Temperatures are lowering, days are shortening, your mood is not always the best… Now is the time to boost your natural defences! Zoom on a vitamin our bodies do not produce on their own: vitamin C. Contrary to a preconceived idea, it does not exist solely in oranges and kiwis – on the contrary!
Vegetables contain more vitamin C than fruits
Did you know that oranges are not the fresh food with the most vitamin C? Top of the list are raw yellow pepper, blackcurrants and… parsley! Then, the four following: raw red pepper, horseradish and fries cabbage. Only then come the kiwi followed by mashed broccoli, cooked peppers, Brussels’ sprouts and red berries. So, fresh oranges and lemon are not the champions of vitamin C, even if they contain a rather significant quantity (52mg/100g against 200mg for parley and 165mg for raw yellow pepper). Other vegetables high in vitamin C are all kinds of cabbages, whether red, white or flower, chicory, sorrel, watercress and raw spinach. (source: Ciqual, 2009).
Frozen vegetables too
Frozen vegetables lose a small part of their vitamins when they are blanched in water or steam, but they often have a more important vitamin C content than their fresh equivalents for one simple reason: they are prepared and frozen right after being harvested. Fresh vegetables are rarely eaten right after harvest. Stocked outside, they lose their precious nutrient day after day including vitamin C – very sensitive to heat, light and oxygen. at Bonduelle, vegetables are harvested when ripe and transformed right away. As such, Bonduelle frozen green beans contain more vitamin C than fresh green beans cooked in boiling water 3 days after being harvested!
Source: Bonduelle 2008 frontal Fluorescence study and 2008 Fresh vs. Transformed comparison
Vitamin C, essential for our health
Vitamin C – also called ascorbic acid – plays many roles in our bodies: it is a powerful antioxidant, facilitates iron absorption, intervenes against bacterial and viral infections, contributes in reducing fatigue and the health of the nervous system... Yet, the body does not know how to produce it alone: it is essential to provide it ourselves every day by varying the sources from vegetables, aromatic herbs and fruits. Diversity is key!