not Mercola.  Not Mike Adams, the Health Ranger.  Few come close.  What makes Sardi's reporting remarkable in his signature specificity on dosage, application for a specific condition, the controversial histories on a particular nutrient compound, and so on.  He discerns the benefits of a nutrient compound at one at and for one group versus that for another group including an age group.  I can't find other nutritional journalists who do what he does or even come close to what he does.  So I turn to him often. 

His books examines a lot of the myths associated with different kinds of nutrients.  The one that seemed to monopolize all the press was Vitamin C, perhaps due to the controversary surround Linus Pauling and his claims that high dose Vitamin C "cured cancer."  Not only did Vitamin C get a questionable rap, but so did palliative theories advancing high dose nutrients.  But let's start with Vitamin C.  

His Chapter 4 is titled "Make Certain Your Multivitamin Is Potent," which reivews the kinds of C that are the most potent along with the dose.  And since RDI for Vitamin C is set by the amount required to prevent scurvy, which is very low at 30 mgs, Sardi starts there.  The section in his Chapter 4 on Vitamin C carries the subheading of "Antioxidants Rescue Brain Neurons."  This section should be read by any parent whose child is enrolled in an after-school sports program.  Even if it is running, where the child is not making any contact with other players, the parent needs to understand what the nutritional needs of their child is.  Therefore, they should memorize the details of this section on Vitamin C.  Protect your kids minimally with Vitamin C.  The antioxidants that Sardi lists are presented here.  Note, too, in a later chapter, Sardi explains that lasting benefits from vitamins and antioxidants comes when they are combined, like in the form of a multi-vitamin.  The best multi-vitamin I've found is his Molecular-Multi.  But here is the list of vitamins: 

Antioxidants, such as Vitamin C, Vitamin E, and glutathione, serve as anti-rusting agents, protecting brain cells from premature aging and disease.  In mice, the administration of high-dose Vitamin C completely prevented drug-induced amnesia.  [Neurobiology Learning Memory 64: 119-24, 1995] In Switzerland, adults age 65-94 years of age, higher circulating Vitamin C and beta carotene levels are correlated with improved memory and vocabulary.  [Journal American Geriatric Society 45: 718-24, 1997] 

So, Vitamins C, E, and glutathione are anti-rusting agents.  Note well, mom.  They also protect the brain from aging and from disease.  Mom, did you hear that?  Specifically, Vitamin C prevents amnesia.  Minimally that means that it helps your child's brain remember more and remember better, which certainly would be a strategic advantage while in school and beyond when he is in business.  That alone should stand out as a #1 reason why parents should be giving their children higher doses of C.  I think it's that word "higher" that scares a lot of people, left over perhaps from the controversy of Dr. Linus Pauling's work.  Sardi adds that low Vitamin E levels make it harder to recall details.  So up the E, Ma!

In an elderly population of US adults, the ability to recall events or facts was diminished with low circulating levels of Vitamin E.  [American Journal Epidemiology 150:37-44, 1999]

Okay, so these facts derail that myth that Americans or anyone for that matter are simply wasting their money by paying for supplements, that all they're doing is producing expensive urine.  People claim that you don't need that much Vitamin C, that all you need to do is eat an orange or two a day.  Maybe.  But as his characteristic thoroughness prevails, Sardi looks at dosage provide which level of protection.

How Much Vitamin C?
To prevent scurvy	30 mgs	Half an orange
Recommended intake	90 mgs	1 ½ oranges
Average dietary consumption	110 mgs	Almost 2 oranges
To prevent cataracts	300-2000 mgs	5-33 oranges
To control blood pressure	500 mgs	8 oranges
To replace Vitamin C in smokers (pack a day habit)	500 mgs	8 oranges

So Sardi answers that question of "How much of a vitamin do I need?"  The short answer is "It depends on your situation, on your condition, what you're experiencing."  So instead of pointing to an average daily requirement, Sardi considers your age, your sex, or any specific conditions.  In other words, no RDI is the same for everyone.  Got it?  This is a much better, personalized approach.  You won't waste time or money this way.  

Want to prevent cataracts?  Then 1,000 mgs/day.  But can you really eat 30 oranges a day?  This alone is the worth your time to read and evaluate his reviews.  Most journalists will state that Vitamin C fights cancer or cuts short the life of the cold.  But how many will provide you with a specific amount to target a specific condition?  That's what I thought.  

What is required to prevent scurvy?  30 mgs.  In fact, what is interesting is that the RDI for Vitamin C recommended by the FDA is set, get this,

by the absensce of scurvy . . . . 

Get that?  When supplement companies manufacturer the vitamins, they're obliged follow the FDA's RDI.  But for Vitamin C, the amount determined is merely by the absence of scurvy, which takes several weeks to manifest itself.  As scurvy takes a long time to develop, it means that our immunity, in the absence of Vitamin C, is woking based on other nutritional compounds and biological processes.  Sardi presents a very interesting chart by introducing it thus.

Scientists estimate humans need about 2000-4000 mgs of Vitamin C, taken at intervals through the day, to approximate what the human body once produced when Vitamin C was a hormone, not a vitamin.  [Medical Hypotheses 5: 711-21, 1979] 

Check out this chart.  It is fascinating:

Humans Lost Their Ability to Produce Vitamin C Long Ago Most Animals Produce Their Own Vitamin C by the Enzymatic Conversion of Blood Sugar to Ascorbic Acid* *Except for some species of guinea pigs, fruit bats, fish, and primates Daily Production of Vitamin C in Humans and Animals
Humans & Animals	Milligrams of Vitamin C produced per kilogram (2.2 pounds) of body weight/per day	If humans were the same weight as these animals how much Vitamin C would humans produce per day? (in milligrams)
Snake	10	700
Tortoise	7	490
Mouse	275	19,250
Rabbit	226	15,820
Goat	190	13,300
Rat	150	10,500
Dog	40	2800
Cat	40	2800
Humans	0	--
*Chart provided courtesy of Rusty Hoge of cforyourself.com.  Cforyourself is the internet’s leading website about the nutritional benefits of Vitamin C for optimum health.  Visit cforyourself.com.

