An Oldie, but a Goodie!

This month we have a guest article from one of our members, Dr. Michelle Zarrillo. She is a wonderful source of information in the area of living a natural, healthy lifestyle. I trust you will enjoy her article as much as I did!

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By:  Dr. Michelle Zarrillo

What do you do when you are hit with a virus, a cold, or any other  – itis?  Well, most people head to the drug store for a box of pills: Sudafed, aspirin and other decongestants. Others put their stock in more traditional herbal remedies. They can be very effective, if given early. All these may have a place in the average medicine cabinet provided it’s not too serious. But perhaps you should consider a more natural effective option. One that will boost your immunity, even when you feel good. I’m referring to Vitamin C.

In my professional opinion, if you could only add one thing to you health regime, it would be Vitamin C, also known as ascorbic acid.    Dr. Linus Pauling did amazing research (which he was a awarded the Nobel prize for in 1954) with terminal cancer patients and high doses of vitamin C, 13,000-20,000mg.   Mega doses have even been used in treating schizophrenia and drug addictions.  Recently, Defeat Autism Now doctors have been detoxifying Autism Spectrum children with high doses of vitamin C and seeing results with a condition the American Academy of Pediatrics say is incurable; this is exciting research.

Ascorbic acid is water soluble, so there is no toxicity or overdose potential.  Now, do remember that a vitamin is not a medicine; by this I mean , you do not get instant results.  You are ingesting a building block for your body to assimilate and use, building your immune response, over time. Also, it should be noted that the effectiveness of any vitamin is directly related to how this vitamin is prepared.

Did you know Vitamin C is a natural antihistamine, in high doses?  Since overuse of medicine can really tax your liver, Vitamin C is a nice option.  It also works as an antioxidant, killing free radicals (cancer cells).  Although we may never know all the toxins and carcinogenic products we come into contact with, we can decrease the onslaught with C.  Looking younger and building collagen are also a great effect of vitamin C.

Now, I am often asked if you can get your vitamins through your food.  Although this is technically possible, it is not really feasible.  With soil depletion and the general lack of  quality food consumption, you would have to eat an awful lot of fruit to even get close.  Also,  are you eating organic?  If your food has been radiated, to increase shelf life (if it doesn’t say it hasn’t, it has) then your vitamin C is made unusable.  So, realistically, it is not doable.

How much you ask?  I do not recommend the RDA (recommended daily allowance).  The RDA is based on the necessary amount to prevent scurvy.  Both professionally and personally, I expect more from my vitamins than just to not get a deficiency disease!   Do you have hypoglycemia?  You need more.  Do you eat a high protein diet?  You need more. Do you have chronic conditions, such as arthritis?  You need more.  Do you take aspirin?  More.  You need to take your maximum absorbency, and that is different for each person.   Even my children can absorb over 2000 mg per day.

As for my family, I sometimes feel like a chemist, mixing up the right vitamins for each child and although there is some uniqueness, all of them can benefit from Vitamin C.  I am very aware that we cannot “do it all”, when it comes to our health, but if you can only do one thing, I recommend a good quality Vitamin C.