Key Takeaways
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Vitamin C plays several key roles in the body. It supports antioxidant protection and normal immune function, and it helps your body make collagen for skin, tendons, ligaments, and blood vessels.
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Natural vitamin C comes with more than vitamin C. Synthetic vitamin C is a single ingredient, L-ascorbic acid. Natural vitamin C from fruit can also contain phytochemicals and other plant compounds. Studies in people show both are absorbed in similar amounts, so the key difference is what comes with it.
- Check the label to tell them apart. A label that lists only “vitamin C” or “ascorbic acid,” with no fruit source, is most likely synthetic. YoungLong Vegan Berry Vitamin C clearly names its source: vitamin C from amla, plus seven berries that add extra antioxidant support. Its 200 mg dose matches the amount your body absorbs best, and its berry-based formula is gentle on your stomach for everyday use. It’s 100% plant-based and certified vegan, with no unnecessary additives.
A few years ago, when my wife was pregnant, she suddenly developed dark patches on her skin, and it caused her a great deal of stress. That is how vitamin C was added to the list of supplements she takes.
Vitamin C is likely a nutrient you already know well. It is widely recognized for its role in skin health, and it is often associated with a brighter, more even-looking complexion.
As a pharmacist, I believe every supplement choice should be guided by evidence.
So I began researching which vitamin C would be safe for my wife to take during her pregnancy. In the process, I compared synthetic vitamin C with natural vitamin C to see which one was better.
To share the conclusion first, I believe natural vitamin C is the better choice.
This reflects my personal opinion.
Today, we will look at why natural vitamin C may be the better option and why I do not recommend synthetic vitamin C.
Table of Contents
- What Vitamin C Does in the Body
- What Makes Natural Vitamin C Different?
- Synthetic vs. Natural Vitamin C: Key Differences
1. What Vitamin C Does in the Body
Vitamin C is known for three main roles.
First, antioxidant activity that helps protect cells from damage caused by free radicals.
Second, support for normal immune function.
Third, skin health, including its role in collagen formation.
In recent years, interest in immune health has grown significantly. As a result, more people have turned to vitamin C, and it has become popular among all age groups, from children to older adults.
How Vitamin C Helps Your Body Make Collagen
Your body uses a protein called collagen to build skin, tendons, ligaments, and blood vessels. According to MedlinePlus from the U.S. National Library of Medicine, vitamin C helps your body make this collagen.[1]
That is why many people take vitamin C together with collagen supplements. Vitamin C is also a common choice for families who want to support firm skin and antioxidant protection.
In particular, collagen is a type of protein. When you take it, digestive enzymes break it down into the amino acids that make up collagen: glycine (G), proline (P), and hydroxyproline (H). These amino acids are then absorbed and travel through the blood. The body can use them to rebuild collagen wherever it is needed.
Vitamin C is an essential nutrient in the process of rebuilding collagen in the skin.
Hydroxyproline (H) is essential for collagen rebuilding. This is because vitamin C is needed when proline (P) is converted into hydroxyproline (H).
Is Your Vitamin C Supplement the Right One?
Did you pick your vitamin C just because a celebrity recommended it?
Does your vitamin C contain only one ingredient, called ascorbic acid?
Let us find out which vitamin C to choose and how much to take.
2. What Makes Natural Vitamin C Different?
Some experts in the natural supplement field believe a vitamin works best as part of a team. That team includes nutrients, enzymes, coenzymes, phytochemicals, and trace minerals.
Fruits and vegetables naturally contain many kinds of phytochemicals. These are natural plant compounds. There are so many of them that scientists cannot easily study each one separately.
The health benefits of fruits and vegetables are thought to come from more than one vitamin. They are believed to come from all of these compounds working together.
What Synthetic Vitamin C Leaves Out
However, synthetic vitamin C contains only one thing, L-ascorbic acid. This is the main ingredient of vitamin C.
Can a vitamin with only its main ingredient truly be the same as natural vitamin C?
