Ascorbic Acid

Here is an excerpt of what Dr. A. Szent-GyÖrgyi wrote to the respected British journal Nature one year before he received the Nobel Prize for the discovery of ascorbic acid which, by the conclusion of his own words, should not be considered to be vitamin C.

From the renowned British Journal Nature July 4, 1936 p. 27

Letters to the Editor:

Dr. A. Szent-GyÖrgyi

"Vitamin P: Flavanols as Vitamins"

"Various chemical and clinical observations have led to the assumption that ascorbic acid is accompanied in the cell by a substance of similar importance and related activity. In absence of both substances, the symptoms of lack of ascorbic acid (scurvy) prevail and conceal symptoms of the deficiency of the second substance. "... we have found that in certain pathological conditions, characterized by an increased permeability or fragility of the capillary wall, ascorbic acid is ineffective, while the condition can readily be cured by the administration of Hungarian red pepper ('vitapric') or lemon juice. "... Spontaneous bleeding ceased, the capillary walls lost their fragility towards pressure differences and no more plasma protein left the vascular system on increase venous pressure... We propose to give the name 'Vitamin P' to the substance responsible for the action on vascular permeability. "

Excerpt from the celebrated book by

Dr. A. Szent-GyÖrgyi

"Oxidation" Williams and Wilkins, Baltimore, 1939. pages 73-74. Published 2 years AFTER receiving the Nobel Prize for vitamin C&emdash;ascorbic acid.

"I am talking in such detail about this substance [ascorbic acid] because of a small accident that happened to us at that time. I had a letter from an

Austrian colleague who was suffering from a severe hemorrhagic diathesis (vascular type). He wanted to try ascorbic acid in his condition. Possessing at that time no sufficient quantities of crystalline ascorbic acid, I sent him a preparation of paprika that contained much ascorbic acid and the man was cured by it. Later with my friend, St. Rusznyak, we tried to produce the same therapeutical effect in similar conditions with pure ascorbic acid but we obtained no response. It was evident that the action of paprika was due to some other substance present in this plant…"

Vitamins, a book by Henry Borsook, PhD, MD. Professor of Biochemistry,

California Institute of Technology.

Viking Press. 1941. Pages 109-110.

"One of the clinical tests for latent (early) scurvy is the measurement of the resistance of the capillaries (microscopic blood vessels) in the skin to rupture when the pressure within them is artificially increased by the application of external pressure. In human scurvy the capillary resistance is low. After crystalline vitamin C, ascorbic acid, became commercially available, it was found in many cases that the capillary resistance count could not be increased even by administration of large does of the crystalline vitamin. On the other hand, lemon juice appears to be effective in improving this condition. One group of workers interprets these findings as evidence that there is another vitamin which is also important in the prevention and cure of human scurvy. They do not dispute the necessity of vitamin C (ascorbic acid), but their contention is that this other factor, which they call vitamin P, is also essential.

"Little is known at present regarding the properties of or distribution of this postulated vitamin P. It appears to be abundant in lemon juice and it is probably present in other citrus juices. Until the uncertainty regarding the actuality of vitamin P is removed, it is preferable whenever possible to use the natural antiscorbutic foods &endash;&emdash; the citrus and tomato juices and vegetables &endash;&emdash; rather than the pure crystalline vitamin.

Linus Pauling, PhD, was a strong advocate of ascorbic acid being used as a nutritional supplement as well as a pharmacological agent in the treatment of acute infectious diseases and malignant degenerative states. In the book, New Dynamics of Preventive Medicine, 1974,

Dr. Pauling is quoted as to the truth of what ascorbic acid is--contrary to what most people believe. He writes:

"It is worthwhile to take pure crystalline ascorbic acid. It is made from glucose (corn sugar). [boiling corn sugar with sulfuric acid] What is called rose hips vitamin C is the same pure crystalline ascorbic acid with a pinch of rose hips powder added. It is almost impossible to buy ascorbic acid from a natural source. The rose hip and acerolebarus ascorbic acid is out of the same barrel from Hoffman-LaRoche as the others, but with a pinch of rose hip powder." Dr. Pauling suggested 5000--10,000 mgs of ascorbic acid every day. However:

"Effects of Age and Intake on Vitamin C [ascorbic acid] Disposition in Females."

Blanchard J; Conrad KA; Garry PJ. Department of

Pharmaceutical Sciences, University of Arizona, Tucson 85721.