Ascorbate: The Science of Vitamin C

"Ever wonder how wild animals like rabbits, squirrels, deer, etc. can live outside in cold weather and not catch colds while we humans routinely catch colds living in our warm dry houses? The answer is surprisingly simple: animals don't catch colds, or get any of a host of other illnesses which plaque humans, because most animals manufacture vitamin C every day and we humans don't. That's right, almost all animals except humans manufacture vitamin C in their bodies every day and they manufacture a lot of it -- a typical animal manufactures 20 mg of vitamin C every day for every pound it weighs. An animal weighing as much as a 150 lb. human would manufacture at least 3,000 mg of vitamin C daily and humans need about this much vitamin C too. But the government, and most physicians, tell us humans that we only need about 60 to 90 mgs of vitamin C daily. 60 to 90 mgs of vitamin C daily isn't enough vitamin C to keep a typical cat healthy, and is far short of what adult humans need. No wonder we humans catch colds in the winter and suffer from a variety of other ailments all year long. Fortunately some humans recognize the importance of vitamin C and take it as a supplement every day. Those who don't take supplemental vitamin C should do so, for a variety of health reasons which this excellent book discusses."
~ Written on 2007-04-15

"Books that discuss unconventional treatments often confront allopathic medicine and accuse it of conspiracy against the health of humanity. The topic of vitamin C is controversial and can easily be turned into the same old fight between the so called medical establishment and progressive allopaths.

I, however, was pleasantly surprised by this book. The facts regarding vitamin C are presented in a solid and ethical way. There is no unjustified claims, only well researched facts. There are more than five hundred references at the end of this text.

The authors are concentrating on application of ascorbate in "big three": infections, atherosclerosis and cancer, their prevention and treatment. They present biochemical basis for the action of ascorbate in each of these conditions, then results of animal experiments, followed by data from human trials. They draw very distinct line between the dosses needed for nutritional supplementation - i.e. to aviod the developments of scurvy - and pharmacological, or megadoses, that may be used to treat advanced conditions. Pharmacokinetics and toxicity of ascorbate is also well discussed.

I am a medical doctor, and enjoyed reading this book. It is well written and would be interesting for wide audience. I agree that vitamin C may have the potential for treatment of numerous medical conditions and there should be more research on it. "
~ Written on 2007-03-08

"This is arguably the most important book of the last 10 years.
and it takes huge courage to present this argument in the face of such establishment criticism. After all, look at how much Linus Pauling had to endure for his belief in Ascorbate and he was one of the most prominent scientists of his generation. Have times changed? NO, the establishment is still in control of our health and the statistics prove that they are doing an atrocious job.

ALL of the major dis-eases are increasing, and the icing on the cake is that new ones are emerging all the time. The time is now to take responsibility for your (and the childrens) health and nowhere is there a better place to start than with this fantastic book on Vitamin C. To finish heres a quote from Drs Emanuel Cheraskin, Marshall Ringsdorf and Emily Sisley

"There are more than TEN THOUSAND published SCIENTIFIC papers that make it quite clear that there is NOT ONE body process
(such as what goes on inside cells or tissues) and NOT ONE disease or syndrome (from the common cold to leprosy) that is not influenced - directly or indirectly - by Vitamin C"

If thats not enough to persuade you to learn about it then nothing will"
~ Written on 2006-02-24

"What a well written, courageous book this is. Courageous because the authors, two professors of medicine, explain in laymen's terms, exactly how science is incorporated into medical practice, and how mistakes and bias get filtered into the mix. After making this clear, they follow the vitamin C story from the very beginning and demonstrate exactly how medical science developed a "bizarre" and illogical pet hate for vitamin C, Pauling and all his disciples. (and ignored apparent benefits)

This will not endear them at all to the tightly knit medical profession, but is a distinct service to the public.

In an honest and fair approach, with no unscientific exaggeration of evidence, the authors explain both sides of the vitamin c "controversy" which wouldn't have been very controversial at all if larger doses had been tried.

They also explode the sacredness of the "large, randomized,double blind, clinical trial" and clearly show how silly it is to deny patients a GRAS (generally recognized as safe) treatment, shown to provide huge benefits, on the flimsy excuse that no large scale trial was performed. Clinical trials should be refuted or replicated to allow science to advance. Phony excuses do not advance science.

All the latest findings are here from Cathcart, Cameron, Riordan, Hoffer and other doctors on the leading edge of ascorbate therapy.

The vitamin C deficiency theory of heart disease, developed by Pauling and Rath, is analyzed and updated, and the latest cancer treatment methods are given.

This is a very important book that has the potential to save hundreds of thousands of lives, it should be placed in the libraries of every school in the country.

W.G. Whitney"
~ Written on 2005-03-24

" Utterly honest, easy to understand, "Ascorbate, The Science of Vitamin C" is a real treasure. The difference between a small anti-scurvy intake of vitamin C, a few milligrams per day, and a therapeutic dose of 10 grams or more per day is made crystal clear.
The complete lack of evidence for the RDA set by the FDA is revealed. The rapid elimination of vitamin C was shown graphically, thus the folly in the persistent use of multi-gram oral doses by inept researchers was exposed. Small doses must be taken orally, maybe every hour, to keep serum levels up. The increase in serum levels obtainable with injected, not oral, sodium ascorbate, the usual non-acidic salt of vitamin C, also called ascorbic acid, is explained well.
The flaws in the published studies intended to debunk the usefulness of vitamin C from The Mayo Clinic and The Heart Protection Study in the UK are spelled out in detail. Wrong doses, wrong dosage forms, mismatched control patients, etc., all combined to fail to prove that vitamin C is not effective in treating cancer or cardiovascular disease. The problems with these studies and others is explained in great detail, and you will be able to follow the reasoning of the authors.
Then it is less of a shock to learn that vitamin C can cure polio and prolong lifespan for those with AIDS and cancer, among other conditions. The studies by Pauling and Cameron on vitamin C for cancer believed invalid by mainstream medicine, were, in fact, as well done as was ethically practical, and were confirmed by unrelated researchers.
My only gripes with this book are the incompetent chemistry on page 63 and some of the explanations of ordinary chemical reactions. Neither hydroxyl radical nor hydroxide ion plus an electron will give water as shown. Neither charges nor atoms are balanced or accounted for. Many disease states were said to be caused by the presence too many free radicals without enough direct evidence or identification of which free radicals.
That done, my opinion is that this book should be required reading by a very wide audience. Referencing is done to a very high standard. The next edition should be superb."
~ Written on 2004-08-16