In food, vitamin C never comes alone. It comes with helpers such as enzymes, phytochemicals, and trace minerals. Many in the natural supplement field believe these helpers work together with vitamin C as a team.
Synthetic vitamin C copies only the main ingredient. It does not include the other natural compounds found in fruits and vegetables.
What Synthetic Vitamin C Is Missing
Synthetic vitamin C sold in stores is a single ingredient that has been separated out on its own. It has none of the helpers, or cofactors, found in food.
Because of this, some believe synthetic vitamin C may have a harder time reaching the cells that need it. They also believe it may not work inside cells the way natural vitamin C does.
That said, studies in people have found that both types are absorbed in similar amounts.[2] The bigger difference is what comes with the vitamin C.
So I think of synthetic vitamin C as a half vitamin. It has the vitamin, but not the helpers.
On top of that, one reason natural vitamins are better than synthetic ones is phytochemicals. You probably already know that a vegetable-centered diet is good for your overall health.
However, modern diets now include more processed foods. People are eating fewer vegetables and fruits than before. At the same time, diet-related health concerns keep rising.
These habits mean we get fewer phytochemicals, the plant compounds that support our health.
So can synthetic vitamins alone fill the gap left by eating too few vegetables, instead of the natural vitamins found in plants?
As I mentioned above, synthetic vitamins have no phytochemicals. That is why they cannot fully replace vegetables.
Example label of a synthetic vitamin C product. Shown for illustration and reference only. Brand name omitted.
How Can You Tell If Your Vitamin C Is Synthetic?
If you have a vitamin C product at home, take a look at the label on the back.
Does it simply say vitamin C or ascorbic acid, like the products shown above?
If the label lists only the nutrient name, with no food source named, it is most likely synthetic vitamin C.
So when you buy a synthetic vitamin labeled only as vitamin C or ascorbic acid, what are you actually taking?
How Synthetic Vitamin C Is Made
Some companies that sell synthetic vitamin C say it comes from nature because it is made from corn.
It is true that synthetic vitamin C usually starts with corn. But a lot happens between the corn and the final product.
First, starch is taken from corn and broken down into glucose, a type of sugar. The glucose then goes through several fermentation and chemical steps to become vitamin C, or ascorbic acid. Various chemical solvents and catalysts are used along the way. Any leftover impurities are removed from the final product.
Is vitamin C made through such a complex chemical process really the same as the vitamin C in fruit?
In my view, it is a bit like an artificial organ. It can do the main job, but it cannot fully match the original.
Also, the final product is not vitamin C with its many helpers. It is simply L-ascorbic acid.
Most ascorbic acid sold today is a chemical copy of natural vitamin C made in a factory. The molecule is the same, but it does not come in its natural form.
Making vitamin C as a single ingredient leaves out the cofactors that come with it in food. In my view, this turns it into a half nutrient.
I am not saying that L-ascorbic acid is harmful.
I am simply saying that we should take vitamin C in the best way we can.
How Natural Vitamin C Is Made
Natural vitamin C, on the other hand, is made in a way that is close to eating the fruit itself.
Let us take vitamin C from Indian gooseberry, also called amla, as an example. Amla is known as one of the richest natural sources of vitamin C.
First, the Indian gooseberry fruit is harvested. It is then pressed and extracted, and the fruit is concentrated. The extract is dried into a powder and placed in capsules.
The process is similar to squeezing orange juice. Many natural vitamin C products are made mainly through physical steps like these. They do not go through the chemical synthesis used for synthetic vitamin C, so much of the fruit’s natural makeup is kept.
Natural vitamin C made this way contains more than the vitamin itself. It also contains the fruit’s enzymes, cofactors, and phytochemicals. A single capsule holds vitamin C concentrated from whole fruit.
Of course, because it is made from whole fruit rather than low-cost ingredients, natural vitamin C costs more than synthetic vitamin C.
Real natural vitamin C contains more than natural ascorbic acid. Depending on the fruit, it may also contain a range of phytochemicals and minerals. These can include hesperidin, rutin, quercetin, and tannins.
