Sport is a natural fat burner and anyone who does it regularly and sees changes in their body knows this. But can vitamins themselves also perform the same function? It turns out that yes. Among the vitamins, we find some that speed up the metabolism and thus burn fat. One such vitamin is vitamin C.
Vitamin C … meaning?
Vitamin C, also known as ascorbic acid and E300, is an organic chemical compound belonging to the group of unsaturated polyhydroxy alcohols. This compound occurs naturally, as a compound with an L configuration in the side chain and a D configuration of the furan system.
Under the influence of a methanolic NaOH solution, it epimerises to erythorbic acid, which differs in its side chain configuration. L-ascorbic acid is sometimes incorrectly referred to as 'left-handed vitamin C’ due to confusion between relative configuration and optical activity. In fact, L-ascorbic acid twists the plane of polarised light to the right . D-ascorbic acid, on the other hand, is an antioxidant, but otherwise has no biological significance – it does not act as a cofactor, so it is not a vitamin. However, it is worth remembering that L-ascorbic acid occurs naturally in many plant and animal organisms. In both kingdoms, the substrate for the biosynthesis of this compound is D-glucose, but this takes place in different ways. In plants, glucose is oxidised at the C-2 position, followed by epimerisation of the C-5 atom and subsequent oxidation, at the C-1 position. In animals, the metabolic pathway is via glucuronic acid, followed by inversion of the carbon skeleton, resulting in the C-1 and C-6 atoms of glucose becoming the C-6 and C-1 atoms of ascorbic acid, respectively.
However, leaving aside its strictly chemical nature, it should be remembered that vitamin C is essential for the functioning of living organisms, both human and animal, and is also an antioxidant used as a food additive.
Deficiency and excess
In the body of a living being, vitamin C acts as an antioxidant. This means that it activates many enzymes, facilitates the assimilation of iron, influences the synthesis of corticosteroids and some neurotransmitters. It maintains the normal state of the connective tissue, strengthens the gums and teeth, and kills the bacteria that cause tooth decay. In addition, it strengthens the body’s resistance to infection and facilitates wound healing, as well as stabilises the psyche and is involved in tyrosine metabolism. It is also involved in maintaining the normal oxidative potential in the cell.
Such properties mean that vitamin C plays a very important role in the living organism, and its deficiency can lead to bleeding and ulcerated gums, tooth loss, fragility and bursting of blood vessels, weakened immunity, joint pain, abnormal bone fusion, and slow wound healing. On the other hand, however, an excess of vitamin C in the body carries serious consequences such as stomach ailments, nausea, diarrhoea, vomiting, skin rashes and reduced immunity. Usually, however, its excess is excreted from the body with the urine. Hence, it is important to remember that the recommended intake of vitamin C for an adult is between 45 and 90 mg per day. Usually this much is found in supplements or slimming patches.
Vitamin C … for immunity
A very important benefit of vitamin C is that it has an effective effect on our immunity. This is because vitamin C stimulates our immune system, which means nothing more and nothing less than stimulating the growth and general efficiency of immune cells, i.e. B-lymphocytes and T-lymphocytes. Large doses of vitamin C are recommended not only when a disease has already occurred, but also during periods of increased incidence of disease, e.g. in autumn and winter.
In addition, vitamin C protects our DNA, fats and proteins from oxidation. It is also absolutely essential for the proper absorption of disease-causing microorganisms by the white blood cells – this is called phagocytosis. When the blood cells receive an adequate dose of vitamin C, they work much more vigorously and effectively, with the result that our body, and with it us, is simply less exposed to the risk of infection.
Vitamin C … for weight loss
Vitamin C benefits immunity and has many other benefits, one of which is that it may be the answer to the question 'how to lose 10 kilos’. This is because vitamin C has significant properties when it comes to weight loss.
Vitamin C is the enemy of fat on the thighs, abdomen and buttocks, so if we provide our body with adequate amounts of vitamin C with food, the fat-burning processes will run smoothly. This means that vitamin C acts as an effective fat burner. This is the case for several reasons:
- Vitamin C together with iron makes the production of carnitine – which is directly responsible for the transport of fats to the place where they are burned – possible at all.
- Vitamin C supplied in vegetables and fruit enters the entire body via the bloodstream. It occupies exactly the same places on the cell surface as glucose. And if there is the right amount of it, it succeeds in getting glucose dressed. This makes it impossible for glucose to send a signal to the liver to start producing the spare fat we hate. Therefore, people who eat a significant amount of fruit and vegetables every day will never be obese.
- Vitamin C is responsible for activating iron, which transports the oxygen necessary for burning fat in the body’s cells.
- Vitamin C is actively involved in the production of stress hormones, which capture fat molecules from areas where they have accumulated the most, such as the thighs. This is why the adrenal glands and the pituitary gland, which produce stress hormones, have the highest concentrations of vitamin C in the entire body.
- Vitamin C is heavily involved in the metabolism of the amino acid tyrosine, which is important for burning fat in the body.
These properties make vitamin C a common ingredient in supplements and slimming patches, as it stimulates our body’s work and can start the fat-burning process on its own.
Nature knows many natural ways to burn fat and weight loss diet aids. Vitamin C turns out to be an extremely important ingredient in our lives, as it supports the work of our organism, strengthens its immunity and accelerates the process of weight loss.