Vitamin C & Immunity

​Vitamin C is probably the first nutrient that comes to mind when we think about immunity. Vitamin C helps to stimulate the production of white blood cells, which play a critical role in immune health. It also acts as an antioxidant which protects cells from damage and also participates in antiviral activity. For my nerd friends out there check out

Dr. Rhonda Patrick’s article on Vitamin C here: https://www.foundmyfitness.com/topics/vitamin-c

While almost everyone I speak to knows that vitamin C and immunity go together, I do see a lot of misconceptions about the best foods to source this vitamin C from.

While citrus fruits do contain a good source of Vitamin C, it’s not the only source we can obtain it from, and isn't actually the best source.
The best source is actually organ meats, and therefore we can actually get enough on a diet that consists primarily of meat; as long as we are eating “nose to tail”. “Nose to tail” means that we aren’t only eating muscle meats, but are also including other parts like organs, bone marrow, fats, skin & cartilage. Read more about this at https://chriskresser.com/nose-to-tail-eating-everything-you-need-to-know/

Other great sources include fermented foods like sauerkraut, dried fruits, and veggies like bell peppers, broccoli & brussel sprouts.

When it comes to supplementing, not all supplements are created equal. Many contain toxic additives and the process used to create the synthetic vitamin leaves us with a foreign substance the body really doesn’t know what to do with.  Check out the flow chart for vitamin C manufacturing here: 

http://nourishingtraditions.com/supplements-a-better-way/

When it comes to Vitamin C I really recommend focusing on obtaining most of your daily intake from food, and using supplements only as a fallback.