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It’s no secret that vitamin C plays a positive role when preventing getting a cold. But many parents might not know that vitamin C is a great way to prevent kids from respiratory infections. 

With the potential exposure of COVID-19 on the minds of many parents, now is the best time to take preventive measures. Be proactive when it comes to strengthening their immune system by making sure to add vitamin C into the kids’ daily diets. 

The Recommended Dietary Allowances for Vitamin C From National Institute of Health: 

• Babies 0 to 6 months: 40 mg 
• Babies 7 to 12 months: 50 mg 
• Children 1-3 years: 15 mg 
• Children 4-8: 25 mg 
• Children 9-13: 45 mg 
• Children 14-18: 75 mg 

Fighting Respiratory Infections 

Vitamin C has antioxidant properties, helping the body fight against toxins in air pollution. 

Clinical trials are currently underway based on the hypothesis that vitamin C infusion might help improve the condition of those with a severe acute respiratory infection like pneumonia or COVID-19. 

“Vitamin C is significant to the human body and plays a role in reducing the inflammatory response and preventing the common cold,” the study writes. “In addition, a few studies have shown that vitamin C deficiency is related to the increased risk and severity of influenza infections.” 

The study cites that vitamin C might also prevent damage to the lungs from cytokines, which are proteins released to respond to infection that cause inflammation. 

This was the very treatment used in Shanghai, China to try to treat coronavirus. The patients treated with vitamin C did better than those who did not receive it. While this was experimental, vitamin C is being used to treat patients battling coronavirus at hospitals in New York. 

These patients are given 1,500 mg of vitamin C intravenously three or four times a day. 

It remains unknown how effective this course of treatment is, but it’s important to note that vitamin C levels drop when the body is fighting off the coronavirus. This makes adding vitamin C into the body important for fighting off the illness and recovering. 

Vitamin C, in general, won’t prevent the cold or respiratory illness, but it can make symptoms fever when taken or reduce the length of the illness. 

Still, it plays a major role in immune cells and the overall health of the body. Vitamin C supports immune system cellular functions to make sure these cells are equipped to fight off infections. 

Its Vital Role 

Along with supporting cells of the immune system, vitamin C is crucial for children’s development. 

Vitamin C is needed for the formation of bones, skin, muscles, and cartilage. 

It is also important for the production of energy. Vitamin C is needed to make L-incarnadine, a naturally occurring amino acid that aids in the transport of fatty acids into the mitochondria of cells to be used as energy. 

The brain also needs vitamin C. Neurotransmitters to need the vitamin to convert dopamine to serotonin. It is also needed for cognitive function, which is important for growing minds. 

How To Increase Daily Intake 

Vitamin C is water-soluble, which means that the body does not store some for later when it needs it. This means it’s important that your kids get their recommended intake every day. 

It’s also not smart to consume too much vitamin C because of the threat of toxicity. The tolerable upper limit for kids 1- to 3-years-old is 400 mg and for 4- to 8—year-old 650 mg. 

The body does not provide vitamin C, which is why parents need to make sure their kids eat a diet high in vitamin C or provide them with a vitamin C supplement. 

Foods high in vitamin C include raw sweet peppers, which was 95 mg of vitamin C per 1/2 cup serving. Oranges, kiwi, broccoli, cantaloupe, and strawberries also are high in vitamin C. 

While many kids might not mind eating oranges and strawberries, getting them to eat Brussels sprouts of broccoli might not be so easy. Supplementing with the Gummy Cuties Echinacea, Vitamin C & Zinc chew able is a great way to assure kids are getting enough vitamin C. 

A serving of the kid's vitamins has 80 mg of vitamin C, along with 12.5 mg of echinacea, which also has added immune system boosting properties. 

Sources: 

https://ods.od.nih.gov/factsheets/VitaminC-HealthProfessional/#h2 

Hara Estroff Marano, The Cognitive Benefits of Vitamin C, Psychology Today, https:// www.psychologytoday.com/us/articles/201801/the-cognitive-benefits-vitamin-c 

Lorena Mongelli, New York hospitals treating coronavirus patients with vitamin C, NY Post, https://nypost.com/2020/03/24/new-york-hospitals-treating-coronavirus-patients-with-vitamin-c/ 

ZhiYong Peng , Vitamin C Infusion for the Treatment of Severe 2019-nCoV Infected Pneumonia, https://clinicaltrials.gov/ct2/show/NCT04264533 

The Benefits of Vitamin C: Why Your Child Needs It, Cleveland Clinic https:// health.clevelandclinic.org/the-benefits-of-vitamin-c-why-your-child-needs-it/