Vitamin C-rich foods: Recipe for healthy college students (2024)

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Feeling tired and catching a cold are two of the most common health complaints of college life. Getting enough vitamin C, by eating healthy snacks rich in vitamin C can help.

Studying does require extra energy, especially when added to work demands. Plus, viruses, the kind that infects humans (not computers) tend to invade campuses.

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Table of Contents

Vitamin C synergy
Vitamin C and immunity
Mood and beauty
- More health benefits
How much vitamin C?
Physical signs you're not getting enough vitamin C
Summary
Broccoli Cheese Potato Bake

Vitamin C synergy

Vitamin C helps the body use the iron from plant foods (non-heme iron), and--equally important for fighting fatigue--it's necessary for the production of a compound called carnitine.

When your body runs out of carbohydrates, carnitine lets you use fatty acids for energy. (Although some people take carnitine supplements to burn fat, evidence supporting the use of these supplements is weak.)

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Vitamin C-rich foods: Recipe for healthy college students (2)

Vitamin C and immunity

When it comes to defending against viruses, vitamin C boosts the immune system and is especially helpful when you are under stress--and aren’t college students usually highly stressed!

It doesn’t, however, keep you from catching a cold unless you take it as a daily preventive, before exposure.

It will not put the kibosh on a cold when taken after getting sick although some evidence shows that it shortens a cold’s length and severity. Perhaps this is because it destroys histamine--the cause of watery eyes and runny noses.

Mood and beauty

Vitamin C may make you happier and better-looking.

It prompts collagen production, which creates strong connective tissue, heals wounds, and nourishes your skin.

Vitamin C-rich foods: Recipe for healthy college students (3)

Because it performs antioxidant actions, scavenging free radicals, some research touts it as anti-aging. Free radicals are damaged compounds created by reactions in our cells that are a cause of aging.

Credit: Sunny Ng on Unsplash

More health benefits

Other benefits of this happy vitamin are that it can lower blood pressure and risk factors for heart disease.

How much vitamin C?

The DRI (Daily Reference Intake) for adults is 75 mg for women and 90 mg for men. An orange has about 60 mg of vitamin C while a baked potato, including the skin, has 20 mg. (A small serving of McDonald’s French fries contains 12 mg.)

Most supplements have a minimum of 250 mg, which is more than the DRI. The Upper Limit is 2,000 mg although higher amounts may be okay when intake is gradually increased.

Symptoms of vitamin C overload include nausea and diarrhea. (Kidney stones are another suspected side effect of too much vitamin C!)

A lower percentage of vitamin C is absorbed when you take mega doses (usually as a supplement since it is difficult to eat 30 oranges in one sitting). Absorption is also less in cigarette smokers, whose daily needs for the vitamin are increased by 35 mg.

Physical signs you're not getting enough vitamin C

If you're low in vitamin C, you might notice what appears to be a rash, small reddish spots caused by the breakage of capillaries. Another sign is easy bruising and curly/corkscrew hairs on your arms, face, and other body surfaces.

A study of college students and vitamin C performed some years ago showed that many do not get enough because they don't eat many fruits and veggies.

Oranges and clementines are juicy, healthy snacks for college students. Sweet strips of colored bell peppers are another healthy snacking option with loads of vitamin C.

Here is a sampling of high vitamin C fruits and veggies.

Kiwi fruit, 1 medium	75 mg
🌶 Red chili pepper (1)	65 mg
Yellow sweet pepper (½ cup)	137 mg
Kale, 1 c raw	80 mg
🍓 Strawberries, 1 c	89 mg

Reduced cancer risk is yet another reason to load up on vitamin C-rich fruits and veggies. Vitamin C has been linked with fewer cancers of the mouth, esophagus, and pharynx, according to studies and reviews of literature.

Summary

Seeking out vitamin C daily in foods or low-dose supplements (ascorbic acid) will improve the function of many systems within your body.

Making vitamin C-rich foods and beverages could pay dividends in increased energy and improved mood and skin. It may even help you avoid diseases from the common cold to cancer.

Note: Nutrition takes time to work its magic. Just as one day of weight lifting won’t result in a bodybuilder’s physique, a single day of good nutrition will not immediately cure disease.

Consistent healthy eating, however, leads to better well-being.

Eating healthy food fills your body with energy and nutrients. Imagine your cells smiling back at you and saying: “Thank you!”
Karen Salmansohn

Here’s a fast microwave recipe featuring russet potatoes that has plenty of vitamin C. It's actually full of all kinds of nutrition, including iron and calcium, which are best absorbed from plant foods when paired with vitamin C!

Broccoli Cheese Potato Bake

Jani H. Leuschel

Equipment

1 small bowl or microwavable container
1 fork
1 mashing tool, such as a potato masher (optional)
1 large spoon or spatula
1 microwaveable plate, large

Ingredients

4 ounces frozen broccoli florets, ¼ of a 16-ounce package
2 russet potatoes, medium
½ cup sharp Cheddar cheese, shredded
2 teaspoons butter
olive oil, for rubbing the potato skins
salt and pepper, as desired for flavor

Instructions

Wash hands thoroughly for 20 seconds.
Place broccoli florets in a small, microwave-safe bowl. Cook on high power for about 3 minutes with a couple of tablespoons of water, until soft. Drain.
Wash potatoes and pierce each in several places with a fork. Rub with olive oil.
On a microwave-safe plate, cook potatoes on high power for 12 to 14 minutes, flipping halfway through cooking.
At the end of the cook time, potatoes should feel very tender. If not, continue to microwave (high power) in intervals of 1 minute and 30 seconds. When done, let the potatoes rest briefly.
While potatoes are cooking, cut the butter into four pieces and scatter over the cooked broccoli. Season with a pinch of salt and mash until you get a slightly chunky consistency.
When potatoes have finished cooking, split them open in the center and score the inside. Loosen the insides with a fork. Mix half the mashed, buttered broccoli into the flesh of each potato.
Top with cheese and microwave at high power briefly, up to two minutes, to melt the cheese on both potatoes.
If melting cheese on only one potato, microwave for 45 seconds to a minute.
Let them sit for a minute or two and then devour. Have salt, pepper, and any of your favorite seasonings (like Everything Bagel) ready on the side.

Notes

These potatoes offer ample nutrition: vitamin C, vitamin A, calcium, iron, potassium (eat the skin) and a nice serving of protein. But, they also have a good size serving of saturated fat.

So, if you are watching saturated fat intake for heart-health reasons, keep this in mind. You can lower the amount of saturated fat slightly, by using olive oil in place of butter when mashing the broccoli florets. 🥦🥦🥦

If you are counting servings of carbohydrates, each potato clocks in at three servings.

Nutrition

Serving: 1potatoCalories: 338.7kcalCarbohydrates: 43gProtein: 12.8gFat: 14gSaturated Fat: 8.1gPolyunsaturated Fat: 0.6gMonounsaturated Fat: 3.2gTrans Fat: 0.2gCholesterol: 39mgSodium: 246.3mgPotassium: 1090.3mgFiber: 4.2gSugar: 2.4gVitamin A: 763.4IUVitamin C: 62.7mgCalcium: 255.3mgIron: 2.3mg

Keyword gluten-free

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