Vitamin C Deficiency Diseases List

By Daniel W

June 17, 2022

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Bleeding Gums And Tooth Loss

Vitamin Deficiencies Cause Serious Diseases

Red, swollen, bleeding gums are another common sign of vitamin C deficiency.

Without adequate vitamin C, gum tissue becomes weakened and inflamed and blood vessels bleed more easily (

34 ).

Eventually, teeth can fall out due to unhealthy gums and weak dentin, the calcified inner layer of teeth .

Summary Red, bleeding gums are a common sign of vitamin C deficiency, and severe deficiency can even lead to tooth loss.

Chronic Inflammation And Oxidative Stress

Vitamin C is one of the bodys most important water-soluble antioxidants.

It helps prevent cellular damage by neutralizing free radicals that can cause oxidative stress and inflammation in the body.

Oxidative stress and inflammation have been linked to many chronic illnesses, including heart disease and diabetes, so reducing levels is likely beneficial .

Low intakes of vitamin C have been linked to higher levels of inflammation and oxidative stress, as well as an increased risk of heart disease .

One study found that adults with the lowest blood levels of vitamin C were nearly 40% more likely to develop heart failure within 15 years than those with the highest blood levels, even though they were not deficient in vitamin C .

Summary Regular consumption of antioxidants like vitamin C is associated with health benefits, while low intakes may increase inflammation and oxidative stress.

Role Of Vitamin C In Skin Health

Touted as one of the best anti-ageing ingredients in the beauty world, Vitamin C is the ultimate key for bestowing yourself with a blemish-free, glowing complexion. The wealth of antioxidant properties in Vitamin C is not only pivotal for collagen synthesis but also promotes skin regeneration process which helps your body repair damaged skin cells.Also Checkout: Blemishes: 5 Kitchen Ingredients To Get Rid Of Those Annoying Spots Infographic

Although Mother Nature has blessed us with a myriad of dietary choices abundant in vitamin C to fulfil our health needs, theres no surety that it gets absorbed by the skin. To ensure the needs of the skin, its pivotal to use it topically in the form of oils or serums. And much to our joy, the market right now is overflowing with skin-care essentials imbued with this incredible beauty ingredient. Be it uneven skin tone, rough texture, fine lines, acne scars, general dullness, sagging skin, you name it and theres a fair chance that vitamin C based skin-care products are the recommended treatment.

What Else Does Vitamin C Do?

Amazingly, the skin-replenishing benefits of vitamin C encompass far beyond just its antioxidant status. It has a quarry of other skin-healing properties that make it worthy of a permanent place in your beauty shelf. These include:

Also Check: When To Apply Vitamin C Serum To Face

Bright Red Hair Follicles

Hair follicles on the surface of the skin contain many tiny blood vessels that supply blood and nutrients to the area.

When the body is deficient in vitamin C, these small blood vessels become fragile and break easily, causing small, bright red spots to appear around the hair follicles.

This is known as perifollicular hemorrhage and a well-documented sign of severe vitamin C deficiency (

9 ).

Summary Hair follicles contain many tiny blood vessels that can rupture due to a vitamin C deficiency, causing bright red spots to appear around the follicles.

Deterrence And Patient Education

Patient education will depend on the source of vitamin C deficiency. If it is secondary to a malabsorptive condition, such as ulcerative colitis for Crohn disease, management of the underlying condition will require patient compliance and education.

If it is due to modifiable factors, the patient should receive counsel to abstain from smoking and limit alcohol consumption if these are factors. They can also receive instruction on proper dietary habits, including which foods are rich in vitamin C, such as citrus fruits, berries, and certain kinds of melon, as well as Vegetables such as spinach, red and green peppers, tomatoes, cabbage, cauliflower, broccoli, and Brussels sprouts. Lastly, they can receive instruction on appropriate vitamin C dietary supplementation.

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How Long Does It Take To Fix Vitamin C Deficiency

Vitamin C deficit patients can observe significant improvement in their health condition after starting to replenish the nutrient.

However, if you are wondering exactly how long it will take to fix vitamin C deficiency, here is a list of the symptoms and the probable time they might take to disappear.

24 hours: Pain, brain fog, fatigue, anorexia, and lethargy.
1-2 weeks: Severe weakness, bleeding, and bruising.
3 months: Complete recovery.

Note that this timeline may vary across individuals, depending on the extent of deficiency and other health conditions.

However, permanent damages like severe tooth deformation or loss of teeth are irreversible. This is why you should prioritise taking good care of your health to prevent vitamin C deficiency before it is too late.

Constant Iron Deficiency Anemia

Another disease in vitamin C deficiency diseases list is anemia. Anemia is often associated with vitamin C and iron deficiency. Iron deficiency anemia symptoms include fatigue, paleness, difficulty breathing during exercise, headaches, dry skin and hair, and spoon-shaped fingernails.

Low vitamin C levels can lead to anemia by decreasing the absorption of iron from plant-based foods, and iron metabolism is adversely impacted.

