The Truth About C

It's no secret that drinking fresh orange juice is rich in the mega antioxidant Vitamin C and that it is good for you. As a matter of fact, one of the reasons we know so much about the importance of Vitamin C in the body is because during the 1930's a discovery was made by Albert Szent-Györgyi and Charles Glen King that it was possible to isolate ascorbate or l-ascorbic acid an important co-factor used in the synthesis of collagen and very much needed in order to end scurvy. Humans and a few other mammals are unable to produce Vitamin C and needed to rely on whole foods in order to have Vitamin C play a critical role in the body and prevent deficiency which historically lead to scurvy, a disease that causes the breakdown of cells and leads to malnutrition and even death. This was so notable during The Civil War, World Wars I and II that the discovery of ascorbic acid was vital to lowering scurvy cases and soldiers in the Vietnam War were sparred what would have been their deadliest enemy (other than war of course.) Somewhere along the way, the discovery of L-ascorbic acid became a fad and we began to substitute the isolated compound for the whole and complete Vitamin as well as erroneously refer to ascorbic acid as Vitamin C. That has been a mistake to some naturalists, scientists and healthcare professionals as we have begun to rely on supplements more than whole foods for wellness. There is an appreciation of what ascorbic acid can do and there is no dispute that it is a vital nutrient that has saved lives and in some third world countries continues to, however foods that contain the complete Vitamin C are still best for you and work as both an antioxidant and pro-oxidant. The true power of what this antioxidant can do for the body is extraordinary. It strengthens our immune system and acts as a natural antihistamine. It is also believed to cure illnesses and recently some scientists are using high doses of Vitamin C intravenously to fight cancer and illness to the success and surprise of many.

That's a little background story about ascorbic acid and now we want to tell you what all the fuss is about when it comes to the real thing. It is not a coincidence that juice fanatics have that 'lit from within glow' to their skin or increased energy from their daily fresh pressed juice intake. Some of these juices can meet your daily requirement of certain vitamins and minerals and it is certainly easy to get your recommended dose of C (75mg for women and 90 mg for men) by juicing as well as eating whole foods. In my opinion I believe this is a better alternative to supplements and one that we need to strive towards with better overall nutrition and incorporating a balanced diet in order to be less sick as a society. The problem with Vitamin C supplements for me is (in addition to it being a synthetic isolate without all the co-factors that make Vitamin C as effective in cellular respiration) that currently much of the supplements on the market are also produced with fillers that derive from genetically modified organisms or GMOs. Most of the "Vitamin C"  or ascorbic acid at the health food store is produced in China and created with GMO corn. Most of this supplement is produced for junk food companies to use as a preservative or fortifier and you'll find it in soft drinks and sugary cereals pushed on kids. This terrifies me and it should terrify you as there aren't enough studies to determine how this may effect the body with long term use. Our bodies are very intricate machines and we reject foreign invaders and because we are built not to produce or synthesize or our vital Vitamin C it makes me wonder how these supplements with GMO factors can trigger the same metabolic reaction that naturally derived vitamins and their co-factors can. While I'm not a doctor, just a logically minded person I have to believe that synthetic creations like these can't help much and actually provide us with a false sense of security. I believe that we need to rewind and go back to whole and complete foods to help us get out of the funk our currently obese and ill society has become. We have become too dependent on supplements and in many cases if we ate better with more mindfulness we wouldn't need to rely on as many supplements as we do now and especially those that are so full of fillers and GMO production that we're currently ingesting. The special "co-factors" that attribute to the complete potency in true Vitamin C are known as bioflavonoids and phytonutrients. These are the living energy which make certain vitamins complete and that much more effective in healing and THAT cannot be created in a lab. It's part of what nature created when it created the source of living energy we need to sustain and heal us. Isn't it incredible that good food has such power and that our bodies crave what we need to make us well? 

