Ultimate Vegan Vitamin C & Zinc

Zinc is a metallic element that does lots of important things around the body. It helps to make new cells and enzymes, and plays an important role in processing the nutrients in our food. It’s also essential for normal growth and development .

Another benefit of zinc is that it helps our immune system function properly, and plays a role in wound healing. Zinc also helps with good eyesight.

The symptoms of a zinc deficiency in adults include:

Loss of appetite

Weight loss

Diarrhoea

Getting sick more often

Lack of energy

Hair loss

Skin rashes

The NHS recommends that adult men should have 9.5 milligrams (mg) and adult women should have 7 milligrams (mg) of zinc each day. The good news is, if you eat a healthy and balanced diet, your daily meals should include all the zinc you need.

If you don’t eat animal products, you should still be able to get all the zinc you need from the following foods:

Nuts

Wholegrain cereals (e.g. wholegrain bread)

Pulses like beans, lentils, and peas

Spinach

Fortified breakfast cereals

Zinc aside, it’s a great idea to have these foods in your diet, as they are packed with fibre, protein, and important nutrients.

Vitamin C helps your body absorb iron and generally does not interfere or compete with other vitamins, so unlike taking calcium and magnesium - which compete with each other for absorption - you can safely combine vitamin C and zinc.

Certain nutrients especially taken in larger doses like iron, vitamin c or zinc on an empty stomach can make you feel dizzy. Basically, these nutrients can irritate your lining of your stomach leading to nausea and stomach upset. Thus, it is suggested to consume them along with the food.

The signs of vitamin C deficiency include increased bruising, ageing, poor skin condition, bleeding gums, fatigue and brain fog. Poor or low vitamin C status may be brought on by poor diet, cultural practices, the season, the climate, and socio-economic factors. Other common factors which can causes an individual to have greater vitamin C requirements, are smoking, excessive alcohol intake, and pollution.

The minimum recommended intake for an adult is 40mg, however larger doses have been used in research.  It is considered that an individual can absorb approximately 250mg of vitamin C at any one time, consequently as vitamin C is a water-soluble vitamin, any excess would leave the body in urine. For general health 100-500mg daily can be supportive of skin, gums, teeth, bones, blood vessels, psychological and central nervous system function. However, at the onset of an infection up to 2000mg daily may be beneficial.