Smokers have much lower levels of vitamin C compared to non-smokers, psychiatrist and addiction specialist Ruslan Isaev warns.
Vitamin C acts as a key antioxidant that neutralizes harmful free radicals. Smoking accelerates the depletion of this vitamin because the combustion products of tobacco trigger intense oxidative stress. As a result, the metabolism of ascorbic acid speeds up, and the vitamin is excreted from the body more quickly than usual, the specialist said in an interview with Gazeta.Ru.
Given these effects, Isaev recommends that smokers increase their daily vitamin C intake by approximately 35 milligrams to help offset the rapid depletion of reserves and prevent deficiency.
Despite the recommendation, maintaining vitamin balance does not protect smokers from the destructive impact of tobacco on the lungs and heart. While extra vitamin C may compensate for faster depletion, it does not neutralize the long-term harm smoking causes to the cardiovascular and respiratory systems.
“Vitamin C can compensate for accelerated loss, but it cannot cancel out the destructive impact of tobacco smoke on health,” the specialist concluded.
