Is High Vitamin C Intake Beneficial or Harmful?

[ramollari]

Hi everybody,
I'm not clear about whether we should consume large quantities of vitamin C. This is confusing to me, because in different sources I read different things. Some say that this vitamin is stored and contributes to better health (immunity, stronger connective tissue, etc), so the more we consume, the better. Other sources say that it's no use, because the extra amount is discarded, and yet other articles say that it can be harmful.
So could someone clarify this for me? Thanks.

 

[Moonbear]

We already have a thread on Vitamin C just a few down the page from this one. https://www.physicsforums.com/showthread.php?t=61611

 

[ramollari]

That discussion was very helpful. I understood that excessive amounts of vitamin C are discarded. Then why do people take huge doses of vitamin C when they have flu, let's say? When people claim that eating oranges or drinking lemon juice is good for the health, is it just because of vit C or because of any other compounds found in these fruits?

 

[Chronos]

Excessive amounts of water soluable vitamins are routinely flushed out of the body. They can, however, cause collateral damage as suggeted by Moonbear's link.