Plasma Vitamin C for Predicting Cardiovascular Disease: More Than a Nutritional Biomarker (Opinion Paper) (Report‪)‬

Key words: Vitamin C, nutrition, iron overload, inflammation, genetic polymorphisms Intervention trials with specific nutrients have been performed in an attempt to reduce cardiovascular disease (CVD). However, over-all results so far have not been very convincing (1). Nevertheless, the health benefit (reduction in CVD) of fruit and vegetable consumption is generally assumed. Investigators have attributed benefits to specific nutrients measured in blood, such as vitamin C. Given these assumptions, it has been proposed that plasma vitamin C concentrations can predict risk of CVD events (2,3). This was recently confirmed in the EPIC-Norfolk population study (4), wherein the top quartile of baseline plasma vitamin C was associated with 42% lower risk of stroke compared to the bottom quartile, independently of use of ascorbic acid-containing supplements, smoking, and stroke risk factors (4).