The role of vitamin C (ascorbic acid) in the prevention and therapy of oral diseases

摘要

It is known that a balanced nutrition is an important factor for human health and should include a sufficient shareof fruits and vegetables, especially with regard to their content of essential vitamins. One of them is vitamin C, which is found in certain fruits and vegetables in relatively high concentrations. Today, a vitamin C level of at least 0.9 mg/dl in the blood plasma is ranked as an efficient prophylactic dose. If this level is maintained, the risk of getting cancer, atherosclerosis and inflammatory diseases, among them gum diseases, is decreased. The pro-oxidant activity of vitamin C on oral cancer is also currently a major issue. As shown in the recent review by Putchala et al. in this volume of Archives of Oral Biology, a vitamin C concentration of 0.5-2 mM is considered to be a sufficient dose to produce pro-oxidant associated cytotoxic effects on neoplastic cells in humans. Current studies report that in industrial nations, 10-25% of the population have insufficient ascorbic acid plasma levels.