Vitamin C Slows Down Aging Process

Here's another good reason why you should patronize Vitamin C. Aside from its bright hope in cancer treatment, an exciting discovery has been made showing that Vitamin C is highly effective in slowing down the aging process.

In a previous post, I mentioned that aging results from the shortening of the telomeres, the protective caps of our DNA, as our cells undergo division. When the telomeres are too short already, the cells can longer divide, and thus, die. [read: Telomeres Aging And Cancer Link]


It has also been discovered that cancer is closely linked with short telomeres. Old cells, a sign of short telomeres, are more likely to mutate, a process by which cancer cells grow. People with short telomeres are 400% at greater risk of getting cancer, which is directly proportional to the telomeres' length.

A study, conducted in Japan, looked into the effect of Vitamin C on telomeres. The result shows the shortening of the telomeres can be slowed down by a whopping 62% just by elevating the levels of Vitamin C in the cells. Logically, therefore, we can deduce that the aging process can be slowed down near the same percentage.

Another study, which supports the first one above, also shows that the slowing down of the shortening of the telomeres due to the treatment of skin cells with Vitamin C resulted in maintaining the skin's young firm shape. This discovery about Vitamin C's effective role in slowing down the aging process is a bonanza to everyone who has been frantically searching for a way to turn or hold back the hands of time.

The recommended daily allowance [RDA] of Vitamin C for adults of 90 mg for men and 75 mg for women is not enough to prevent cancer or slow down the shortening of telomeres.

Based on what Vitamin C producing animals generate, humans should be making 3,000 mg to 10,000 mg daily of Vitamin C, or roughly 100 times the RDA, which unfortunately, we are incapable of generating. This is the amount of Vitamin C we should be ideally getting. [read: 3 Ways To Get Vitamin C]