The information here is pulled from one of the sections of Chapter 3
in the book Vitamin C, Infectious Diseases, and Toxins by Thomas
E. Levey, MD, JD, with additional information from the abstracts of the
referenced medical studies. I am quoting (the indented sections) from
the book, but I am including the references for each pertinent piece with
the appropriate section, rather than at the end of the section as Dr.
Levey does in the book.
This is not to say that vitamins will prevent the *pain* associated with
UV exposure that some of us get when we're out during the day, but it
will reduce or eliminate any actual physical UV damage and sunburn that
we get. As with all things, the key is the proper amounts: Vitamin C in
powder or capsule form, rather than hard tablets to start with. The amount
you'll need will depend on your body's requirement for vitamin C and what
form you're taking it in. Tablets, I'd recommend crushing them and mixing
them in orange juice or something. You'll probably need more of the tablet
form than the other two. Powdered gives you fastest results, because it
mixes well with drinks, even though it makes them sour. :) Remember bowel
tolerance levels for Vitamin C.
Anyway, here's the pertinent bits I thought would be useful here. The
bits highlighted in blue are what I found particularly interesting
and relevant, in the context of what I have quoted:
While not a physical substance in the sense of other toxins discussed,
radiation is very much a toxic agent that has very clear and pronounced
toxic effects. Like the other toxins discussed,
the evidence shows clearly that vitamin C can help to prevent the damage
induced by radiation and repair the damage that had already occurred
from a previous radiation exposure. The specific type of radiation
being addressed here is "ionizing radiation", as distinguished
from "nonionizing radiation". The nonionizing type includes
radiation such as light, radio waves and radar waves. This kind of radiation
is generally considered harmless because the effects of such radiation
are not pronounced and immediately measurable with current technology.
On the other hand, ionizing radiation produces destructive effects,
usually measurable as a flood of free radicals including other indicators
of oxidative stress and immediate cellular damage. Typical examples
of ionizing radiation include X-rays, gamma rays, and particle bombardments
from neutrons, electrons, protons or mesons. Glossary
[skipped: section on gamma radiation and vitamin
C's role in preventing radiation sickness - the paragraphs and the studies
referenced dealt with the effects of radiation in cancer treatments
and things like radioactive fallout. I personally find it fascinating
background information, but it draws attention away from the point here.
~Sphynx]
Although not technically classified as a form
of ionizing radiation, ultraviolet (UV) light appears to cause a similar
type of tissue damage. However, the wavelength of UV light does
not allow for great tissue penetration, and the damage inflicted is
largely limited to the skin or eyes. Vitamin C
appears to play a significant role in lessening this type of radiation
damage as well.
Mireles-Rocha et al. (2002) noted that UV radiation absorption is responsible
for the production of free radicals glossary
in damaged cells. These are the skin cells that become sunburned when
exposed to excessive UV radiation. In a trial on healthy human volunteers,
the authors looked at the minimal UV dose needed to cause skin reddening
(the early stage of sunburn). They found that
vitamin C and vitamin E taken orally offered significant protection
against this form of radiation damage.
[These effects were
seen with 2,000mg of Vitamin C in Ascorbic Acid form, and 1,2000 I.U.'s
of vitamin E taken in combination for 7 days. ~Sphynx]
Study Authors: Mireles-Rocha,
H., I. Galindo, M. Huera, B. Trujillo-Hernandez, A. Elizadle, and
R. Cortes-Franco
Year of Study: 2002
Study Summary: UVB photoprotection with antioxidants:
effects of oral therapy with d-alpha-tocopherol and ascorbic acid
on the minimal erythema dose.
Published in: Acta Dermato-Venereologica
82(1):21-24
Click for abstract in PubMed
/ MedLine
Eberlein-Konig et al. (1998) performed a similar study in a double-blind,
placebo-controlled manner. Glossary They
also found that a vitamin C and vitamin E combination taken orally reduced
the free radical-induced sunburn reaction.
[Quoting from the study itself: "OBJECTIVE:
Our purpose was to assess the protective effect of systemic vitamins
C and E against sunburn in human beings.......CONCLUSION: Combined vitamins
C and E reduce the sunburn reaction, which might indicate a consequent
reduced risk for later sequelae of UV-induced skin damage..." The
effective dosages used in this study were 2,000mg of Vitamin C and 1,000
I.U. of Vitamin E for 8 days. ~Sphynx]
Study Authors: Eberlein-Konig,
B., M. Placzek, and R. Przybilla
Year of study: 1998
Study Summary: Protective effect against sunburn of
combined systemic ascorbic acid (vitamin C) and d-alpha-tocopherol
(vitamin E).