Given that gorillas in the wild consume many times more Vitamin C (4500 mgs per day) than modern humans and their diet is supplemented with 5000 mgs per day in captivity, is it any wonder Americans who consume about 100 mgs of Vitamin C from their daily diet and have a vitamin requirement of 60 milligrams, suffer from so many allergic disorders?  http://knowledgeofhealth.com/celiac-gluten-intolerance-are-we-chasing-wrong-villain/.  

He explains what supplemental Vitamin C does for blood pressure.  It reduces high blood pressure.  Specifically, 

500 mgs of supplemental Vitamin C, meaning oral Vitamin C, has been shown to help the blood vessels dilated or widen in response to stress and thus help maintain healthy blood pressure (Sardi, 61). 

Ergo, if you're prone to high blood pressure, keep some Vitamin C around the house.  

The question then that persists is how much Vitamin C should one take?  Let's see what Sardi's conclusions are and how he reached them.  He asks the question himself, 

How much Vitamin C should adults consume?

And he answers it 

   A lot more than many people think. 

So 30 mgs to prevent scurvy he says, adding that 

Most vitamin supplements provide at least 60 mgs of Vitamin C, and updated versions will provide 90 mgs sicne new guidelines call for 75 mgs for females and 90 mgs for males, and a bit more for smokers.  The average daily consumption of Vitamin C in the US Is about 109 mgs.  

He adds that 

However, the adequate amount of Vitamin C is determined by the absence of scurvy, which would be the minimal amount. 

What I find fascinating is that humans used to produce our own Vitamin C.  Sardi explains

Humans once produced Vitamin C in their own bodies.  Back in human history, prior to a universal genetic mutation, Vitamin C was a hormone produced in the human liver.  In reality, all humans are hopelessly vitamin C deficient because our early ancestors produced their own Vitamin C naturally by the enzymatic conversion in the liver of circulating blood sugars to ascorbic acid.  Most animals except for some species of fruit bats, fish, guinea pigs and some primates produce their own Vitamin C.

Humans have a defective gene in their liver which no longer produces the fourther enzyme (gulonolactone oxidase) required to produce Vitamin C. {Am J Med 26: 740-48, 1959]  Animals that produce Vitamin C live 8-12 times beyond their age of physical maturation.  Humans mature physically at about age 18 and live only 2.0-3.5 times beyond this.  Reinstallation of the gene for the missing enzyme would extend the human life span to hundreds of years.  Obviously, at some time in the past humans lived a lot longer than tney do now.  Maybe there is an element of truth to those Bible stories about Adam and Noah and Methuselah living so long. 

Absolutely, fascinating stuff.  So the final thing I will review from Sardi's book are the amounts produced by the different animal species.  You defeinitely need this book around the house.  It is a fascinating read.  And here I am talking only about his section on Vitamin C.  The other sections also will blow your hair back.  

Sardi points out that Vitamin C is primarily a stress nutrient.  It helps other animals to manage stress.  It helps us too for the same reasons from environmental stress, food stress, and other stresses.  He writes

Animals produce about 60 mgs of Vitamin C per kilogram (2.2 pounds) of body weight, or for a 150 pound human would need about 4000 milligrams to reach the level once produced naturally within the body.  Think of what the human body would be like with continual production of Vitamin C.  Since increased stress hormones signal for the release of stored sugars into the blood circulation, under stress humans would produce more Vitamin C.  Humans would no longer be vulnerable to the physical consequences of stress-related disease.  There would be no diabetes since sugar would convert to ascorbic acid.  Humans would renew their tissues more readily since collagen production would be elevated.  Joints wouldn't wear out.  Blood vessels wouldn't weaken with advancing age.  Cataracts, kidney stones and other maladies would be a thing of the past.  Scientists estimate humans need about 2000-4000mgs of Vitamin C, taken at intervals through the day, to approximate what the human body once produced when Vitamin C was a hormone, not a vitamin.  [Medical Hypotheses 5: 711-21, 1979]

Sarid ends this section on Vitamin C with a question, "Why Humans Are Vulnerable to Stress?"  Excellent question.  He admits that 

even this amount [2000-4000 mgs] of Vitamin C may not be enough.

Incredible.  How much then? 

Stress triggers production of adrenal hormones which signals stored sugars and fats to be released into the blood circulation.  Upon passage through the liver, these sugars would then be converted into Vitamin C via an enzymatic process.  This is how Vitamin C is produced today, from corn syrup and enzymes.  In animals that produce their own Vitamin C, the more stress they experience the more Vitamin C their bodies produce.  An animal about the size of a human, such as a 160-pound mountain goat, produces about 13,000 milligrams of Vitamin C per day and more under stress.  [Med Hypotheses 5: 711, 1979]  Vitamin C is an anti-stress vitamin and requirement vary depending upon the level of physical or emotional stress.  A fixed intake level of Vitamin C does not take into consideration varying levels of stress.  

Answer: 2000 mgs 4 times per day.  We do this to make up for a genetic flaw. 

Next, I will review the myths associated with over dosing on vitamins.  Stay tuned.  

Here is his book