How to take vitamin C for beginners:
A brief introduction to the various types of vitamin C and detailed instructions on how to take them.
My first two posts laid a foundation for the science behind taking vitamin C in high doses, the treatment modality that has completely changed my life: and not just me but also the health of so many friends, family, and clients. In case you missed them and want to check them out, here is a link to the first one, providing evidence on how vitamin C cures the common cold. https://orthomolecularguy.substack.com/p/sick-and-tired-of-being-sick-and?r=cjind
Here is a link to the second one, about the crucial role vitamin C plays in the immune system: https://orthomolecularguy.substack.com/p/sick-and-tired-of-being-sick-and?r=cjind
Now that we have laid some groundwork, I’m eager to share this guide for beginners. So without any further ado, let’s dive in
Vitamin C by another name.
Vitamin C is also known as ascorbic acid and is often abbreviated as AA. This is a weak acid in which an ascorbate ion is bonded to a hydrogen atom. The hydrogen molecule can readily be removed when ascorbic acid is reacted with other mineral salts such as sodium bicarbonate which yields CO2 and sodium ascorbate. It can also be bonded to other salts like magnesium carbonate, calcium carbonate, and potassium bicarbonate to form magnesium ascorbate, calcium ascorbate (often called ester-c), and potassium ascorbate respectively. These forms of vitamin C are water-soluble and one will sometimes see them in certain supplement products. The two fat-soluble forms of vitamin C are ascorbyl palmitate which is an ascorbic acid molecule that has been esterified and bonded with palmitic acid. The other fat-soluble form is liposomal vitamin C which is either ascorbic acid or sodium ascorbate encapsulated in a phospholipid liposome. Let’s break this down a little more:
Ascorbic acid is the active ingredient of most vitamin C supplements and is what I recommend for most clients who are starting out. The exception is people whose stomachs can’t tolerate the acidity due to GERD or gastric ulcer. It is the cheapest form of vitamin C, especially as a pure powder, and it is the most researched form with the longest proven safety record. Ascorbic acid is what plants make, and also the livers of mammal species, and is therefore the most natural and safe form. It’s what you get when you bite into an orange. I take it multiple times every day and have for over 10 years. The only drawback is that as mentioned above some people find it too acidic and hard on their stomach.
Sodium ascorbate is found in many commonly sold supplements and is fine in smaller doses. There is some debate about taking it in high doses due to the potential of introducing too much sodium and I usually recommend caution with it for beginners although I take a small amount of it myself every day in a mixture that I make up with pure c powder.
Mineral salts of vitamin C. I don’t recommend these preparations, either for beginners or for high dosing. In this form vitamin C is bonded with sodium, magnesium, zinc, calcium, or potassium. One can easily overdose on the mineral element in an attempt to get high-dose C with this form. I especially do not recommend ‘ester c’ which is found at most drug stores. This will deliver too much calcium if taken in high doses.
Ascorbyl Palmitate is the ascorbate ion that has undergone a chemical process called esterification which bonded it to a fat. It is fat-soluble and won’t dissolve in water. I never recommend it for oral supplementation as it’s very expensive and very hard to get a high enough dose to do any good. Primarily this form of the vitamin is used in skin care products where it is excellent to deliver vitamin C to the skin topically for cosmetic purposes.
Liposomal Vitamin C. This is the other fat-soluble preparation. I recommend this form of vitamin C especially when fighting an acute illness as it offers superior absorption. It is very gentle on the stomach and is an excellent choice for those with ulcers or GERD. Lipo C consists of vitamin C molecules trapped in microscopic globules of the naturally occurring fat phosphatidylcholine, and as such bypass gastric breakdown and the rate-limiting vitamin C transporters in the gut. Rather it is absorbed by the lymphatic system as fat, in much the same way that dietary fat is, or the other fat-soluble vitamins such as vitamins D, A, E, and K. Its only drawback is that it is too expensive for most people to take every day, but a few studies have shown superior absorption to plain ascorbic acid and I have found it very useful indeed when a viral infection strikes. One caveat here is that almost every single brand of capsule of liposomal C sold on the market is not a correctly prepared liposome. Rather they are simply mixtures of phosphatidylcholine and vitamin C, and these are not recommended. Only liposomal C sold as a liquid, either as a bottle or in 1-gram sachets, is a bona fide liposomal product and that is what I recommend.
Whole Food vitamin C. I don’t recommend these so-called ‘whole food’ vitamin C products. These are usually powdered fruits that are high in vitamin C such as acerola cherries. There is nothing wrong with this form of vitamin C other than they are extremely expensive for the amount of vitamin C they deliver. It is simply a very inefficient way to get ascorbic acid in your diet. The benefits of the other phytonutrients in the product are vastly overhyped. However, I do 100% recommend eating 2 fruits and 2 servings at least of veg per day which will give you plenty of those phytonutrients plus all the other benefits of consuming plants such as fiber, beta-carotene, polyphenols, etc; and for a fraction of the cost of a ‘whole food c ‘ supplement.
