Vitamin C and Colds

Vitamin C and Colds
By Chris Rosenbloom, Contributor
A few years ago, I talked with an athlete who complained of nausea, diarrhea and intestinal cramping. His doctor had performed tests for the usual suspects: irritable bowel, Crohn’s disease, ulcer, and food poisoning but found no medical reason for his symptoms. A detailed diet history did not show any food culprits (like an allergy, very high fiber or sugar alcohol intake) but he did take supplements of vitamin C to “prevent” colds. He was taking 10 grams a day. To put that in perspective, the Recommended Dietary Allowance (RDA) for a teen age male is 75 milligrams a day and he was taking 10,000 milligrams a day or a whopping 13,333% of what is needed for good health. I bet you can guess a side effect of excess vitamin C; yes, it is gastro-intestinal problems.

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