The DOI matches its Crossref record; 128 of the 132 references it cites were found in a registry or an index.
Vitamin C and the common cold
Open accessAbstract
The effect of vitamin C on the common cold has been the subject of several studies. These studies do not support a considerable decrease in the incidence of the common cold with supplemental vitamin C. However, vitamin C has consistently decreased the duration of cold episodes and the severity of symptoms. The benefits that have been observed in different studies show a large variation and, therefore, the clinical significance may not be clearly inferred from them. The biochemical explanation for the benefits may be based on the antioxidant property of vitamin C. In an infection, phagocytic leucocytes become activated and they produce oxidizing compounds which are released from the cell. By reacting with these oxidants, vitamin C may decrease the inflammatory effects caused by them. Scurvy, which is caused by a deficiency in vitamin C, is mostly attributed to the decreased synthesis of collagen. However, vitamin C also participates in several other reactions, such as the destruction of oxidizing substances. The common cold studies indicate that the amounts of vitamin C which safely protect from scurvy may still be too low to provide an efficient rate for other reactions, possibly antioxidant in nature, in infected people.
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“Vitamin C is an efficient water‐soluble antioxidant and the effects on the immune system can be explained by the protection against oxidative stress generated during infections (Akaike 2001; Castro 2006; Hemilä 1992).”
From Vitamin C for preventing and treating the common cold (2013) · cites this paper as Hemilä 1992
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Citations
Cites
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Hill (2014) · doi:10.1038/nrgastro.2014.66 · Cited by 9,592
Carr, A., & Maggini, S. (2017) · Nutrients · doi:10.3390/nu9111211 · Cited by 2,035
Exercise and the immune system: regulation, integration, and adaptation
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Vitamin C for preventing and treating the common cold
Hemilä, H., & Chalker, E. (2013) · Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews · doi:10.1002/14651858.cd000980.pub4 · Cited by 869
Hemilä, H. (2017) · Nutrients · doi:10.3390/nu9040339 · Cited by 461
Metadata
- Authors
- Hemilä, H.
- Affiliations
- University of Helsinki (FI)
- Corresponding author
- Hemilä, Harri
- ORCID
- Hemilä, Harri
- Venue
- British Journal Of Nutrition
- Publisher
- Cambridge University Press (CUP)
- Published
- 1992-01
- Volume
- 67
- Issue
- 1
- Pages
- 3-16
- ISSN
- 0007-1145 (ISSN-L)
- 1475-2662
- OpenAlex
- W2130604466
- Cited by
- 143
- References
- 132
- Citations by year
- 2026: 4 · 2025: 2 · 2024: 1 · 2023: 2 · 2022: 6 · 2021: 5 · 2020: 7 · 2019: 4 · 2017: 3 · 2015: 1 · 2014: 3 · 2013: 2 · 2012: 2
- FWCI
- 2.00
- Type
- journal article
- Language
- en
- Open access
- bronze
- doi.org
- Locations
- British Journal Of Nutrition (publishedVersion)
- PubMed (publishedVersion)
- Työväentutkimus Vuosikirja (submittedVersion)
- Työväentutkimus Vuosikirja (submittedVersion, other-oa)
- Topics
- Health Sciences › Nursing › Nutrition and Dietetics › Vitamin C and Antioxidants Research
- Health Sciences › Medicine › Biochemistry (medical) › Antioxidant Activity and Oxidative Stress
- Health Sciences › Medicine › Physiology (medical) › Exercise and Physiological Responses
- Keywords
- vitamin C, common cold, vitamin C supplementation, symptom severity, antioxidant activity, scurvy, collagen synthesis, phagocytes, oxidative stress, infection
- MeSH terms
- Antioxidants, Ascorbic Acid, Chemotaxis, Leukocyte, Clinical Trials as Topic, Common Cold, Dose-Response Relationship, Drug, Histamine Antagonists, Humans, Neutrophils, Phagocytosis, Time Factors
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