The risk of excessive bleeding can increase due to vitamin C deficiency which can lead to anemia.

Anemia iron deficiency if continues for a long time for no apparent reason, it would be wise to check vitamin C levels.

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About Vitamins And Minerals

Vitamins and minerals are organic compounds that our bodies use in very small amounts for a variety of metabolic processes. Basically, they keep us healthy and help our bodies to function.

We get vitamins and minerals from the foods we eat. For most of us, a healthy and varied diet is all we need to stay healthy. It is best to get vitamins and minerals from eating a variety of healthy unrefined foods.

Vitamins and minerals can cause toxicity if consumed in large amounts.

Causes And Risk Factors Of Scurvy

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Scurvy is the direct result of vitamin C deficiency. Signs of scurvy can manifest with a vitamin C intake below 10 mg per day, says Tamar Samuels, RD, the cofounder of Culina Health in New York City.

High alcohol intake
Low income
Being on dialysis

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People With Poor Nutrition Digestive Disorders Smokers The Elderly And Very Young At Risk

Those who are undergoing chemotherapy or have lost their appetite for other reasons, have anorexia, eat a poor diet with inadequate vitamin C, are pregnant or breastfeeding are more at risk of this particular problem. Smoking reduces your ability to absorb vitamin C from your diet, so smokers are at risk too. Also vulnerable are people with digestive disorders like Crohns disease, the elderly, drug or alcohol addicts, and young children and babies who arent getting enough vitamins.15

Food Sources Of Vitamin D

Only a small amount of Vitamin D is sourced from our diet. Sources include:

Treatment options include improved sunlight exposure, diet, exercise, vitamin and mineral supplements.

If you are concerned about vitamin D levels, see your GP. Your GP may recommend vitamin D supplements, which should be taken strictly as directed.

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Signs And Symptoms Of Scurvy

Zive says scurvy usually presents as fatigue and inflamed gums.

Weakness, fatigue, or irritability
Loss of appetite or weight loss
Muscular pain
Increased heart rate or shortness of breath
Fever

Swelling in joints or gums
Reopening of old wounds
Bulging eyes
Dry, scaly skin

Weakness and irritability
Reduced bone formation
Swollen limbs that bruise easily

Causes Of Vitamin And Mineral Deficiencies

A healthy, varied, and well-balanced diet usually provides all the vitamins and minerals that are adequate for optimal health. But deficiencies can occur because of several causes. Some common causes include:

Not being able to absorb nutrients well from the diet. For example, if you are suffering from coeliac or Crohns disease.
Lack of fruits or vegetables in your daily diet
Following a poorly designed vegan or vegetarian diet
Certain medications such as proton pump inhibitors
Pregnancy, wherein the body has increased nutritional requirement

It is good to get your vitamin and mineral levels checked, especially if you have symptoms or health risks of nutritional disorders.

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Health Problems And Diseases Caused By Vitamin C Deficiency

Vitamin C is a nutrient thats crucial to the health of your body. You need it for normal growth and development, as well as to keep up the health of your bodys skin and bones and connective tissue. An immune-boosting nutrient, it helps with healing as well. No wonder then a deficiency can interfere with the optimal functioning of your body.

Because it is an antioxidant vitamin, vitamin C helps counter free radical damage responsible for aging and may even help ward off or lower risk of heart disease, cancer, and arthritis.1 2

By getting in those recommended levels of vitamin C, you can sidestep many diseases. This could range from the seemingly harmless like brittle nails to the more severe like iron deficiency anemia. Typically very overt symptoms or problems because of a deficiency only appear after consistent inadequate intake over a prolonged period. As a rule of thumb, this will happen if daily intake is below 10 mg over several weeks.3 Heres a ready and detailed reckoner of the potential problems you could face from a prolonged vitamin C deficiency.

Can Overconsumption Of Vitamin C Be Harmful

Yes, consuming vitamin C in excessive doses can lead to gastrointestinal problems like abdominal cramps, diarrhoea, and stomach inflammation. More severe consequences include malabsorption of other nutrients, kidney stones, altered acid-base balance and insulin response.

Please try one more time!

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Types Of Minerals And Their Functions

There are hundreds of minerals they are usually classified as either major or trace minerals.

Although the amount you need differs between minerals, major are generally required in larger amounts. Some examples include calcium, phosphorus, potassium, sulphur, sodium, chloride, magnesium.

Trace minerals , although equally important to bodily functions are required in smaller amounts. Examples include iron, zinc, copper, manganese, and iodine selenium.

Some of the important minerals to keep us healthy are listed below.

Vitamin B Deficiency Diseases: Types Symptoms And More

Vitamins short tricks | vitamins and deficiency diseases

Vitamin B deficiency diseases affect your brain, heart, mental well-being, and more. If you dont obtain enough vitamin B from your diet or if your body doesnt absorb enough from the food you consume, youre at risk of having vitamin B deficiency disorders. If you wish to decrease the health hazards connected with vitamin B deficiency, there are several things you may do. To begin, have a Vitamin B Complex Profile performed to check if you are deficient. If you are, consult your doctor about what you should do next.

