Table of contents:
- Dosage of vitamin C that can be taken when sick
- So, can you consume high doses of vitamin C when you are sick?
Vitamin C is an important supplement in fighting infectious diseases, one of which is a cold cough. Most people want to get well soon when they are sick. Therefore, usually you will add a daily dose of vitamin C (ascorbic acid) so that the body recovers quickly. Check out the explanation of how much vitamin C is recommended when sick below.
Dosage of vitamin C that can be taken when sick
Decreased endurance due to cold coughs limit your activities. The immune system, which is supposed to protect the body from various diseases, cannot work optimally. Vitamin C itself can function to increase endurance.
Therefore, vitamin C is usually prescribed by doctors when you have a cold cough. Vitamin C is not a component the body can produce. Therefore, you need the help of vitamin C through food intake or supplements.
Based on the MD Web page, the recommended daily consumption of vitamin C in adults can be seen as follows.
- Women 19 years and over: 65 mg
- Pregnant women (19 years and over) 85 mg
- Breastfeeding mothers (19 years and over): 120 mg
- Boys 19 years and over: 90 mg
So, how many doses of vitamin C do you need when you have a cold cough? Based on a study conducted by Harvard Medical School in 2013, vitamin C dosage influenced symptom reduction in people with cold coughs.
The study involved 11,000 participants with 29 randomized studies. Participants work as marathon runners, skiers, and soldiers. They often do physical activity in cold weather conditions. At least, they need 200 mg of vitamin C per day to minimize the risk of a cold cough.
In a further review it is said, the dose of 200 mg of vitamin C has no effect when an individual has a cold cough. This is sulky in the population at large.
However, taking 200 mg of vitamin C per day can reduce the duration of cold cough symptoms by an average of 8% in adults and 14% in children.
Said by dr. Bruce Bistrian, Head of Clinical Nutrition at Harvard-affiliated Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, is important to know for some people who often experience colds, because 23 million people do not work because of this condition.
Slightly different from other research conducted by dr. Harri Hemilä at the University of Helsinki, Finland. Summarizing these studies, consuming 6 grams of vitamin C a day can reduce 17% of the duration of a cold cough.
Meanwhile, a dose of 8 grams of vitamin C when consumed per day was able to reduce 19% of the duration of a cold cough. Hemilä concluded that a dose of vitamin C can shorten the duration of illness so that you get better sooner.
So, can you consume high doses of vitamin C when you are sick?
You can just apply the dosage of vitamin C consumption when you are sick as mentioned in the discussion above, starting from 200 mg to 8 grams per day. Although studies suggest that dosage can affect symptom recurrence and duration, it is important to limit vitamin C intake.
Vitamin C doses above 400 mg are excreted in the urine. While doses above 2000 mg per day are classified as too much vitamin C consumption can cause nausea, diarrhea, and upper abdominal pain.
Dr. Bistrian reminds you to take vitamin C every day before you get sick with a cold cough, according to the daily recommendations above.
To increase endurance or immunity, you can consume guava fruit (guava) which is high in vitamin C. Vitamin C in this sweet fruit can improve the immune system and work against infection with germs because it is antimicrobial.
You can consume it every day in the form of fruit or juice. That way the immune system is maintained when you are doing activities at the office or doing hobbies that you like without being hindered by illness.
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