Vitamin C deficiency & depletion: What are the causes & symptoms?

Vitamin C, or L-ascorbic acid, is an essential, water-soluble nutrient, meaning we can’t produce it on our own and our body can’t store it. This makes it extremely important to make sure we keep our Vitamin C levels up through our diet and supplementation if needed. 

Vitamin C deficiency & depletion 

Many foods contain Vitamin C, but due to the effects of modern day living, we're not getting nearly the amount needed to meet our individual needs.

Environmental toxins and air pollution, life’s often stressful demands, and illnesses are some factors that can deplete your Vitamin C levels. The food we eat is also not of the same quality that it used to be, meaning that our nutrient requirements are always increasing, and this includes Vitamin C.

Factors that leave us much more prone to vitamin C deficiency include: 

• Poor diet: Alcohol, refined sugar, caffeine and processed foods. These can cause high urinary excretion of Vitamin C or high production of free radicals, which increases our need for antioxidants

• Toxins: Environmental pollutants, cosmetics, domestic products and smoking cause high levels of oxidative stress in the body and an increased need for antioxidants

• Illnesses: Produce high levels of free radicals and oxidative stress and lower the body's immune defences

• Stress: Vitamin C is needed to produce stress hormones, so the higher levels of stress we have, the higher our need for Vitamin C 

• Medications: Aspirin and other non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs

• Nutrient decline in foods due to soil depletion, intensive farming and long food storage

• Iron deficiency

Symptoms of Vitamin C deficiency & depletion

Signs and symptoms of Vitamin C deficiency develop after a few weeks to months of Vitamin C depletion. Severe Vitamin C deficiency, although very rare these days, can lead to the development of a condition known as scurvy, which is related to defects in connective tissues and collagen.

Vitamin C Depletion

In the early stages of vitamin C depletion, usually seen within a few weeks to one month of inadequate intake, non specific symptoms include physical and mental fatigue, weakness, lethargy, irritability, weight loss, recurrent infections, poor wound healing, and mild muscle and joint aches and pains. 

Severe Vitamin C Deficiency

Symptoms of scurvy, related to defects in connective tissues, develop after 8 to 12 weeks of irregular or inadequate intake. Signs and symptoms can include chronic inflammation and weak blood vessels (due to decreased collagen production). Weak blood vessels can lead to easy bruising, excessive bleeding, swollen and bleeding gums, loose teeth, coiled hair, and broken facial capillaries (spider veins). Other signs and symptoms include anaemia, muscle and joint pain, bone pain, mood changes, and depression.

Summary

Vitamin C deficiency won't usually manifest itself in symptoms as serious as the ones seen in scurvy, except in extreme cases of depletion. However, it's still incredibly important to make sure we're getting enough in our diets, or by supplementation if necessary.

When it comes to vitamin C supplements, it's also important to note that fat soluble supplements are likely to be more effective than vitamin C in water soluble forms, due to the amount of vitamin C we can store and absorb.