What is Vitamin C deficiency?
Vitamin C is also known as ascorbic acid and is found in citrus fruits like lemon, orange, etc. Depletion of vitamin c in the body causes a life-threatening disease called scurvy. Vitamin C is regarded as 1st line antioxidant i.e. it removes harmful oxides residues from the body. The population at risk of vitamin C deficiency are men who live alone, individuals at an advanced age, patients with psychiatric diseases, the homeless, and food faddists.
What are its main signs and symptoms?
- Weakness
- Muscle pain
- Joint pain
- Anaemia
- Swelling
- Shortness of breath
- Bleeding under skin
- Loss of teeth and mouth/tongue ulcers
- Swollen gums
- Inability of the wound to heal
- Irritation and anxiety in children
What are the main causes?
- Inadequate intake of vitamin C
- Fever
- Diarrhoea
- Smoking
- Hyperthyroidism
- Iron deficiency
- Cold/ Heat stress
- Surgery
- Burns
- Protein deficiency
- Alcohol or drug abuse
- Old age
How is it diagnosed and treated?
- The physician will perform tests to look for skin intactness and bleeding in gums after taking a detailed medical history and family history.
- The physician might perform vitamin C level test to confirm scurvy along with complete blood count.
- Complete blood check-up to assess time taken to stop bleeding and to identify the status of haemoglobin in body.
- X-ray of large bones like thigh bone to diagnose childhood scurvy.
- Physician might also perform bone marrow biopsy to rule out other diseases.
- MRI is done only if X-ray provides insufficient data.
Treatment:
- Vitamin C replacement is the treatment of choice. Within 2 weeks of treatment, symptoms start resolving.
- Ascorbic acid containing juices: fresh juices of oranges and lemon helps in replacement of vitamin C in body. Foods rich in vitamin C like broccoli, green peppers, spinach, tomato, potato, cauliflower and cabbage helps in retaining lost vitamin C levels.
- Vitamin C chewable tablets are easily available in the markets and help in the effective treatment of scurvy (vitamin C deficiency).