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From: werner@aecom.UUCP
Newsgroups: net.med,net.cooks
Subject: Some Numbers on Vitamin C
Message-ID: <2194@aecom.UUCP>
Date: Tue, 14-Jan-86 02:43:28 EST
Article-I.D.: aecom.2194
Posted: Tue Jan 14 02:43:28 1986
Date-Received: Thu, 16-Jan-86 00:56:14 EST
Distribution: na
Organization: Albert Einstein Coll. of Med., NY
Lines: 26


	Well, for those you objected that Vitamin C does more for the body
than just prevent Scurvy, you are right.  The body needs approximately 3
times as much Vitamin C as is needed to prevent Scurvy (5X for children.)
(It should be noted that in the additional fraction, Ascorbic Acid is not
really acting as a Vitamin, by the definition of a Vitamin.)

	HOWEVER, the British estimate that the dose of Vitamin C neccessary
to prevent Scurvy is at the most, 10 mg/day.  Triple that is 30mg/day. For
children and pregnant women, 50mg.  The US RDA, just to be sure, is 20mg/day
above that, or 70 mg, which if it were any other topic, would be considered
an ample margin of safety.

	Another calculation.  The body tries very hard to maintain the blood
level of Vitamin C between 0.4 and 1.5 mg/100 ml Blood.  Assuming Ascorbic Acid
is not sequestered in the blood (and it is to an extent, so this will be an
OVERestimate), then a 70kg man (60% water or 42 liters) will store 170-630mg
total Vitamin C in his body - as an upper limit!  
	Hence it makes absolutely no sense to take more in a single dose,
every day, than the body can possibly hold.  If that isn't working AGAINST
the body, I don't know what is!
-- 

				Craig Werner
				!philabs!aecom!werner
		"The world is just a straight man for you sometimes"