Vitamin C plays several critical roles throughout the body that protect your short and long-term health. Because it’s a powerful antioxidant, vitamin C should be seen as much more than “just” a vitamin. The body doesn’t naturally produce vitamin C, which means you need to get adequate amounts from your diet or through supplements. As a water-soluble vitamin, the body doesn’t store it, so you need to get enough of it every day. Here are 13 impressive benefits of vitamin C:

1. Gives You Antioxidant Support

As a powerful antioxidant, vitamin C can fight against free radicals. These can have devastating effects in your body and increase your risk factor for developing many health conditions, including heart disease. Antioxidants are also beneficial for people with asthma as they can reduce the inflammation linked to the condition. Vitamin C can also improve asthma symptoms by decreasing the amount of histamine that is produced [1].

2. Fights the Common Cold

Boosting your immunity is one of the things that vitamin C is most famous for, but researchers have found that it doesn’t seem to stop you from catching a cold. Studies have suggested that it can make colds shorter with less severe symptoms. Getting plenty of vitamin C can translate to shorter cold durations if you do catch a cold [1].

3. Protects Against the Effects of Stress

Vitamin C levels can be depleted during times of stress, but that isn’t their only connection. Getting enough vitamin C means that less inflammation develops as a result of stress and it can even help your body to respond differently to stress, especially in relation to how much cortisol is produced [1].

4. Lowers Cholesterol and Blood Pressure

Vitamin C can help cholesterol to be converted into bile salts so that it can be removed from your body more efficiently. This can help to keep your cholesterol levels more stable. Antioxidants, in general, are also linked to lower blood pressure, which is another way that it can reduce your risk factor for developing heart disease. Vitamin C studies of up to 500 mg per day have been linked to a slight reduction in blood pressure [3].

Vitamin C can also help to stop your blood vessels from becoming too constricted. In particular, it can help the blood vessels to relax and keeps them more flexible. This reduces the potential for developing atherosclerosis, a condition that can make you more likely to have a stroke or develop heart problems [2].

5. Helps Prevent Alzheimer’s Disease

Research shows that vitamin C plays a role in the prevention of Alzheimer’s disease by defending the brain against free radical damage, which is a key factor in the development of Alzheimer’s. Vitamin C deficiency is associated with earlier onset and faster progression of Alzheimer’s disease. By enhancing ATP synthesis, vitamin C increases the energy supply in brain cells. Moreover, by strengthening the function of blood vessels, vitamin C may help improve blood flow to the brain, supplying it with more oxygen and nutrients [4].

6. Stimulates Collagen Production

Vitamin C helps your body to produce collagen. This helps your skin to retain its elasticity and is known for its anti-aging benefits. Vitamin C is added to lots of beauty products for this reason.

Collagen is also essential for healthy joints and studies have shown that it can reduce joint pain, inflammation and swelling for people living with rheumatoid arthritis. If you struggle with joint problems, it may be worth upping your intake of vitamin C to encourage your body to create more collagen [1].

7. Helps Wounds Heal

Collagen production also helps wound to heal more quickly. Collagen is involved in repairing tissues, and if vitamin C levels are low, it can mean that this process takes longer and wounds are slower to heal [1].

8. Prevents Gout

A study of male health professionals found that high doses of vitamin C (upwards of 500 mg per day) reduced the risk of developing gout. In the same study, taking up to 1500 mg of vitamin C every day reduced the risk factor by as much as 31 percent [5].

9. Improves Blood Sugar Levels

Vitamin C can lower your blood sugar and is even shown to improve type 2 diabetes. One study showed that vitamin C supplementation helped improve fasting blood sugar levels and post-meal blood glucose levels in type 2 diabetes patients taking the drug metformin. [6].

Another study showed that 1 gram of vitamin C taken daily without combination with conventional treatment effectively lowered blood glucose levels and insulin levels in people with type 2 diabetes. High insulin levels are a sign of insulin resistance, which is what causes high blood sugar. Lower insulin levels resulting from vitamin C supplementation suggests it could potentially help reverse diabetes [7].

