What makes Vitamin C so special?
Vitamin C (C Vit for those in Europe!) is like a little burst of sunshine for our bodies. As a powerful antioxidant, Vitamin C helps protect our cells from damage caused by harmful free radicals. This antioxidant prowess strengthens our immune system, promoting overall wellness and reducing the risk of various illnesses.
Vitamin C, also known as ascorbic acid, supports a ton of bodily functions, including collagen synthesis, with great anti-cancer properties and immune support.
The recommended daily dosage is about 1,000 mg, but when treating it therapeutically, there are people who’ve taken up to 15,000 mg to help support the immune system or with adrenal fatigue.
People take Vitamin C to:
- Prevent free radical damage (antioxidant support)
- Supports white blood cells (and prevents free radicals from damaging them)
- Helps the body absorb iron
- Promotes heart health by balancing cholesterol levels
- May help lower blood pressure
When you don’t have enough Vitamin C, you can get scurvy, which isn’t just from pirates. It shows up in your body as muscular pain, sunken or bulging eyes, joint swelling, poor wound healing, and even reopening of new ones. It’s important to get your Vitamin C from somewhere because your body doesn’t make it on its own!
Where can you find Vitamin C naturally?
Nature offers a delightful array of sources for obtaining Vitamin C naturally that you can incorporate into your own foods!
Broccoli and cabbage
A great source of Vitamin C and calcium, Broccoli helps you build collagen production, which helps you heal wounds strengthen bones, skin, and nails; and of course is a powerful antioxidant booster, and cabbage contains antioxidants anthocyanins, which could protect brain cells, relief oxidative stress (“anti”-“oxidant”) and promoting gut health.
Bell peppers
Rich in Vitamin C, Vitamin E, and Vitamin B6. As a Vitamin C-rich food, it’s particularly great to help absorb iron, which is beneficial if you’re female or anemic. It’s also wildly high in manganese compared to Vitamin C friends, which produces enzymes and antioxidants anthocyanins in red bell peppers, which may show protection over brain cells.
Oranges & apples
The OGs of Vitamin C/C Vit, oranges, apples, as well as red and purple berries, grapes, plums, and other colorful fruits and veggies, are all-natural antioxidants anthocyanins. Just try not to heat up these foods, as Vitamin C breaks down when heated up, and they’ll lose their Vitamin C nourishment.
The 5 most natural ways to add Vitamin C into your daily routine
1. Drink it
Sipping your natural medicine can be an easy way to get in your Vitamin C nutrient absorption, especially if you love making fun and fancy drinks with them. ✨ Think of smoothies, teas, or even just refreshing and other concoctions that can include things like:
acerola cherry powder
elderberry powder
spinach (for smoothies)
lemon
lime
2. Eat it
Start getting this baby on your ongoing delivery! Head over to your grocery store and do a little C Vit stock-up for your smoothies, breakfasts, and desserts.
For fresh produce– Misfits Markets and Imperfect Foods are both great grocery delivery services that’ll deliver these babies straight to your door, along with pretty much any other groceries you need!
If you’re looking for more dry goods and powders, Thrive Market is also a good option for organic and natural groceries as well as bath and beauty products! Shopping in your cozy clothes beats going to Whole Foods and browsing the aisles in my opinion, plus it’s always exciting to get a package to your door that’s filled with food.
They also price match your foods which is huge for me– I know what it’s like to have all these products cost an arm and a leg because they have the word “organic” on them.
3. Supplement it
We’re big users of Designs for Health for our L Theanine, and Vitamin D, particularly because they offer many different intake methods for their supplements. Other than them, here are a few Vitamin C supplements that don’t have any sketchy ingredients other than its core Vitamin:
✨ Designs for Health — Vitamin C + Bioflavonoids Capsules
✨ Designs for Health — Vitamin C + Alzalizing Minerals
✨ Thorne Vitamin C with Flavonoids
✨ Sports Research Vitamin C Capsules
4. Chew it
If you’re not a fan of supplementation through capsules, you can also introduce yourself to a more abundant Vitamin C practice with Chewable. Just be aware that you’ll likely be ingesting more sugars, potentially sketchy “natural flavors,” and other additives to make it sugary sweet.
✨ Dr. Berg’s Natural Vitamin C Complex (contains erythritol)
✨ Sambucus Elderberry Immune Support (contains syrup, sugar, and “natural flavors”)
✨ MaryRuth’s Vegan Vitamin C Gummies (contains cane sugar, tapioca syrup, and “natural flavors”)
5. Enema it
Some suggest taking buffered forms of Vitamin C in enemas (not ascorbic acid) to clear allergic reactions. While I’ve never personally done this, I know the power of enemas; feel free to explore more about how you can implement this into your protocol.
6. Lotion it
You can also use Vitamin C To cleanse and tone skin. I’ve done my fair share of looking around Whole Foods and other “natural” markets, but it’s often difficult to find lotions, skin serums, and toners that don’t have other sketchy ingredients!
Etsy has definitely been a go-to resource for natural, hand-crafted creations to help clean skin and even skin tone in just a few drops. Plus, all the benefits of using natural vitamins and oils on the skin in the right usage can support sensitive skin types, and really all people enhance their Vitamin C nutrient absorption capabilities through another part of their body!
Here are 5 all-natural Vitamin C oils for any skin type:
✨ The Remedy for Body Organic Ultra-Nourishing Body Butter
✨ Organic Brightening Face Serum with Vitamin C and Superfruits
✨ Audrey Elene Organics vitamin c × hyaluronic acid facial serum 1.0 FL
✨ Lena Love Naturals Turmeric Facial Oil
& for a higher-end serum…
✨ The Plant Mother Organic plant-based Vitamin C
All of these beautiful creations are made with ingredients you can read to deeply hydrate your skin, balance uneven texture, and nourish your skin with essential nutrients.
