Jose Rizal University

College of Nursing and Health Sciences

NUR C307 - 301N: Care of Older Adult 2

WW2 JOURNAL ARTICLE REFLECTION

Submitted To:
Prof. Eleonor C. Tangkeko, PhD, RN

Submitted By:
Sanguyo, Jemhie

September 2, 2022
 Vitamin C and Coronavirus
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.gerinurse.2020.05.002

In this article, Dr. William Simonson analyzes the results observed in studies about vitamin
C and its effect on the prevention of coronavirus. What we know about vitamin C is essential to
our body, because it helps our body to control common colds. However, what it can do to our
bodies does not end there. Vitamin C is a great antioxidant that has many benefits. It has the ability
to neutralize damaging free radicals and is also a requirement for the production of collagen, a
fibrous protein found in connective tissue that is woven all through the body's nervous, immune,
bones, cartilage, blood, etc.

Evidence suggests that Vitamin C might be effective against coronavirus. More research
and clinical trials have been done on vitamin C before the coronavirus—the effects of vitamin C
on the patients in ICUs were reduced by 7.8% and 8.8% when given oral administration in doses
of 1-3 g/day, and it was proven that patients needed mechanical ventilation shortened the duration
by 18.2% because of vitamin C for over 24 hours. It was also recommended that vitamin C in ICU
patients’ needs further investigation for cost-effectiveness of Vitamin C. In other cases, it claimed
that every 6 hours of IV administering vitamin C the mortality rate of septic patients with acute
respiratory distress syndrome was reduced by 30% (Fowler III AA, et al.).
Certainly, Vitamin C was able to make patients feel better than those who did not get it. However,
there is still no guarantee that Vitamin C would be beneficial for the treatment of coronavirus,
especially in patients with severe pneumonia. There are still studies being done to determine if
vitamin C can be used to bolster the immune system against the coronavirus.

It was an interesting article that was easy to read, understand, and reflect on what we can
learn. The article contains enough evidence to support its claims. It does give enough details about
the science part and the size of the sample group in the study.