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Osteoporosis And Bone Problems

While scurvy causes joint pain in adults, it could lead to impaired bone development in babies and young children. They may experience symptoms like lower limb pain as a result of bleeding within the joints.12

Structural collagen alterations and greater breakdown of bone result in swollen and painful joints and muscular pain in those with a severe vitamin C deficiency or scurvy. It may also result in your developing osteoporosis or weak bones that are prone to fracture or breakage. There could also be a link to osteoarthritis though research in that area is still very much a work in progress.13

How Is Vitamin D Deficiency Treated

The goals of treatment and prevention for vitamin D deficiency are the same: to reach and then maintain an adequate vitamin D level in your body.

While you might consider eating more foods containing vitamin D and getting more sunlight, your healthcare provider will likely recommend taking vitamin D supplements.

Vitamin D comes in two forms: D2 and D3. D2 comes from plants. D3 comes from animals. You need a prescription to get D2. D3, however, is available over the counter. Your body more easily absorbs D3 than D2.

Work with your healthcare provider to find out if you need a vitamin supplement and how much to take, if needed.

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Avoid A Deficiency By Ensuring You Have 7590 Mg Of Vitamin C Daily

Your body needs about 90 mg of vitamin C daily if you are an adult male and 75 mg if you are female. Pregnant women need 85 mg a day while lactating mothers require even more .16 Anyone recovering from surgery or burns could also do with a little more vitamin C to aid healing. Smokers too can benefit from higher vitamin C intake.17 Get in your vitamin C easily from a wide range of foods including citrus fruit, tomatoes, green leafy vegetables, peppers, and even from fortified juices and cereals.

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If not diagnosed and treated, vitamin C deficiency can also lead to shortness of breath, nerve problems, high temperature and fits . Bleeding inside the brain and around the heart can cause death in some people with untreated vitamin C deficiency. However, this is extremely rare.

Do I Need Any Investigations

Your doctor may suspect vitamin C deficiency after asking you careful questions about your diet and listening to the symptoms that you have. A blood test can be taken to measure vitamin C levels and may help to confirm the diagnosis.

Your doctor may also suggest some other blood tests to check for other deficiencies in your diet. For example, vitamin C is also needed for the absorption of iron from food. Therefore, iron deficiency often occurs in people who are deficient in vitamin C.

X-rays or scans to look at your bones may also be suggested because specific changes to the bones, including ‘thinning’ of the bones, are often seen in someone with vitamin C deficiency.

What Are The Signs And Symptoms Of Vitamin D Deficiency

Severe lack of vitamin D in children causes rickets. Symptoms of rickets include:

Incorrect growth patterns due to bowed or bent bones.
Muscle weakness.
Bone pain.
Deformities in joints.

This is very rare. Children with a mild vitamin deficiency may just have weak, sore and/or painful muscles.

Lack of vitamin D isnt quite as obvious in adults. Signs and symptoms might include:

Fatigue.

However, you may have no signs or symptoms of vitamin D deficiency.

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Who Is Most At Risk For Vitamin D Deficiency

Aside from medical conditions that can lead to vitamin D deficiency, biological and environmental factors that put someone at an increased risk of vitamin D deficiency include:

Age: Your skin’s ability to make vitamin D decreases with age, so people over the age of 65 years are especially at risk for vitamin D deficiency. Infants are also at risk of not receiving enough vitamin D. This is especially true for infants who are only fed breast milk, as it contains only a small amount of vitamin D.
Skin color: Its more difficult for dark-colored skin to make vitamin D from sunlight than light-colored skin, so people with darker skin are at a higher risk for vitamin D deficiency.
Mobility: People who are homebound or rarely go outside arent able to use sun exposure as a source of vitamin D. Thus, theyre at a higher risk for vitamin D deficiency.

What Happens If I Have Too Much Vitamin C

Vitamin C Deficiency (Subclinical Scurvy) Causes, Symptoms, and Remedies by Dr.Berg

Vitamin C is water-soluble and so even if you eat lots of foods that are rich in vitamin C, your body will only absorb what it needs. Any extra vitamin C you consume in food or drink will pass naturally.

Excess vitamin C usually only occurs if you take high-dose supplements, which can result in nausea, stomach cramps, headaches, fatigue, kidney stones and diarrhoea. If you have diabetes, take special care not to overdose on vitamin C supplements, as too much of this vitamin may interfere with medical tests.

Read about vitamin C and your health to better understand how vitamin C affects your body.

If you think you are getting too much vitamin C in your diet, speak with your doctor and ask for a referral to a dietitian for a comprehensive nutritional assessment.

Food Sources Of Calcium

At different life stages, our calcium needs vary. It is better to get calcium from foods than from calcium supplements.

Good sources of calcium include dairy foods like milk, yoghurt and cheese and some plant-based foods with added calcium .

Other sources of calcium include almonds, bok choy, kale, parsley, broccoli and watercress.