Howard Hughes was an American aviator, filmmaker, inventor and business tycoon. He was one of the wealthiest people of his time. Hughes formed the Hughes Aircraft Company, which over the years produced 4 planes and numerous missiles and spacecraft. Hughes was fond of testing out his planes himself and it was said that he was an excellent pilot. However, Hughes went down with his plane on more than a few occasions. His last plane crash left him lucky to be alive.
On July 8th 1946, The Leominster Daily(a local newspaper), had this to say, “His collarbone and seven ribs broken, his lungs punctured in six places, Howard Hughes was given a fighting chance to live today after crashing an experimental plane into three houses and a garage in Beverly Hills late yesterday…Hughes also suffered a broken nose, third degree burns on his hands, and possible skull and left leg fractures in the crash and explosion of his newest plane, the XF-11, unofficially reported to be the fastest long-range craft ever constructed.”
It was said to be a miracle that Hughes survived at all, yet after five weeks in the hospital Hughes walked himself out.
Hughes attributed this remarkable recovery to the gallons of fresh squeezed orange juice that he drank every day while in the hospital.
As it turns out he may have been on to something all along.
According to the U.S. National Library of Medicine, Vitamin C heals wounds and forms scar tissue, repairs and maintains cartilage, maintains bones and teeth and forms an important protein used to make skin, tendons, ligaments, and blood vessels. In addition to Vitamin C’s ability to prevent scurvy, Vitamin C has also been found to prevent or improve a wide range of health issues.
Also, while it seems that studies on Vitamin C’s ability to cure heart disease are mixed, studies have shown that Vitamin C may be able to slow down the effects of atherosclerosis, and may help protect arteries from damage.
Wound Healing
In Howard Hughes’ case Vitamin C’s ability to heal wounds proved to be the most beneficial.
One study on guinea pigs suggests that supplementing high doses of Vitamin C can aid in wound healing time. Another study on rats showed how high doses of Vitamin C can improve capillary leakage in burn wounds.
The power of Vitamin C
Vitamin C is not only responsible for the healing of wounds, but has been shown to speed the recovery of several diseases and improve the symptoms of several conditions.
-Studies have shown that adding Vitamin C to tuberculosis treatment speeds up recovery time.
-In one study of 12 patients with post-surgical diffuse hemorrhage it was found that they all had low levels of ascorbic acid (Vitamin C). Each patient then received 250-1,000 mg daily of Vitamin C. After 24 hours there was no evidence of bleeding in any of the patients.
– A 2014 study of people with high levels of antibodies of Epstein-Barr virus, which has been indicated in chronic fatigue syndrome, showed a significant decrease in those antibodies after at least 5 intravenous doses of Vitamin C.
Oranges are not the only good source of vitamin c
However, none of this means you should sit around only drinking gallons of orange juice, there are a few sources of vitamin c that are even more potent than oranges.
- Chili peppers have 107.8 mg of Vitamin C
- Red bell peppers have 190 mgs
- green bell peppers have 120 mgs
- Kale has 80.4 mgs
- broccoli has 132 mgs
- papaya has 88.3 mgs
- strawberries have 84.7 mgs
- cauliflower has 127.7 mgs
- Brussels sprouts have 74.8 mg
- pineapple has 78.9 mgs
- kiwi has 137.2 mgs
- mango has 122.3 mgs
- small oranges have 51.1 mgs of Vitamin C
The ultimate form of Vitamin C comes from goji berries which will give you %20 of your daily recommend intake. Order them here
The body is not able to make Vitamin C on its own, and it does not store Vitamin C. It is therefore important to include plenty of Vitamin C-containing foods in your daily diet.
Take a cue from Howard Hughes and start adding more Vitamin C to your diet!