Paleo Diet and Paleolithic Diet Questions & Answers

Question

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Heres an observation:

I am currently on a working-travel-holiday in Australia. I have been more loose with my diet, a) because food prices here in Australia are really putting pressure on my savings and b) i have been succumbing to a few temptations lately (chocolate & beer, yes it tends to get boring here in kalgoorlie ... ).

Otherwise i have been restricting fruit and carbohydrates in general where and when possible, to be more flexible with meal timing (-> fasting) and to skip a meal or two just to save a few bucks. My meals consist mostly of a choice of meat or eggs, paired with heaps of veggies.

Recently, i copped a little injury on my right hands little finger (shaved off some skin while working in a warehouse). This injury became infected quickly (never happened to me before) and the infection persisted, healing only slowly despite me redressing the injury twice a day and applying disinfectant every time. 4 days ago, i got a cold and had a little fever. To combat this, i ate a total of 500g of lamb liver and 3 kiwis. 24h Hours later the Infection was literally gone and the wound had healed more than in the 7 days prior to my cold.

So here's my question: Since Vitamin C is essential for the body's ability to synthesize new protein (-> scurvy) i am wondering if it was the liver or the additional Vitamin C that sped up the healing process. Also, i wonder if my higher-than-usual consumption of sugars has upped my vitamin c requirements?

Any ideas appreciated!

flag	asked Jun 18 2011 at 4:03 Jan 761●3●8

Lucas Tafur · Accepted Answer · 2011-06-18 16:19:37Z UTC

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Yes, as meredith has stated, glucose and ascorbic acid compete for the same membrane receptor (GLUT). This produces a competitive inhibition for cellular uptake of ascorbic acid, reducing its levels. Intestinal transport is modulated by glucose. See:

http://www.ketotic.org/2011/03/ketomyths-ii.html

answered Jun 18 2011 at 16:19

Lucas Tafur
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	Is there any connection between low insulin effect through ketogenic or very low carb diets and impaired utilization of vitamin C? Particularly as it relates to collagen formation in joints, skin and bones? – none Jun 20 2011 at 2:46
	Awesome, thanks Ketotic. Exactly what i was looking for ... – Jan Jun 20 2011 at 13:31

EinRand · Answer 2 · 2011-06-18 07:10:41Z UTC

Had much the same experience with a tooth infection.

Had been zero carbing for way too long and was high on the dramatic weight loss. Besides potassium, vitamin C was severely lacking. Because of my carbophobia I was not eating enough green leafy vegetables so I tried supplementing with 500mg of Vitamin C, and the difference in rate of healing was dramatic (night and day).

So I vote yes. A high carb / sugar diet will dramatically increase the need for C. And a zero carb diet will enable one to go much longer without C. However, these are two extreme ends of the spectrum and perhaps optimal health is somewhere in the middle. I suspect therefore that eating low carb and including green leafy vegetables (ala a spinach salad) into the diet is the way to go. Short of that, popping a 500mg Vitamin C pill once in a while sure couldn't hurt.

none · Answer 3 · 2011-06-18 14:22:00Z UTC

Vitamin C uses much the same process as sugar to get into the cell. If you have a high sugar diet, then yes your needs would increase. There are only so many "doors" for these substances to enter the cell and if sugar is bullying it's way in, then the C has to wait it's turn, or not get in at all.

Diabetics are probably not absorbing other nutrients from the blood as well. Vitamin C is structurally similar to glucose and the vitamin has a short half-life in the blood stream. [*] It should concern medical professionals that vitamin C and glucose molecules share the same insulin-mediated tunneling mechanism into cells through the membrane.into cells through the membrane.

Sucrose / Glucose lowering Vitamin C levels?

3 Answers