Published in: Journal of the American
Academy of Dermatology 38(1):45-48
Click for abstract in PubMed
/ MedLine
Similar research has been conducted on the protective effects of vitamin
C against UV-induced skin damage in animals. Moison and Beijersbergen
van Henegouwen (2002) found that a topical (versus
ingested) application of vitamins C and E provided complete protection
against the increase in lipid peroxidation (oxidatitive stress, or free
radicals) induced by the exposure of pig skin to UVB (Ultraviolet light,
type B) exposure.
[This study used eicosapentaenoic acid (an
Omega 3 fatty acid found in fish oil) in combination with Vitamin C
and E applied to the skin. No dosage amounts were listed in the abstract.
~Sphynx]
Study Authors: Moison, RM. and
Beijersbergen van Henegouwen GM (2002)
Year of Study: 2002
Study Summary: Topical antioxidant
vitamins C and E prevent UVB-radiation-induced peroxidation of eicosapentataenoic
acid in pig skin.
Published in: Radiation
Research 157(4):402-409
Click for abstract in PubMed
/ MedLine
Kobayashi et al. (1996) examined the UVB-induced increase in free radicals
and inflammation in mouse skin. They found that
injecting a vitamin C derivative prior to UVB exposure significantly
reduced a number of laboratory indices of increased oxidative stress.
[This study used a ratio of 100mg per kilogram
(I think 1kg=2.2 pounds?) of body weight, injected intraperitoneally
(into the abdominal cavity?). ~Sphynx]
Study Authors: Kobayashi, S.,
M. Takehana, S. Itoh, and E. Ogata
Year of study: 1996
Study Summary: Protective effect
of Magnesium-L-ascorbyl-2 phosphate against skin damage induced by
UVB irradiation.
Published in: Photochemistry
and Photobiology 64(1):224-228
Click for abstract in PubMed
/ MedLine
Neumann et al. (1999) utilized a new biological model for determining
the toxicity of ultraviolet light using the embryonic yolk sacs of incubated
hen eggs. Although UVB alone induced "severe
phototoxic damage", vitamin C "led to a significant and remarkable
reduction of the UVB-induced damage." Interestingly, other
anti-inflammatory agents were also tested. Aspirin was less effective
than vitamin C, and indomethacin, a strong prescription anti-inflammatory
drug, showed no protection at all against the UVB-induced toxic effects.
Study Authors: Neumann, N.,
E. Holzle, M. Wallerand., S. Vierbaum, T. Ruzicka and P. Lehmann.
Year of Study: 1999
Study Summary: The photoprotective
effect of ascorbic acid, acetylsalicylic acid, and indomethacin evaluated
by the photo hen's egg test.
Published in: Photodermatology,
Photoimmunology & Photomedicine 15(5):166-170
In studies of the protective effect of vitamin C against UVB toxicity
on cells or bacteria in culture, the results were similar to those noted
above. In human skin cells, Miyai et al. (1996) looked at a
"stable derivative" of vitamin C, finding the derivative improved
cell survival significantly after UVB exposure. There were also
less large DNA fragments in the debris of cells that were killed.
[Study shows protective effect of the vitamin
C derivative against UV-B induced damage to the skin. ~Sphynx]
Study Authors: Miyai, E., M.
Yanagida, J. Akiyama, and I. Yamamoto
Year of Study: 1996
Study Summary: Ascorbic acid 2-O-alpha-glucoside,
a stable form of ascorbic acid, rescues human kerotinocyte cell line,
SCC, from cytotoxicity of ultraviolet light B.
Published in: Biological
& Pharmaceutical Bulletin 19(7):984-987
Click for abstract in PubMed
/ MedLine
In a species of photosynthetic bacteria exposed to UVB, He and Hader
found that vitamin C "exhibited a significant protective effect
on lipid peroxidation and DNA strand breaks." They
also found that the presence of vitamin C resulted "in a considerably
higher survival rate" among the irradiated bacteria."
[The dosages used were not mentioned in the
abstract. Vitamin C - Ascorbic Acid form - was used in combination with
N-acetyl-L-cysteine (NAC), and makes the observation that Vitamin C
protects the DNA strands. ~Sphynx]
Study Authors: He, YY and Hader,
DP
Year of Study: 2002
Study Summary: UV-B-induced formation
of reactive oxygen species and oxidative damage of the cyanobacterium
Anabaena sp.: protective effects of ascorbic acid and N-acetyl-L-cysteine.
