Tuesday, April 4 — Today is Vitamin C Day, celebrated — if that’s the word — every April 4 on the anniversary of the isolation of this vitamin. The breakthrough was made in 1932 by two doctors at the University of Pittsburgh. Before then, people knew that eating citrus fruit and fresh greens warded off certain diseases, such as scurvy, but didn’t know why. Also known as ascorbic acid, vitamin C is required to sustain human life. Studies have shown that people with a high daily intake of vitamin C seem to gain protection against immune system deficiencies, cardiovascular disease, eye disease and even skin wrinkling. Health benefits have Americans popping a large assortment of pills. At the wholesale level, sales of vitamins and nutritional supplements top $30 billion per year.
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