You may be wondering where this is leading up and it has truly been eye opening even for me, but just as Monsanto and the companies that are trying to tell us that GMOs aren't bad for us, cosmetic companies are doing the same with the inclusion of inferior Vitamin C products. We all get excited when we hear of the latest Vitamin C serum, myself included, however when I read what the source of the C is I am often disappointed, especially when it comes to natural beauty. Ascorbic acid is often the main source of "Vitamin C" you'll see listed with ascorbic palmitate and ascorbic stearate following closely. You often hear that products made with Vitamin C are unstable, oxidize quickly and offer little benefits. Well that can indeed be true. In order for ascorbic acid to remain stable  (remember these isolates don't contain the bioflavonoids or phytonutrients that complete Vitamin C does keeping it whole and intact) you need stabilizers to help them from oxidizing. Vitamin E has proven to be extremely effective with ascorbic acid and if your product doesn't at least contain some form of Vitamin E then it truly is worthless. I don't believe it is fair for a natural company to make claims of 100% natural ingredients when they are using ascorbic acid that is produced in a lab and coming from China. It is yet another reason consumers need the FDA to monitor cosmetic companies and what exactly they are doing and incorporating into products (ourselves included and all the natural brands). I want to know if my Vitamin C product is using this ascorbic acid, especially if it is being imported from the world's largest producer of ascorbic acid and made with GMO corn. There is however much excitement about adding complete forms of Vitamin C into natural products with new studies showing the ability to reverse oxidative damage to be stellar and exciting discoveries especially in the form of Vitamin C derived from kakadu plums. Kakadu plums are native to Australia and the world's richest source of natural Vitamin C with a whopping 3000mg to that found in the 53mg from oranges! If we want to learn more and read new studies we need to be active  with what we're currently settling for and that includes banning GMOs and using our dollar as the final testament to hitting Monsanto where it hurts. Some countries, Peru being one of them have banned GMOs from coming in to do the irreparable damage Peruvians know is coming. This always makes me think of that line in Jurassic Park where Jeff Goldblum learns of the genetic modification of the DNA of the dinosaurs the scientists have resurrected that "life finds a way." I don't want to think of a world that is so genetically modified we begin to mutate as a decreased civilization and I'm not entirely naive I know it's happening with the environment, arctic circle and global warming to name a few. It just doesn't also have to happen with our food and we're allowing it! Hybrids are great for cars just not for food.

The incredible benefits of Vitamin C came on our radar a few years ago and we were both excited and terrified when we heard of the many healing attributes of kakadu plums and then of the mega cosmetic giants that were attempting to patent this natural resource so that no one else could use it as a cosmetic active. We have waited a few years and finally the lawsuit was dropped (how ridiculous was that?) and producers in Australia were again excited to get the word and education out about kakadu plums. Trust us, you'll be hearing more and more about kakadu plums in the next few years. We are finally getting our Modern Radiance Concentrate out this summer and we couldn't be prouder of the work we put in behind this highly active and gentle product. There has been a lot of back and forth with finding the right producer and then the most advanced science behind extraction of this ingredient and then waiting for test results to come through and keeping our fingers crossed that the mega cosmetic giant didn't win the patent suit, it exhausts me to think about it all and we at LBF are giddy about this launch because we worked hard to conceive it, fight for it and formulate it thoughtfully for you. This all goes back to the origins of this post and the truth about C. Not all C's are created equal and not all C's are as beneficial to your body or skin, but we did manage to find a rich and complete source of C. It is wild harvested, the best we could find and we have created a truly unique product that we believe over time will strengthen thinning tissue, increase collagen production, minimize fine lines, brighten your complexion and add overwhelming health to the state of your skin. We found this product not to oxidize or degrade the way other products with "Vitamin C" claims have or as quickly. We have included other antioxidants, vitamins and plant and cosmetic actives to increase the quality of our product and boy has it ever! This is not to claim that our product won't eventually degrade because it will (it's natural and doesn't contain chemical preservatives and nothing this good lasts forever), but we're happy to report it is very potent, vibrant and not a fraction of the whole as we feel our customers deserve better. After all, your dollar matters to us too and allows us to invest in finding the best and using the best for optimal results. It also helps us to continue to pay fair trade and work on cohabiting as a company with producers, farmers and the environments from which our ingredients are grown and loved. We base our business on these important relationships. It is the foundation and heart of our identity and what separates us from the rest. We care just as much about the little farm in Peru as we do about the savvy customer in New York City.

Now that you know a little of truth about Vitamin C doesn't that make you want to eat more fruit and vegetables or try those juice recipes you've seen all over Pinterest? The real truth is that you deserve better and there is a new smart and in tuned customer that is willing to invest in his or her health and beauty and we as a company are a step ahead with the increased demand for that desire of better quality and transparency. We want to provide for you what we want for ourselves and in the spirit of our company name that is authenticity and higher than average performance. From the inside out!

Coming This August!