Sodium Ascorbate

Are you getting enough vitamin C? If your diet isn't balanced and you're feeling run down, a supplement may help. One way to gain vitamin C benefits is to take sodium ascorbate, a supplement form of ascorbic acid — otherwise known as vitamin C.

Sodium ascorbate is considered as effective as other forms of vitamin C supplementation. This drug enters the blood 5-7 times faster than ordinary vitamin C, accelerates the movement of cells and stays in the body for a longer time, and increases the level of white blood cells 2-7 times higher than ordinary vitamin C. Along with the sodium vitamin C option, additional options for getting extra "C" include regular ascorbic acid and calcium ascorbate. Both calcium ascorbate and sodium ascorbate are mineral salts of ascorbic acid.

Many are quite reluctant in taking ascorbic acid or the so- called ordinary or “acidic” Vitamin C because of its potential effect in irritating the lining of the stomach of susceptible individuals. Thus, vitamin C is buffered or neutralized with the mineral sodium as the salt of vitamin C to become sodium ascorbate. Labelled as the non-acidic vitamin C, sodium ascorbate is in alkaline or buffered form, therefore it will cause less stomach irritation as compared with ascorbic acid.

Sodium ascorbate delivers the same benefits of vitamin C to the human body without causing the possible gastric irritating effects of ascorbic acid.

Both calcium ascorbate and sodium ascorbate provide about 890 milligrams of vitamin C in a 1,000-milligram dose. As you might expect from their names, the rest of the supplement in sodium ascorbate consists of sodium, while calcium ascorbate supplement provides extra calcium.

Other forms of vitamin C supplement include those that combine a form of vitamin C with other needed nutrients. Your options include potassium ascorbate, zinc ascorbate, magnesium ascorbate and manganese ascorbate. There are also products available which combine ascorbate acid with flavonoids, fats or metabolites. These products are often promoted as intensifying the effect of the vitamin C.

Sodium ascorbate is available in capsule and powder form, in various strengths. Whichever form and dose you choose, it's helpful to know that going beyond 1,000 milligrams may not provoke anything other than unwanted side effects.