Jasmine Beaupre, author

When I was in school, which was about 100 years ago, EVERYONE pushed me to learn my ABC’s. I did learn how to read and write, and now I’m able to learn more about the ABC’s of health, specifically, A(Retinol), B(Thiamine), and C(Absorbic Acid).

I’m not going to bore you with the scientific mumbo-jumbo, I’m going to give you the meat and potatoes about these three vitamins and how we can’t live without them.

First: A(Retinol), a fat-soluble vitamin that unfortunately is a common deficiency in most of the underdeveloped, overpopulated countries. It is estimated that 80,000 children become “blind” each year as a result of vitamin A deficiency and about half die.

In most of the food we eat half of the vitamin A is in the form of retinal and the other half is provitamin A.  The liver stores 90 to 95 percent of our vitamin A, enough to last months or years under normal conditions.

Vitamin A is present in our foods in two forms.  In meats the active vitamin is retinol, while in vegetables it is found as a provitamin, A carotenes, a precursor of vitamin A. Carotene is an orange-yellow pigment that is present in green vegetables, but is masked by the green color of the chlorophyll in leaves.

Second: B(Thiamine), a water-soluble vitamin, and it’s first description of a vitamin B deficiency, dating back to 2600 B.C.in ancient China, called “beriberi”, meaning – “I can’t, I can’t” – due to the fact that persons with the severe vitamin B deficiency were unable to move because of the total breakdown of the nervous system.

The sole consumption of refined grains in that region was ultimately found to be the cause of the vitamin B deficiency, and as soon as meat, fish, and vegetables were incorporated in more equal proportions, beriberi soon became a thing of the past.

By the early 1900’s vitamin B was discovered to be present in the outer coat of grains and beans, and was gone when refined. Science finally figured out that washing and stripping the outer coat of grains depletes vitamin B from the food source.

Foods that contain vitamin B include: Wheat germ, whole grains, dried peas, beans, raw peanuts legumes, nuts, green leafy vegetables.  Protein rich foods are generally good sources.

Third: C(Absorbic Acid), a water-soluble vitamin, that if deficient , brings back the word “scurvy”, with horrific stories of doomed sailing ships, called black-ships, with men dying an unspeakable death. Scurvy was noted to have the same outcome as leprosy or the plague. And the reason for sailors being inflicted with this condition most often, was because they couldn’t keep fresh fruits and vegetables on board their ships during long years at sea, thereby not getting the ascorbic acid needed for the body to fuction properly.

When vitamin C is totally eliminated form the diet the symptoms of scurvy begin to appear in about 90 days and consist of dryness of the skin, bleeding into the skin around the hair follicles, bleeding in the eyes, loss of hair, bleeding and swollen gums, fatigue, pains in the bones and joints, cavities in the teeth, sore mouth and gums.

The only toxicity to the system that has been noted is the formation of kidney stones due to the conversion of excess vitamin C to oxalic acid.

The highest and best sources of vitamin C are in citrus fruits such as lime, lemons, oranges, grapefruits and any other tangy fruits on the market. You can get ascorbic acid in other forms at your local health food stores, but I recommend fresh raw fruits and vegetables, unless you’re planning a very long boat trip.

Always find a good physician or practicing herbalist before embarking upon a regimen of any vitamins.

Well, that’s just a glimpse of what vitamins A(Retinol), B(Thiamine), and C(Absorbic Acid) can do for the body, and just a glimpse of “The Importance of Learning your ABC’s”

Jasmine Beaupre is an freelance author/researcher who presents working information to be used for every day experiences.

Reference and Resources:

Vitamin A information Click Here

Vitamin B information Click Here

Vitamin C information Click Here

A&D, Vitamin 10,000/400iu Softgel Capsules (100)Click Here

Balanced B Complex Tablets (120)Click Here

Vitamin C, Citrus Bioflavonoid 500mg (90 Tablets)Click Here