Vitamin C is essential for our body. Therefore, you must know what foods have it, also known as ascorbic acid, so that it is not lacking.
Through daily nutrition, and the diet that we ultimately follow each day, we provide our body with a great diversity of essential nutrients for the body, fundamental in short for our health.
Among the essential vitamins for the proper functioning of our body, mainly due to the different functions it performs and in which it participates, vitamin C stands out as one of the most important. In fact, did you know that it is involved in more than 300 biological processes, being also one of the most important for our immune system to function correctly and effectively?
Among the most important functions of vitamin C, we find that it is an essential nutrient that stands out for:
- It is necessary for growth and for tissue repair in all parts of the body.
- Helps heal wounds, and form scar tissue.
- Repairs and maintains bones, teeth and cartilage.
- Antioxidant that helps block some of the damage caused by free radicals.
Regarding whether or not vitamin C helps to cure colds and flu, although it is true that it is an essential nutrient that helps to increase defenses, the different scientific investigations that have been carried out They have shown that although it is true that they do not reduce the risk of contracting the common cold, nor do they cure it, it does help to have colds with somewhat milder symptoms, or for a shorter period of time.
Given that it is an essential vitamin, it is always useful to know which more foods rich in vitamin C are, and ultimately, what foods are those that contain vitamin C more.
Foods with the highest vitamin C content
1. Guava
100 grams of guava provide 270 mg. vitamin C. A delicious tropical fruit, very fleshy, green on the outside and red-orange on the inside, with a sweet but slightly acid flavor.
It is very rich in vitamins and antioxidants. From both a nutritional and medicinal point of view, it helps prevent cardiovascular and heart disease, while helping to control high cholesterol levels and lower high blood pressure.
2. Peppers
Although peppers, as a general rule, are foods very rich in vitamin C, we must differentiate between green peppers (or bell peppers), and red peppers. 100 grams of green peppers provide 80.4 mg. of vitamin C, while 100 grams of red peppers provide 118.6 mg. That is, red peppers provide more vitamin C than green peppers.
It also provides vitamin B6, B2, beta-carotene and vitamin E. It is an ideal food in the prevention of cancer, cardiovascular diseases and degenerative and chronic diseases. It also stands out for its lycopene content, a natural antioxidant with anti-cancer properties.
3. Kiwi
100 grams of kiwi provide 92.7 mg. vitamin C. It is a fruit that is especially rich in dietary fiber, so it becomes an ideal food in case of constipation, by helping to regulate intestinal transit.
It is also rich in an acid, known as a proteolytic, which helps improve blood circulation and reduces high cholesterol levels. On the other hand, it helps regulate carbohydrate metabolism, while acting as a general tonic. Hence, its consumption at breakfast is ideal.
4. Papaya
100 grams of papaya provide 60.9 mg. vitamin C. From a traditional point of view it also provides vitamins of group B, A and D, and minerals such as calcium, potassium and sodium.
The presence of papain stands out, an enzyme with interesting digestive qualities, especially useful that helps to maintain a healthy and healthy digestive system, with the ability to help us better digest the proteins we consume.
5. Oranges
100 grams of oranges provide 53.2 mg. vitamin C. Despite providing this amount of vitamin C, and being one of the foods that actually provides the least content of this essential nutrient, the reality is that orange has always been associated with this vitamin.
However, it is a very rich food from a nutritional point of view: it provides 60 types of flavonoids and 170 phytochemicals, which help reduce inflammation and prevent and fight cancer. In addition, it helps lower high cholesterol levels and reduce high blood pressure.
More foods rich in vitamin C
As we can see, it is essential to follow a diet rich in vitamin C every day, since it is the best way to ensure a correct – and sufficient – contribution of this vitamin.
But we must be careful, since being a somewhat unstable water-soluble vitamin, once the fruit is plucked from the tree it tends to lose many of its nutritional virtues, so it is best to consume it quickly. In addition, exposure to air and light can cause a decrease in this vitamin in fruits and vegetables.
However, what are the foods with the highest vitamin C content? We discover them:
Food | Amount (mg per 100 g.) |
Guava | 270 |
Peppers | 130 |
Papaya | 80 |
Kiwi | 70 |
Cabbages | 65 |
Cabbage | 67 |
Raspberry | 60 |
Lemon and orange | fifty |
Grapefruit | Four. Five |
Gerlos | 40 |
Mango | 38 |
Tangerine | 35 |
Turnips | 30 |
Spinach | 30 |
As we can see, it is essential not only to follow a healthy diet, but to consume fresh fruits and vegetables every day, which will ensure not only a correct intake of vitamin C, but also good and optimal health.