Everyone knows that vitamin C stops people from getting scurvy, a painful disease that killed many sailors 200 years ago. There is little good evidence that vitamin C prevents the common cold.
However, vitamin C is an essential antioxidant vitamin and very important in the making of collagen, the connective tissue found in tendons, arteries, bone, skin and muscle. Vitamin C has other roles in the body, including the production of noradrenaline, which is a neurotransmitter. Getting plenty of vitamin C in the diet also helps avoid stomach cancer.
Many animals can make their own vitamin C, but humans and other primates cannot, so they are reliant on food for vitamin C. It is well known that salad vegetables and citrus fruit are good sources, yet less well known that a medium banana will provide about a quarter of your daily vitamin C needs.
Vitamin C is very important in enhancing the absorption of iron from the intestines. Young women of child-bearing age need extra iron in their diet to cover for their monthly blood losses. For this reason young women are usually advised to have a vitamin C-containing food with their meals to improve the absorption of iron from other foods, such as vegetables and cereals. Having a banana sliced on breakfast cereal, with lunch, or in a fruit salad after the evening meal is a great way to improve iron levels.
Extra vitamin C is needed during pregnancy and breastfeeding, so adding a salad and a banana to the diet each day makes it easier to meet those needs.
