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The Ascorbic Acid Requirements of Children

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Nutrition Department, Forsyth Dental Infirmary and Departments of Biological Chemistry and Pathology, Harvard University Medical School, Boston

Blood plasma ascorbic acid analysis on ninety-three healthy city children whose ascorbic acid intake is evaluated from thorough dietary histories is presented.

Eighty per cent of the children who received 3 ounces or more of orange juice daily or an equivalent amount of ascorbic acid in citrus fruits and tomatoes maintained a blood plasma level of ascorbic acid indicating a liberal intake. Those who received less than 3 ounces showed blood plasma values which were correspondingly lower. There were a few individuals whose blood plasma values remained definitely low in spite of a regular intake considered adequate for the average child.

The amount of ascorbic acid consumed daily from sources other than citrus fruits and tomatoes, that is, other fruits and vegetables, was insufficient in this group to influence the blood plasma values. This finding emphasizes the necessity of a regular consumption of citrus fruits or tomatoes if an optimal post-absorptive plasma value is to be maintained. Furthermore, it suggests that in taking nutritional histories the evaluation of the citrus fruit and tomato intake is a simple, practical, and accurate means of determining ascorbic acid consumption, at least as far as the optimum range is concerned.

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