Vitamin C

As part of a healthy diet, US federal guidelines recommend that adults eat 1.5 to 2 cups of fruit and 2 to 3 cups of vegetables per day. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention note that only 1 out of 10 Americans eat enough of these foods containing essential vitamins, minerals, and fiber. There can be barriers to consumption. Fresh fruits and vegetables are pricey and have limited availability in some communities. They also have short shelf lives. Frozen and canned foods are more accessible and can be stored longer. Are these options to fresh just as nutritious?
Your dog doesn't need to drink orange juice. There are evolutionary and biochemical reasons why humans need to consume vitamin C but dogs -- and many other animals -- do not.
This flu season, one product is making its comeback: orange juice. Sales of OJ seem to have gotten a boost — after years of decline — due to consumers' fears of getting the dreaded illness.  But is dosing yourself with high amounts of Vitamin C warranted for this year's flu from hell?                  
When you feel a cold coming on start popping zinc lozenges. That will do much more for you than vitamin C or Echinacea.
When you need a boost of Vitamin C, we bet you never think to eat some bell peppers! Here are five foods that are higher in Vitamin C than oranges!
Vitamin water is back. No, not the kind you drink, but rather the kind you bathe with. So wrap your head around ... the Vitamin C-infused shower head. Because the current shower that deploys only water is no longer good enough? Really? How have we managed all this time without this device?
A new study says that high-dose Vitamin C selectively kills cells that carry a common cancer mutation in mice, and slowed the growth of tumors with the mutation. Seems promising, but it's way too early to say if this will apply to human health. In the meantime, be wary of the headlines.
One thing that everyone should know by now is that smoking during pregnancy can harm a baby in several ways. For example, smokers babies are typically smaller than they should be, and their lungs may be less well developed than those of babies born to non-smokers. However, despite these well-publicized facts, recent data from the CDC indicate that over 12 percent of pregnant women smoke.
A very large metaanalysis of the putative efficacy of supplements to prolong life showed no beneficial effects, and perhaps a slight detrimental effect. There are no valid studies supporting the general use of such substances.
An excerpt from Do You Believe in Magic, by ACSH trustee Dr. Paul Offit was published in the latest issue of The Atlantic magazine.
We told you it s a great read and full of accurate information about so-called alternative medicine. Even The NY Times agrees that Do You Believe in Magic by Dr. Paul Offit is a total winner. See the review by Dr. Abigail Zuger here.