Vitamin C Essay, Research Paper

Supplementing Vitamin C: Essential To Good Health

Millions of Americans depend on vitamins. Vitamins are what gives you a boost and helps you start your morning right. In this report I will discuss different kinds of vitamins, where vitamins come from, how vitamins help you, oranges, and my lab results.

Ascorbic acid, also called vitamin C is an organic compound needed by humans to prevent scurvy and to increase the body’s resistance to infections (Encarta1). Ascorbic acid acts as an antioxidant. It is also essential for sound bones and teeth. The average amount of Vitamin C that an adult should obtain is 50-56 mg a day, the average a child should obtain is 40-45mg per day.

Ascorbic acid also has unpleasant side effects. Megadoses of the vitamin can cause diarrhea and irritation of the urinary track. Some scientist say Vitamin C is useless other scientists say it is harmful.

Vitamin C is found in cantaloupes, citrus fruits, potatoes raw cabbage, strawberries, and tomatoes. It is not a proven fact but some people say that cooking these fruits and vegetables drains the Vitamin C from the fruit or vegetable.

In my experiment I tested different brands of orange juice to see which had the most amount of Vitamin C. The brands I tested were Tropicana, Minute maid, Big Y, and Stop and shop. To test for Vitamin C I needed Tropicana orange juice, Minute Maid orange juice, Big Y orange juice and, Stop & Shop orange juice, Iodine, a beaker, starch, graduated cylinder, plastic spoon, filter, and an eyedropper. First I pored 25 mls of Tropicana orange juice in a graduated cylinder then I pored that into a beaker than added 5 grams of starch then add iodine one drop at a time until color changes repeated this procedure for the other brands of orange juice. My results were as follows Minute Maid No. one eleven drops, Minute Maid No. two thirteen drops. The average number of drops was twelve. After that I used big Y, big Y No. one was ten, big Y No. two was thirteen, the average was eleven. After that I used Tropicana, Tropicana No. one was ten, Tropicana No. two was also ten giving it and average of ten. Then stop and shop, Stop & Shop No. one was eight, Stop & Shop No. two was ten, and the average was nine.

The results of my experiment lead me to believe that in brand testing that minute maid has the most Vitamin C of the brands I tested it took twelve drops of iodine to change color. Next was Big Y with eleven drops. Then Tropicana with ten, and finally Stop&Shop with nine drops.

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