The place to begin is with plain ascorbic acid which has the most value for the lowest cost and is the safest. I recommend most people begin with the cheapest tablet or capsule they can find. I will not make any brand recommendations in the newsletter and I don’t sell any supplements or have any endorsement contracts with any supplement providers. I recommend searching on major online providers for the best deals or heading down to the local drug store for instance access. What you are looking for are 1000 mg or 500 mg tablets with as few other ingredients as possible. It is also possible to order a pure powder from online retailers which is what I personally use.
If you get a powder then ¼ tsp is roughly 1000mg.
Start like this :
1000 mg every 4 hours, preferably with breakfast lunch, and dinner, or as soon as possible if you skip breakfast. Then take one more before bedtime.
The rationale behind this simple protocol is as follows: the half-life of vitamin C in the bloodstream is about 90 minutes meaning that for most people it’s mostly out of the bloodstream in 3 hours or less. So taking it every 4 hours (every 3 hours also ok) is a great way to ensure the blood level stays pretty constant without leading to an upset stomach which is the main side effect of vitamin C overdose. Divided doses like this are the best way to lead to tissue saturation and achieve the health benefits you desire.
In the world of orthomolecular nutrition, we talk about taking vitamin C to bowel tolerance. What does that mean? It means exactly what you think it means. It means too much Vitamin C at one time will lead to diarrhea. I have found that very, very few people have a problem taking 1000 mg every four hours however and it’s a very safe place to start for most people, but please consider that your mileage may vary and you need to listen to your body. If you have taken 2 or 3 doses and your stomach starts rumbling then I suggest stopping for the day. I have met a few people who can’t take more than one gram per day for weeks until their gut heals then they can very slowly ramp it up. I don’t recommend taking more than 1 gram at a time until you have several weeks of experience with it and know how your body reacts.
It’s also very true that most people’s guts will build up a tolerance to vitamin C over time and then you need to ramp up the dose to attain maximum wellness. I suggest the following dosing table.
Week one: Take either 1 1000 mg tablet or capsule, 1 packet or tsp of Lipo C, or ¼ tsp of pure vitamin C powder to get 1 gram.
Breakfast lunch dinner nighttime
1 gram 1 gram 1 gram 1 gram
Week two:
Breakfast lunch dinner Nighttime
2 grams 2 grams 2 grams 2 grams
Week 3
Breakfast Lunch Dinner Nighttime
3 grams 3 gram 3 grams 3 grams
This gets you up to 12 grams per day in 3 weeks which is a good stopping place for most people and a fairly typical maintenance dose for the average person. You can ramp this up to 4 grams per dose if desired. However, we are all completely different. Your maintenance dose may be 3 g a day and someone else might need 18. The true goal here is to learn to listen to your body. If you are noticing significant improvements on the first week of the schedule above, there might not ever be a need to go past 4 g per day except when sick with a viral infection. I personally take 12 to 16 g per day as a maintenance dose before Covid but I’ve needed more since COVID-19. In my case, I’ve had lifelong allergies, and this is what it takes to keep them at bay.
So here you have it! I hope this simple guide gets you up and running. I know it will change your life, and I encourage you to learn more. The best place to start is with Linus Pauling’s book ‘How to Live Longer and Feel Better’ or ‘Vitamin C: the real story’ by Dr. Andrew Saul. This post will be my last one on the topic of vitamin C for now. Next up will be a dive into creatine, which has so many interesting applications based on new research such as reducing fatigue, improving mental health, and even preventing birth defects.
As always, thank you for reading and for the gift of your time and attention. Please tell your friends about this newsletter. Thank you for being brave and willing to make a simple change to better your health and wellness!
Caveats:
It is very common to experience detox symptoms during the first week or two of vitamin C. This can include headaches, body aches, and congestion. These symptoms will fade once the immune system, gut, and liver adapt to having a lot of C to work with.
Do not take high-dose vitamin C if you are a diagnosed calcium oxalate kidney-stone former. For such folks divided doses of 250 or 500 mg to keep it under 1000 mg are recommended. This is due to an ability to break down oxalate properly and taking C might slightly increase this risk.
Those with kidney failure should not take high-dose vitamin C until they have spoken with their doctor or nutritionist first.
If you are pregnant, plan on being pregnant, or are lactating, then I recommend speaking with your doctor or midwife first before implementing the above program.
Of course, I always recommend speaking with your doctor, nutritionist, or other medical professionals who know your unique physiology before starting any supplement, diet, or exercise program, even vitamin C which is as about as low-risk as it gets.
Disclaimer: I am not a medical doctor. The information in this article does not constitute medical advice and is not intended to diagnose or treat a disease. Readers should speak with their personal medical professional before acting on any of the information discussed.