Published In: Journal
of Photochemistry and Photobiology. B, Biology 66(2):115-124
Click for abstract in PubMed
/ MedLine
UV light, like ionizing radiation, can also induce genetic damage and
ultimately cause cancer. Dreosti and McGown (1992) observed that vitamin
C pretreatment significantly lessened the microscopic evidence of chromosomal
damage in irradiated mice and irradiated mouse spleen cells (in
vivo and in vitro). glossary
[Study used Vitamin C and Vitamin E in combination,
and was given prior to radiation exposure. No dosages were mentioned
in the abstract. ~Sphynx]
Study Authors: Dreosti, I. and
M. McGown
Year of Study: 1992
Study Summary: Antioxidants and
UV-induced genotoxicity.
Published in: Research
Communications in chemical Pathology and Pharmacology 75(2):251-254
Click for abstract in PubMed
/ MedLine
Dunham et al. (1982) looked at the effects of supplemented vitamin
C on the incidence of UV light-induced skin cancers in mice. They
found that vitamin C afforded a "pronounced effect" in "decreasing
the incidence and delaying the onset of the malignant lesions"
in the mice studied."
[The study used the L-ascorbic acid form of
Vitamin C in 3 different dosage levels - .03%, 5% and 10% (percentage
of WHAT is not mentioned in the abstract...) - Vitamin C was observed
to both delay the onset of, and reduce the number of, malignant lesions.
(They take longer to show up, and there's less of them, as compared
to the control group.) ~Sphynx]
Study Authors: Dunham, W., E.
Zuckerkandl, R. Reynolds, R. Willoughby, R. Marcuson, R. Barth, and
L. Pauling.
Year of Study: 1982
Study Summary: Effects of intake
of L-ascorbic acid on the incidence of dermal neoplasms induced in
mice by ultraviolet light.
Published in: Proceedings
of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America
79(23):7532-7536
Click for abstract in PubMed
/ MedLine
[Skipped: Author's information about radioactive
fallout and chapter conclusions. ~Sphynx]
double-blind
A kind of clinical study in which neither the participants nor
the person administering treatment know which treatment any particular
subject is receiving. Usually the comparison is between an experimental
drug and a placebo or standard comparison treatment. This method is
believed to achieve the most accuracy because neither the doctor nor
the patient can affect the observed results with their psychological
bias. (In practice, sometimes the results of who has the drug and who
doesn't are unavoidably obvious.)
electrons
Stable elementary particles having the smallest known negative
charge, present in all elements; also called negatrons. Positively charged
electrons are called positrons. The numbers, energies and arrangement
of electrons around atomic nuclei determine the chemical identities
of elements. Beams of electrons are called cathode rays or beta rays,
the latter being a high-energy biproduct of nuclear decay.
free
radicals
Highly reactive molecules with an unsatisfied electron valence
pair. Free radicals are produced in both normal and pathological processes.
They are proven or suspected agents of tissue damage in a wide variety
of circumstances including radiation, damage from environment chemicals,
and aging. Natural and pharmacological prevention of free radical damage
is being actively investigated. Lipid peroxidation and oxidatitive stress
are terms that mean similar, if not exactly the same, thing as free
radicals.
gamma
rays
Very powerful and penetrating, high-energy electromagnetic radiation
of shorter wavelength than that of X-rays. They are emitted by a decaying
nucleus, usually between 0.01 and 10 mev. They are also called nuclear
X-rays.
In
Vivo
Within the living body. (Generally means a live test subject.)
In
Vitro
Within a glass, observable in a test tube, in an artificial environment.
mesons
Short-lived elementary particles found in cosmic radiation or
produced from nuclear disintegration. Their mass is between that of
protons and electrons and they can be negative, positive, or neutral.
Pi-mesons (pions) are heavier than mu-mesons (muons) and are proposed
for cancer radiotherapy because their capture and disintegration by
matter produces powerful, but short-lived, secondary radiation.
neutrons
Electrically neutral elementary particles found in all atomic
nuclei except light hydrogen; the mass is equal to that of the proton
and electron combined and they are unstable when isolated from the nucleus,
undergoing beta decay. Slow, thermal, epithermal, and fast neutrons
refer to the energy levels with which the neutrons are ejected from
heavier nuclei during their decay.
oxidative
stress
A highly oxidized environment within cells that is thought to promote
HIV replication because cells are forced into a highly activated state
due to loss of control of their regulatory systems.
placebo
<pharmacology> Any dummy medical treatment, originally,
a medicinal preparation having no specific pharmacological activity
against the patients illness or complaint given solely for the psychophysiological
effects of the treatment, more recently, a dummy treatment administered
to the control group in a controlled clinical trial in order that the
specific and nonspecific effects of the experimental treatment can be
distinguished i.e., the experimental treatment must produce better results
than the placebo in order to be considered effective.
protons
Stable elementary particles having the smallest known positive
charge, found in the nuclei of all elements. The proton mass is less
than that of a neutron. A proton is the nucleus of the light hydrogen
atom, i.e., the hydrogen ion.