Phytochemicals are natural compounds found in plants. Many have complex structures, and the way they are combined in plants is difficult to recreate in a lab.
This is also why each vegetable has its own color and taste and is known for different benefits. Every vegetable contains a different mix of phytochemicals.
It can also be a convenient way for people who do not usually enjoy fruit to get nutrients from whole fruit in a form close to its natural state. For children, please check with a pediatrician before starting any supplement.
When it comes to vitamins, I recommend choosing a product made by concentrating whole foods, rather than a refined synthetic vitamin.
3. Synthetic vs. Natural Vitamin C: Key Differences
Source: Vinson JA, Bose P. Am J Clin Nutr. 1988;48(3):601-604. View on PubMed
1) Is Natural Vitamin C Better Absorbed?
Some research has looked at this question. In one small 1988 study of eight people, Dr. J.A. Vinson found that vitamin C taken in a citrus extract was absorbed about 35% more than ascorbic acid taken alone.[3]
Higher bioavailability means that, even at the same dose of vitamin C:
- it is absorbed better,
- it stays in the body longer,
- more of it is used by cells,
- and less of it leaves the body.
In other words, the body makes fuller use of it.
Supporters of natural vitamin C believe this is because vitamin C in its natural form, bound with other plant compounds, is easier for cells to recognize and take in.
However, a larger review of human studies found that synthetic and natural vitamin C are generally absorbed in similar amounts.[2]
2) Comparing Chromatography Images
This chromatography image compares synthetic vitamin C with natural vitamin C from acerola, a fruit rich in vitamin C. Chromatography spreads a sample out on paper to show how it is made up.
Synthetic vitamin C is a single ingredient, so its pattern has a smooth, even edge.
Natural vitamin C, on the other hand, shows an uneven, jagged edge.
This suggests that natural vitamin C contains a mix of other substances, such as phytochemicals.
Synthetic vitamin C can do some of the same jobs as natural vitamin C. In my view, however, it cannot fully take its place.
How Can You Tell If Your Vitamin C Is Natural?
Just like checking for synthetic vitamin C, look at the label on the back.
On a natural vitamin C product, the label does not list only a simple ingredient name like ascorbic acid. As shown in the photo below, it also names the natural source the vitamin C came from, such as a fruit extract.
Why We Made YoungLong Vegan Berry Vitamin C
When we reviewed many vitamin C products, we repeatedly found two problems. Many popular products relied on synthetic vitamin C. Some fruit-based products did not provide enough vitamin C to meet the Daily Value.
We created a product that addresses both. YoungLong Vegan Berry Vitamin C gets all of its vitamin C from fruit, primarily Indian gooseberry, also known as amla. It provides 200 mg of natural vitamin C, with no added vitamin C or ascorbic acid.
Why Choose YoungLong Vegan Berry Vitamin C?
You know exactly what you are taking. Vitamin C labels can be confusing, and it is not always clear whether synthetic vitamin C has been added. With YoungLong, there is no need to wonder. All of its vitamin C comes from fruit, so you can take it with confidence every day.
The benefits of natural vitamin C, in a single tablet. In this article, we have explored what makes natural vitamin C distinctive: the plant compounds that come with it. YoungLong was designed to deliver exactly that. It contains amla, which is known to have about 10 times more vitamin C than oranges, along with seven berries that are naturally rich in plant compounds.
Easy to maintain, even on your busiest days. Most of us know we should eat more fruit, yet our days do not always allow it. One tablet provides 222% of the Daily Value for vitamin C, so you do not need to worry about falling short.
One vitamin C for the entire family. It is certified vegan and made without animal-derived ingredients. Whether or not your family follows a plant-based diet, everyone can take the same product.
If you are pregnant or nursing, or if you plan to give supplements to children, please consult your healthcare provider first.
One tablet. 200 mg of natural vitamin C. No added ascorbic acid.
Reference
[1] MedlinePlus. Vitamin C. U.S. National Library of Medicine.
*This content has not been evaluated by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA). This product is not intended to diagnose, treat, cure, or prevent any disease.
