Recommended Daily Vitamin C Intake
14. Mar, 2012
It makes sense to understand vitamin C importance as a daily supplement, but the facts are surprising that many people today don’t fully understand its benefits. Ascorbic acid, which is vitamin C, can only be obtained from certain vegetables and most fruits, as humans are unable to synthesize it. Vitamin C plays an important part in the body’s ability to grow and repair itself, and this is paramount to peoples’ health. As we get older vitamin C plays an even greater role in our daily diets.
The recommended daily dosage for adults, both male and female, is between 75 to 90 mg, with the dosage increasing as people reach middle age and older; this applies to pregnant women and people who smoke as well. The benefits from proper amounts of vitamin C a day are many. Some of them include improving the body’s ability to absorb iron from fresh vegetables, and helps to prevent cellular damage caused by free radicals that can enter the body from air pollution. But most of all, vitamin C taken regularly either by tablets, capsules or by eating enough proper foods, such as vegetables and fruits, can greatly help fight off the common cold.
Recommended intake levels for vitamin C are provided by the Dietary Reference Intakes (DRIs) system. In the below tables the intake levels are presented separately for men and women for different life stages.
Men
| Recommended Dietary Allowances (RDA) | Tolerable Upper Intake Levels (ULs) | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Life Stages | Age | mg/day (milligrams) | Age | mg/day (milligrams) |
| Newborn | 0 to 6 months (AI) | 40 | 1 to 3 years | 400 |
| Infancy | 7 to 12 months (AI) | 50 | 4 to 8 years | 650 |
| Toddlerhood | 1 to 3 years | 15 | 9 to 13 years | 1200 |
| Early School Age | 4 to 8 years | 25 | 14 to 18 years | 1800 |
| Middle Childhood | 9 to 13 years | 45 | Above 18 years | 2000 |
| Adolescence / Teenage | 14 to 18 years | 75 | — | — |
| Adulthood | Above 18 years | 90 | — | — |
Women
| Recommended Dietary Allowances (RDA) | Tolerable Upper Intake Levels (ULs) | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Life Stages | Age | mg/day (milligrams) | Age | mg/day (milligrams) |
| Newborn | 0 to 6 months (AI) | 40 | 1 to 3 years | 400 |
| Infancy | 7 to 12 months (AI) | 50 | 4 to 8 years | 650 |
| Toddlerhood | 1 to 3 years | 15 | 9 to 13 years | 1200 |
| Early School Age | 4 to 8 years | 25 | 14 to 18 years | 1800 |
| Middle Childhood | 9 to 13 years | 45 | Above 18 years | 2000 |
| Adolescence / Teenage | 14 to 18 years | 65 | 14 to 18 years and Pregnant/Lactating | 1800 |
| Adulthood | Above 18 years | 75 | Above 18 years and Pregnant/Lactating | 2000 |
| Pregnant | 14 to 18 years | 80 | — | — |
| Pregnant | Above 18 years | 85 | — | — |
| Lactating | 14 to 18 years | 115 | — | — |
| Lactating | Above 18 years | 120 | — | — |
Recommended Dietary Allowance (RDA), Adequate Intake (AI) and Tolerable Upper Intake Level (UL).
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