10. Boosts Hair Growth

Vitamin C can improve hair growth in cases of hair loss by rejuvenating the scalp and protecting hair from free radical damage. Healthy hair starts with a healthy scalp, and where there’s been damage, vitamin C can help heal the skin so that hair follicles can function correctly. Free radical damage speeds up the aging process, which affects hair growth and the aging of your hair. Through antioxidant protection, vitamin C can enhance scalp and hair health, helping you grow strong and youthful-looking hair [8].

11. Supports Your Joints

As a cofactor in collagen synthesis, vitamin C helps to keep connective tissues like the cartilage in your joints strong and healthy. Because increased collagen production has been shown to improve joint health and help keep arthritis at bay, it’s safe to say vitamin C plays a role in preventing arthritis. Collagen levels decline with age, which makes collagen-boosting nutrients like vitamin C essential for maintaining joint health.

Antioxidant levels also decline with age, but they’re essential for protecting joint cartilage from free radical damage. Over time, ongoing oxidative damage leads to chronic inflammation characteristic of arthritis. Supplementing with vitamin C provides an antioxidant boost that can prevent this harmful damage [9].

12. Enhances Bone Health

Collagen is the protein that gives bones their structure, and it accounts for almost half their volume. Vitamin C helps synthesize collagen, and adequate collagen levels are needed for healthy bone formation. One study connected higher vitamin C intake with less bone loss in older men, suggesting it’s a key nutrient for maintaining bone mass [10].

Other research shows that even small vitamin C deficiencies can inhibit the normal function of osteoblasts, which are bone cells that secrete the matrix for bone formation. Animal studies have confirmed that vitamin C supplementation increases bone mineral density and reduces fractures in animals that are deficient [13].

13. Improves Thyroid Function

Your thyroid gland regulates hormones that affect the entire body, as well as your mood and brain function. Vitamin C deficiency causes the thyroid gland to become overactive and secrete too many hormones. This, in turn, causes vitamin C levels to be drained from tissues, leading to a vicious cycle of vitamin C deficiency and an increasingly overactive thyroid. On the other hand, vitamin C supplementation has been shown to improve thyroid health in people with an overactive thyroid [11].

Additionally, vitamin C’s antioxidant power can help prevent and reverse thyroid problems by reducing oxidative stress and inflammation. Chronic inflammation caused by free radical damage is known to put stress on the thyroid gland and affect hormonal balance as a result. Vitamin C could play a role in preventing thyroid diseases like hyperthyroidism by preventing oxidative damage and keeping thyroid inflammation at bay [12].

Final Considerations

Vitamin C is a powerful antioxidant that plays a crucial role in almost every aspect of your health, from your brain to your bones. Higher vitamin C intake is linked to better protection against several diseases, including Alzheimer’s, osteoporosis, hyperthyroidism, gout, hypertension, diabetes, and arthritis. It works by helping to lower blood sugar, cholesterol levels, blood pressure, and inflammation while stimulating the production of collagen and providing antioxidant support. Vitamin C is found abundantly in fruits and vegetables, but supplementation can help boost your antioxidant levels and collagen production, both of which decline with age.

Eating more fruits and vegetables is a great way to increase your vitamin C intake. However, research shows we can benefit from more vitamin C than the typical diet provides, and several studies have linked high-dosage vitamin C supplementation with health benefits. Symptoms of low vitamin C intake include fatigue, low immunity, dry skin, dry hair, slow healing of wounds, bleeding and swollen gums, bruising easily, nosebleeds and joint pain. Vitamin C is found in most multivitamin supplements, but you can also take it on its own. Vitamin C is not considered toxic even at higher doses. In fact, at high doses, it provides more antioxidant support to neutralize free radicals. However, it’s advisable to stick to the dosage amount recommended on the supplement’s label.