Emergen-C is a dietary complement that accommodates vitamin C and different vitamins designed to spice up your immune system and improve power.
It may be combined with water to create a beverage and is a well-liked selection throughout chilly and flu season for additional safety in opposition to infections.
This text opinions the science behind Emergen-C to find out if its well being claims maintain true.
What Is Emergen-C?
Emergen-C is a powdered complement containing excessive doses of B nutritional vitamins, in addition to vitamin C — reportedly to enhance your immune system and power ranges.
It is available in single-serving packets meant to be stirred into 4–6 ounces (118–177 ml) of water earlier than consumption.
The ensuing beverage is barely fizzy and supplies extra vitamin C than 10 oranges (1, 2).
The unique Emergen-C formulation is available in 12 totally different flavors and accommodates the next (1):
It additionally supplies 25% of the DV for thiamine (vitamin B1), riboflavin (vitamin B2), folic acid (vitamin B9), pantothenic acid (vitamin B5) and manganese, in addition to smaller quantities of niacin (vitamin B3) and different minerals.
Different Emergen-C varieties are additionally out there, equivalent to:
In the event you don’t like fizzy drinks, Emergen-C additionally is available in gummy and chewable types.
Does It Forestall Colds?
Since Emergen-C provides vitamins that work together along with your immune system, many individuals take it to fend off colds or different minor infections.
Right here is an in-depth take a look at every of Emergen-C’s main substances to find out whether or not the contained nutritional vitamins and minerals actually enhance immunity and improve power ranges.
1. Vitamin C
Every serving of Emergen-C accommodates 1,000 mg of vitamin C, which is way more than the RDA of 90 mg per day for males and 75 mg per day for ladies (1, 3).
Nonetheless, analysis is combined on whether or not massive doses of vitamin C can stop or shorten the length of colds or different infections.
One evaluation discovered that taking not less than 200 mg of vitamin C every day solely diminished one’s threat of chilly by 3% and its length by 8% in wholesome adults (4).
Nonetheless, this micronutrient could also be simpler for folks beneath excessive ranges of bodily stress, equivalent to marathon runners, skiers and troopers. For these folks, vitamin C dietary supplements minimize the chance of colds in half (4).
As well as, anybody who’s poor in vitamin C would profit from taking a complement, since vitamin C deficiency is linked to elevated threat of infections (5, 6, 7).
Vitamin C seemingly has such results as a result of accumulating inside numerous kinds of immune cells to assist them battle infections. Take into account that analysis into vitamin C’s mechanisms is ongoing (8, 9).
2. B Nutritional vitamins
Emergen-C additionally holds many B nutritional vitamins, together with thiamine, riboflavin, niacin, folic acid, pantothenic acid, vitamin B6 and vitamin B12.
B nutritional vitamins are wanted to ensure that our our bodies to metabolize meals into power, so many complement firms describe them as energy-boosting vitamins (10).
One of many signs of B vitamin deficiency is common lethargy, and correcting the deficiency is related to improved power ranges (11).
Nonetheless, it’s unclear whether or not supplementing with B nutritional vitamins amplifies power in people who find themselves not poor.
Sure deficiencies do hurt your immune system. Inadequate ranges of nutritional vitamins B6 and/or B12 can cut back the variety of immune cells your physique produces (12, 13).
Supplementing with 50 mg of vitamin B6 per day or 500 mcg of vitamin B12 each different day for not less than two weeks has been proven to reverse these results (14, 15, 16).
Whereas research point out that correcting a B vitamin deficiency can enhance immunity, extra analysis is required to grasp whether or not supplementing has any impact on non-deficient, wholesome adults.
3. Zinc
Some proof means that taking zinc dietary supplements can shorten the length of a chilly by a median of 33% (17).
It’s because zinc is required for the traditional growth and performance of immune cells (18).
Nonetheless, the quantity of zinc in Emergen-C might not be sufficient to have these immune-boosting results.
For instance, one serving of normal Emergen-C accommodates simply 2 mg of zinc, whereas medical trials use a lot greater doses of not less than 75 mg per day (17).
