Table 1.
Vitamin C status relative to age.
| Reference | Population (Location) |
n | Age (Years) | Vitamin C Intake (mg/d) | Vitamin C Status (µmol/L) |
Vitamin C Deficiency (%) | p-Value a |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Younger adults vs. older adults | |||||||
| Powers 2023 [16] | 4932 representative sampling of non-institutionalised population (NHANES, USA) | 1463 | 20–39 | NR | 48 (45, 52) | 7 (5, 9) | <0.001 |
| 1563 | 40–59 | 49 (46, 53) | 6 (4, 9) | ||||
| 1906 | ≥60 | 57 (53, 61) | 7 (5, 10) | ||||
| Crook 2021 [17] | 7607 representative sampling of non-institutionalised population (NHANES, USA) | 2751 | 20–39 | NR | NR | 7 ± 1 | |
| 2295 | 40–59 | 8 ± 1 | |||||
| 2561 | ≥60 | 5 ± 1 | <0.001 | ||||
| Schleicher 2009 [18] | 4438 representative sampling of noninstitutionalised population (NHANES, USA) | 725/815 b | 20–39 | NR | 42/49 b | 11/8 b | |
| 628/638 | 40–59 | 43/52 | 11/8 | ||||
| 800/832 | ≥60 | 53/63 | 7/4 | <0.001 | |||
| Faure 2006 [19] | 7074 people enrolled in the SU.VI.MAX study (France) | 109/1798 b | 35–45 | 99/95 b | 53/59 b | NR | |
| 1006/1222 | 45–50 | 101/97 | 54/61 | ||||
| 1375/1349 | 50–60 | 100/98 | 55/61 | ||||
| 113/102 | 60–63 | 104/101 | 54/63 | 0.6 | |||
| Galan 2005 [20] | 3128 people enrolled in the SU.VI.MAX study (France) | NR | <45 | NR | NR/60 b | NR | |
| 45–50 | 50/60 | ||||||
| 50–55 | 50/59 | ||||||
| >55 | 51/62 | 0.6/0.9 b | |||||
| Nakamura 2006 [21] | 76 healthy non-smoking people (USA) | 31 | 19–30 | 297 ± 278 c | 31 ± 8 | NR | |
| 45 | 59–86 | 565 ± 463 | 36 ± 12 | 0.02 | |||
| Heseker 1994 [22] | 2006 healthy people (Germany) | 396/558 b | 18–39 | 101/103 b | RC –0.21/–0.005 b | NR | 0.001/0.4 b |
| 270/370 | 40–59 | 85/101 | |||||
| 196/216 | 60–88 | 87/108 | |||||
| Newton 1985 [23] | 139 young and active older women (UK) | 72 | ~36 | NR | 54 ± 22 | NR | NR |
| 57 | ~73 | 58 (18–156) | 44 ± 28 | ||||
| Sasaki 1983 [24] | 217 healthy people (Japan) | 96/122 b | 12–96 | NR | r –0.453/–0.526 b | NR | <0.001 |
| McClean 1976 [25] | 80 non-smoking men (New Zealand) | 22 | 17–29 | NR | 50 | NR | NR |
| 4 | 30–39 | 64 | |||||
| 17 | 40–49 | 35 | |||||
| 24 | 50–59 | 47 | |||||
| 13 | 60–69 | 40 | |||||
| Burr 1974 [26] |
34 nuns aged >65 and <65 years (UK) | 22 | 19–63 | NR | 40 | NR | |
| 12 | 69–89 | 24 | <0.01 | ||||
| Hospitalised | |||||||
| Sharma 2019 [27] | 147 general medical inpatients (Australia) | 19 | 25–45 | NR | NR | 53 d | 0.03 |
| 28 | 45–65 | 75 | |||||
| 100 | >65 | 82 | |||||
| Forster 2005 [28] | 322 randomly selected hospitalised patients (UK) | 129 | <75 | NR | 21 (19, 36) | NR | |
| 193 | ≥75 | 15 (5, 33) | <0.01 | ||||
| Older adults vs. the very old | |||||||
| Jungert 2020 [29] | 399 people aged ≥60 years (Germany) | 399 | 60–96 | CE 0.001 | CE –0.075 | NR | NS |
| Ravindran 2011 [30] | 7228 randomly sampled clusters of rural and urban populations (India) | 985/1080 c | 60–64 | NR | NR | 69/37 e | |
| 658/864 | 65–69 | 72/39 | |||||
| 552/575 | 70–74 | 81/42 | |||||
| 287/275 | 75–79 | 79/45 | |||||
| 186/176 | ≥80 | 85/51 | <0.001 | ||||
| Birlouez-Aragon 2001 [31] | 1987 people aged >60 years (France) | 189/276 b | 60–64 | NR | ↓/X b | ↑/X b | 0.02/0.2 b |
| 192/251 | 65–69 | ||||||
| 142/253 | 70–74 | ||||||
| 63/118 | 75–79 | ||||||
| 54/86 | >80 | ||||||
| Mecocci 2000 [32] | 107 community-dwelling people (Italy) |
24 | <60 | NR | 58 ± 3 | NR | |
| 34 | 60–79 | 53 ± 3 | |||||
| 17 | 80–99 | 42 ± 2 | <0.01 | ||||
| 32 | ≥100 | 30 ± 2 | <0.01 | ||||
| Barnes 1990 [33] | 139 older people aged 60 to 90 years (USA) | 54 | 60–70 | NR | 79 ± 32 | NR | |
| 56 | 71–80 | 87 ± 37 | |||||
| 29 | 81–90 | 79 ± 44 | NS | ||||
| Mandal 1987 [34] | 277 older people newly admitted to assessment geriatric ward (UK) | 58 | 65–74 | NR | NR | 40 | NR |
| 143 | 75–84 | 40 | |||||
| 76 | ≥85 | 41 | |||||
Data represent mean and SD or SEM, or median (Q1, Q3) or (95% CI). a—p-value is for vitamin C status (or % deficiency); b—male/female; c includes supplements; d—low levels (<28 µmol/L); and e North/South India. NR—not reported; NS—not significant; ↑—increase; ↓—decrease; X—no change; CE—coefficient estimate; RC—regression coefficient; NHANES—National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey; and SU.VI.MAX—Supplementation en Vitamines et Mineraux Antioxydants.