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| Vitamin C is less effective to cure flu |
Oranges, grapefruits and other foods containing vitamin C is beneficial for health. But after various studies conducted, the conclusion that vitamin C had little effect to cure or prevent flu illness.
Definition of Vitamin C
Vitamin C is ascorbat acid, but to avoid the effects of increased gastric acidity, vitamin C is often presented in the form of sodium salt ascorbat.
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| Ascorbat |
Recent research on vitamin C, which is published around the beginning of 2009 in the Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews, evaluates various research on vitamin C during the last few decades, involving 11 000 subjects who consumed 200 mg or more of vitamin C every day. (Limit consumption of vitamin C recommended by the American government is 60 mg / day).
The results showed that vitamin C is only slightly influenced to reduce or treat the flu in most of the population. However, the results of research on most of the group of people who often experience physical stress (such as marathon athletes, military personnel, etc.) show that vitamin C can reduce their risk for contracting the flu. If the athletes are consuming vitamin C according to the recommended dosage every day, then their chances of contracting the flu will be reduced by 50%.
For normal people like us, however, will not drink orange juice too much influence to prevent the flu. As said Robert Douglas (President of The Public Health Association of Australia), "Millions of people who consume high doses of vitamin C by assuming that will prevent the flu does not really have a strong foundation."
Then how the story begins so that vitamin C is associated with cold medicine?
It all started from the Linus Pauling - a Chemistry Nobel laureate who lived from 1901 hinga 1994. In 1970, Pauling wrote a book "Vitamin C and the Common Cold," which popularized the statement that this type of vitamin that can prevent a person infected with mild diseases. But according to Thomas Hager - Linus Pauling biographer - "The book was published with a science background is not good, and there is no evidence to support that statement."
"Pauling published a highly influential book without writing a bit about in scientific journals and reference titles, and without sufficient evidence," added Thomas Hager.
Although the effect of vitamin C to cure the flu does not exist, but the doctor just a little motivated to correct the statement about vitamin C, due to the consumption of vitamin C is not a threat to public health. (In fact, some studies have linked the antioxidant properties of vitamin C by reducing the risk of cancer).
After all according to Professor Arnold Monto - Professor of Epidemiology at the University of Michigan's School of Public Health, would be better to not make public the anti-vitamin C, besides the consumption of vitamin C will not endanger human health. "Consumption of vitamin C will give a good impact, and will not be harmful to health", added Professor Monto.
Therefore, although the relationship between the prevention of influenza disease and vitamin C is still questionable, but the habit of consuming vitamin C is good considering the antioxidant properties of vitamin C.