Whereas the Immune Plus number of Emergen-C offers a barely greater dose of 10 mg per serving, this nonetheless falls wanting the therapeutic doses utilized in analysis research (19).
4. Vitamin D
Apparently, many immune cells function excessive numbers of vitamin D receptors on their surfaces, suggesting that vitamin D performs a task in immunity.
A number of human research have decided that supplementing with not less than 400 IU of vitamin D every day can cut back your threat of creating a chilly by 19%. It’s particularly helpful for people who find themselves vitamin D poor (20).
Whereas unique Emergen-C doesn’t include vitamin D, the Immune Plus selection boasts 1,000 IU of vitamin D per serving (17, 19).
Provided that roughly 42% of the US inhabitants is poor in vitamin D, supplementing could also be helpful for many individuals (21).
Security and Aspect Results
Emergen-C is mostly thought of secure, however there could also be negative effects in case you’re taking it in excessive doses.
Ingesting greater than 2 grams of vitamin C can set off disagreeable negative effects together with nausea, stomach cramps and diarrhea — and should improve your threat of creating kidney stones (22, 23, 24, 25).
Equally, taking greater than 50 mg of vitamin B6 on daily basis for an prolonged interval could cause nerve injury, so it’s vital to look at your consumption and monitor for signs like tingling in your arms and ft (26).
Usually consuming greater than 40 mg of zinc per day could cause copper deficiency, so it’s essential to concentrate to how a lot you’re consuming from meals and dietary supplements (27).
Different Methods to Increase Your Immune System
Whereas staying nourished is a vital a part of boosting immunity, there are different components to think about. Listed here are different issues you are able to do to strengthen your immune system.
Enhance Intestine Well being
Sustaining a wholesome intestine can go a good distance in the direction of boosting immunity.
The micro organism in your intestine work together along with your physique to advertise a wholesome immune response (28, 29, 30).
There are a lot of issues you are able to do to encourage the expansion of fine intestine micro organism, together with:
Train Usually
Analysis has discovered that common train can strengthen your immune system and cut back the probability of getting sick (38).
That is not less than partially as a result of average train reduces irritation in your physique and protects in opposition to the event of persistent inflammatory illnesses (39).
Consultants suggest getting not less than 150 minutes of reasonably intense bodily exercise each week (40).
Examples of moderate-intensity train embody brisk strolling, water aerobics, dancing, housekeeping and gardening (41).
Get Enough Sleep
Sleep performs an important function in well being, together with the strengthening of your immune system (42).
A big physique of analysis correlates sleeping beneath 6 hours per night time with a bunch of persistent illnesses, together with coronary heart illness, most cancers and despair (43, 44).
In distinction, getting sufficient sleep can shield you from sicknesses, together with the frequent chilly.
One examine famous that individuals who slept not less than 8 hours per night time had been practically thrice much less prone to develop a chilly than those that slept fewer than 7 hours (45).
It’s usually advisable that adults purpose for 7–9 hours of high-quality sleep each night time for optimum well being (46).
Cut back Stress
Your mind and immune system are tightly linked, and excessive ranges of stress have unfavourable results on immunity.
Research show that persistent stress blunts your immune response and will increase irritation all through your physique, rising your threat of infections and persistent situations like coronary heart illness and despair (47).
Excessive ranges of stress have additionally been linked to a larger probability of creating colds, so it’s price working towards common self-care to maintain stress ranges in verify (48, 49).
Some methods to scale back stress embody meditation, yoga and out of doors actions (50, 51, 52, 53).
The Backside Line – “emergency c vitamin c”
Emergen-C is a complement containing excessive doses of nutritional vitamins C, B6 and B12, plus different vitamins like zinc and vitamin D which can be wanted for immunity and power ranges.
Some proof means that these vitamins can enhance immunity in folks with deficiency, however it’s unclear whether or not they profit wholesome adults.
Consuming Emergen-C carefully is probably going secure, however massive doses of vitamin C, vitamin B6 and zinc could cause disagreeable negative effects like abdomen upset, nerve injury and copper deficiency.
Along with correct vitamin, different methods to spice up your immune system embody sustaining good intestine well being, exercising recurrently, getting sufficient sleep and lowering stress ranges.