Is That IV Bag of Vitamin C Actually Good For You, And Worth The Spend?

How About The Vitamin C Pills You May Take?

I spent two hours on the internet trying to figure out what is in the bag of IV ascorbic acid, which you are told is Vitamin C.

I wanted to know how it’s made, and how close it really is to the actual vitamin we know to be important for many functions in the human body.

Now I know that foods high in Vitamin C are brightly colored fruits and vegetables. So, why is that IV bag clear in color, like water, and other IV drugs?

Well, whatever you think about whether IV vitamin C works, the fact is, this product has been made in China from synthetic ingredients since the 1960’s.

The ingredients include not just a cheap, synthetic version of ascorbic acid derived from genetically modified corn, extracting just the dextrose—but it also uses solvents like acetone, which is nail polish remover.

In fact, there are five chemical processes the product goes through, before it ends up in that IV bag.

I take just one Vitamin C supplement because it’s not ascorbic acid; I don’t take it every day because I already eat a whole-foods diet high in Vitamin C.

But because there’s some evidence that taking large doses of Vitamin C is useful when you have symptoms of illness, the only Vitamin C I take is by a brand called Pure Radiance, where the ingredients are camu camu, amla berries, rose hips, and other whole superfoods, mostly berries–where I’m not getting a synthetic product.

Since that synthetic ascorbic acid is highly acidic and not tolerated well by the human blood vessels and would upset your stomach, they add equally synthetic sodium ascorbate in an amount equal to the ascorbic acid, to buffer the acids.

Anyway, these are the reasons I’m rather suspicious of the IV bags of “Vitamin C.” I also did a deep dive into the research on the benefits of IV ascorbic acid:

Some data shows that septic patients in the hospital survive at higher rates if they’re given IV “Vitamin C,” and a few claim that it saves lives.

These studies are mostly done by Dr. Paul Marik, whom I believe to be a wonderful doctor with good intentions.

I might not refuse it if I were septic in the E.R. Even if I wish the hospital room were just juicing fruits and vegetables, and putting it in a feeding tube, if I’m so far gone that I need a feeding tube.

I’m sure my family members would make the juice, but the doctor and nurses would not do it.

Other data disputes Marik’s findings, though, a LOT of evidence actually–and the FDA has not approved its use for cancer, sepsis, or many other illnesses.

You may say, well if it’s not approved by the FDA, who cares, they keep a lot of helpful information and resources from us.

I agree, and many believe the use of high doses of Vitamin C may be useful when we get sick, but I just want to point out from my research that

(a) it’s not easy to find out how the product is made, give it a Google yourself;

(b) when you find that information, it took me two hours, after all, searching on dozens of terms–you’ll discover it’s highly synthetic, and is made from GMO corn, and

(c) you’ll learn that buffering chemicals and solvents, chemicals like acetone are also in that IV bag–again, that’s nail polish remover.

There’s the expensive form of “Vitamin C” in an intravenous bag, using a needle injected into your vein. And then there’s the fact that 99%+ of the “Vitamin C” sold out there for oral use is just ascorbic acid, which in this case again, is derived from GMO corn using petrochemical solvents.

I hate to tell you that Pharma companies make this stuff, and sell the synthetic process in 44-gallon drums to thousands of companies who make supplements. Then hundreds of thousands of doctors, clinics, and influencers put their label on it, to sell to you.

Some people will point out that Linus Pauling won a Nobel Prize for discovering that ascorbic acid helps against cancer.

But can I just point out that first of all, Linus Pauling then died of cancer; and second, many other researchers who came after him did not achieve the beneficial effects in their own studies of this highly processed and synthetic derivative of corn that requires the use of several petrochemical solvents.

So, just a plug for getting your Vitamin C from citrus, berries, and other fruits, the way your body was designed to receive and absorb it–

–as well as colorful vegetables like red and yellow bell peppers and most other fruits and veggies and plant foods.

Ask any doctor selling IV’s or “Vitamin C” supplements what the product is actually made of, and what kind of processing and chemicals are involved in making it. Expect them to say words, without actually giving you any clear answer.

Again, the only brand I buy is Pure Radiance from The Synergy Company, where the ingredients are not ascorbic acid, but actually are the superfoods and whole foods highest in Vitamin C.

I have no affiliation with Pure Synergy, and make no money telling you about them.

In fact, it was on their website that I finally found the information I was looking for, about how that ascorbic acid product is made, after searching online for two hours.

If you’d rather watch, versus read, I’ve made a video about this subject here.

Thanks for your support of my blog post. If you find value here, please consider being a paid subscriber at $10/month. I cannot do all the work you see from me, without my amazing staff. I’d do this for free, but they get a salary. Many thanks!