Vitamin C megadosage

High school (ages 12+)
Human Body

Name:

Date:

Step 1 · Read the article

Open the article and read it at the level above. Then answer the questions below in your own words.

https://smallwhale.org/articles/vitamin-c-megadosage

1. What is the daily recommended intake (adult male)?
2. What is the tolerable upper intake level (UL)?
3. Why do some people think taking a lot of vitamin C can help with the cold or cancer?
4. What can happen if you take too much vitamin C?

Write what each word means, using the article.

Do not copy the article. Write two things you learned, the way you would explain them to a friend.

Answers below are taken from the article’s stored facts, so they match what the student read.

1. What is the daily recommended intake (adult male)?90 milligrams per day
2. What is the tolerable upper intake level (UL)?2,000 milligrams (2 grams) per day
3. Why do some people think taking a lot of vitamin C can help with the cold or cancer?They believe that very high doses might give the body more vitamin C than it normally gets, which could help fight germs or help the body heal, but scientists have not proven it works for these diseases.
4. What can happen if you take too much vitamin C?Taking too much can upset your tummy, cause kidney stones, and make some medical tests give wrong results.

Ascorbic Acid: The chemical name for Vitamin C, an essential water-soluble vitamin involved in numerous biological processes.
Recommended Dietary Allowance (RDA): The average daily level of intake sufficient to meet the nutrient requirements of nearly all healthy individuals in a particular life stage and gender group.
Tolerable Upper Intake Level (UL): The highest level of daily nutrient intake that is likely to pose no risk of adverse health effects to almost all individuals in the general population.
L-gulonolactone oxidase: An enzyme required for the biosynthesis of Vitamin C, which humans and some other animals lack.