The recommended dietary allowance for Vitamin C is 60mg per day, enough to prevent the deficiency disease scurvy. But wait, is it enough to ward off a common cold? Fortunately, we aren’t living in a severely malnourished region where we need to worry about diseases like Beriberi, Scurvy, Rickets and other such names we learnt in class 5! But we do need to worry about frequent coughs and unending and highly embarrassing bouts of cold; and worst of all, the onslaught of the virulent viral fever!
So is 60mg a day enough to wage war with a running nose? Is it enough fix the itch in the throat? Is it enough to ensure that your precious leave days in office don’t get wasted on getting better from fever but instead can be used for something fun and fulfilling?
Let’s assume that 60mg a day are indeed enough to be your own personal Batman for battling immunity issues. Then, these 60mg take on a whole new meaning to add to the quality of your daily life. So where can you get your own personal Batman...er...I mean 60mg of vitamin C? A tomato has less than 15mg of vitamin C. And I doubt any of us are chomping on 4-5 tomatoes every day. 2 oranges a day could give us the required daily allowance of vitamin C but most of us would admit that we don’t even eat 2 oranges in a week, let alone in a day! Hey, wait...what about lemons? One and half of those could definitely give you the desired amount of vitamin C. But alas, most lemon drinks have more sugar than lemon in them. And once someone has the onslaught of a sore throat, having lemons can be dreadfully painful.
It’s no wonder then that common cold is so common, and so many of us are plagued with a sore throat every other month. Making intelligent yet implementable dietary choices requires conscious effort and it’s not a bad idea to seek the advice of an expert in the field. After all, Batman couldn’t have been Batman without Robin! So go find your Robin...er...I mean Resource Person who can help you on your journey of healthy living.