track fan

i ♥ vitamin c.

nice running, bonnie. hills! hills! hills!

me too allie!!

Have you seen this site: http://lpi.oregonstate.edu/infocenter/vitamins/vitaminC/

I actually believe in Linus Pauling's earlier work, given how much I run and work I try to get closer to 2,000 and a little higher at least 3 times a week, but feel ok at about 1000mg/day.

What a great start to the week! Good job!

and that site said to get about 90 (you were talking about 1000mg a day right?). I think it is interesting that smokers should take more.

Hi Catherine, I thought so!!

April, Pauling's original work showed that for normal people up to 2000 mg is "nontoxic" -- and he believed the more the better. For athletes, probably even more is ok, since training stress breaks down a lot of cellular activity and antioxidants are really good at combating this type of stress. Same thing with smoking -- you need a lot of antioxidants to combat the cellular stresses that tobacco causes. I haven't ever gone over 2,000 mg/day for a long period of time, but I know people who have ... and at least for a few weeks, it did not adversely affect them (and they thought that it actually helped them -- stay healthy, feel better, etc.). I would be wary of 2,000+ for a long time, but I feel pretty comfortable with 1,000/day pretty regularly and occasionally upping to 2,000 if I feel like I need an extra 'boost' ;-).

Nice workout Bonnie!

I have a question about that article. First I must admit I didn't read it all word for word - mostly browsing. However, I can see how taking too much over a long period of time could negatively affect the body, but since vit C is a water soluble vit I was always under the impression that your body would store only what was needed, and then the rest of it just gets flushed down the toilet. So, if you take 1000 mg a day and your body only need 800 to top off the stores...what is wrong with taking extra? I get more than enough through daily diet, but I supplement as well (a general multi-vit). I don't think I get anywhere near 2000 mg/day, but still if you just pee out the excess what is wrong with taking more? Is it over the long haul?

Great point RAD! so, I guess what I meant by "toxic" is the GI distress (gas or worse) that some people feel when taking large quantities of vitamin C.

The way I understand it, everyone has a different tolerance - Dean is currently taking about 8000 mg/day, he found this level by trial (and "error"). Some people can tolerate 25,000 mg/day. While this might be fine in some people, these megadoses might be problematic in some people (like those with a history of kidney stones) and you have to watch taking it with other drugs that may cause gastric irritation.

I guess I've never taken enough to cause gastric issues. When I was in HS I would eat vit C tablets like candy. My dad got mad at me when I went through a whole bottle in about 3 or 4 days :) I don't remember it causing any problems, I just remember telling him it was fine I'd just pee it all out. Yes, I was a smart mouth teenager. He then just got upset I was 'flushing his money down the toilet' - literally!