Why Vitamin C Is Crucial For Covid-19

Vitamin C Covid-19. The world around us will never be the same. What is going on… what has gone on… it has opened our eyes to how important and precious our health is. How quickly life can be taken away. More than ever people are looking back at their choices when it comes to health-- did we prepare? Did we eat the nutritious foods we need to get through something like this? How is our immune system doing?

There are solutions

There is “armor” we can put on to help protect ourselves day to day during this pandemic. A BIG one is Vitamin C, which we are about to get into. But with all this fear, I want to set the tone for this article. Let’s set a tone of optimism and strength. A tone of staying ahead of the game with knowledge. I would like to quote a few words from the Founder of Shop Karen Berrios, Karen Berrios herself. If you follow Karen (and I highly recommend you do), you know she has had one heck of a journey with overcoming cancer. Health wise, she has been through more than most people ever will in their lives. And she chooses to face this pandemic with strength, love, and smart choices. Let’s follow her lead.

“With everything that is happening around us I want to encourage you to remain in hope, peace and stand firm in FAITH. It is not easy to deal with everything we are facing however we know our Lord Christ Jesus has overcome every foe and every enemy we face and as children of God we walk in victory despite our current circumstances.” - Karen Berrios

We will overcome.

Now let’s get into Vitamin C. (For a huge breakdown on Vitamin C’s role in the body- see our previous article here.)

The Role Of Vitamin C In The Immune System

First thing- Vitamin C is often known as ascorbic acid, and it plays a huge role in the body. In order to repair our body's tissues, we need an influx of Vitamin C consistently. It is needed for growth. It is needed to help keep our collagen strong and intact. It helps iron become more bioavailable. And yes- the big one, it helps strengthen our immune system! (See this overview here.)

Vitamin C provides a huge boost to the immune system. It is an essential nutrient, so our bodies can’t make it naturally. We must get it through food and/or supplementation. One way it helps the immune system is by providing electrons to where it is needed.

It is an incredibly powerful antioxidant. Many cells in the body can’t even perform their function without proper Vitamin C.

So let’s treat it with the respect it deserves. We see you, Vitamin C!

Vitamin C and COVID 19

It should be clear that this article is not definitive and this is not medical advice. The best thing we can do is practice physical distancing, continuously wash our hands and not touch our face.
That said- studies have been in FAVOR of using Vitamin C to treat and help protect from Covid 19.

A big reason why Vitamin C is so helpful is because of its role within our immune system-- helping with cellular life and death. We need to clean out our immune system of cells that aren’t functioning properly anymore. How would a low functioning cell help us fight the virus? It wouldn’t. Vitamin C helps us clear out the “dead” cells in our immune system and make way for healthier cells. This is a big key. (Analysis here.)

Vitamin C also helps protect us against oxidative stress. It does this due to its strong antioxidant properties. Oxidative stress happens when there is a buildup of free radicals-- Vitamin C helps us keep this from happening. The last thing we want during a pandemic is to be battling it out with oxidative stress. Let Vitamin C help with any oxidative stress you may have right now so that your immune system can use the energy for other things, like standing alert to potentially fight off potential sickness.

Something that is incredibly promising with this virus- is that Vitamin C has been proven to help with upper respiratory tract infections. We know that Coronavirus negatively impacts the lungs- so this is great news for us.

There have also been numerous studies on past viruses that Vitamin C has been able to help with. Acute Respiratory Distress Syndrome (ARDS) is one that it has helped with, and it can also help with something as serious as sepsis.

How Much Vitamin C Do We Need For Preventive Measures?

The very most that is recommended for a daily intake of Vitamin C is 2000mg. This is for preventative measures. Many people take 500mg-1000mg.

Vitamin C can remain in our bodies for weeks, however, it really only stays active in our system for 2-3 hours, so it is important to eat Vitamin C rich foods throughout the day.

One food that will give you incredible Vitamin C benefits is a single dose of Camu Camu.

Camu Camu, to scale, has more natural Vitamin C than any food on the planet! Isn’t that amazing? So much power in a little scoop of powder can really help out our immune systems in a tremendous way. A single dose is 1200% of our daily requirement for Vitamin C! (See a recipe for camu camu shots at the end of this article.) Be sure to read this study on Camu Camu’s antioxidant properties-  to see how powerful it really is.

Is Vitamin C Being Used To Treat COVID 19 Currently?

There have been successful treatments in China right now in treating the virus with high doses of intravenous Vitamin C. Specifically, they have been dosing patients with 1500mg of Vitamin C at a time, 3-4 times a day. The benefit is that it goes straight into the bloodstream.

It should be noted that in China right now, Vitamin C is taken with other drugs- but those who were administered Vitamin C did better than those who were not administered it.

The reason this practice is getting more notoriety is because there was a recent study showing how high volumes of Vitamin C can help shorten the duration of one’s stay in the ICU. With our ICUs being over max capacity right now, this is important information we could really put to good use. What was really interesting is that for those in the ICU with conditions pertaining to the lungs, those who were given Vitamin C shortened the duration of their stay by 18.6%!

In China, there have been at least three clinical trials starting up that are focused around using Vitamin C to treat the Coronavirus. (See more on one of those here.)

In fact, China as a whole (who is months ahead of us in dealing with Coronavirus) have been advising everyone to start taking more Vitamin C! The surge they have seen in people demanding it has been in a surplus mode for weeks now.

Are there naysayers on Vitamin C? Yes- one could look at such publications like USA Today and will see they have reports saying we shouldn’t solely rely on Vitamin C. They’re right! There are a bunch of things we should be incorporating. But let’s not throw away with is happening in China with Vitamin C- the results have been eye-opening. And with little to no side effects!

The world will greatly be awaiting the results of these clinical trials for high dose Vitamin C to treat COVID-19. The trials should be done around September.

In the meantime, stay positive. Keep yourself distanced from others. Wash your hands. Eat healthy foods and be mindful of your Vitamin C intake.

Camu Camu Shots Recipe

We have shown you plenty of smoothies with Camu Camu in them. We have shown you juices and ways to bake with Camu Camu. It is so potent with Vitamin C that even one teaspoon can really help rev up the immune system. As you can see, Camu Camu is versatile! And we are going to show you another way to use Camu Camu- in cute little shots!

These shots are fun because they can be taken in one fell swoop. One Quick dose and it’s over with!

You will see that Cacao can help disguise the bitterness that can come with Camu Camu. Cacao also adds resveratrol and antioxidants, which are great additions to have in your diet right now.

***Please note, high quality camu camu is important! You want something organic and sourced straight from Peru.

WHAT YOU NEED (for 2 shots):

4oz filtered water

2 teaspoons Camu Camu2 teaspoons raw cacao powder
1 small dash of maple syrup
1 sprinkle of cinnamon (optional)

DIRECTIONS:

Blend up everything (besides the cinnamon) and throw it into shot glasses to quickly shoot. Think of it like a quick juice shot you would get at your local Juice spot.

Enjoy! (And mostly enjoy the benefits!)