Chronic knee complaints are prevalent in athletes, with pain in the patellar tendon often resulting from overuse injuries. Collagen synthesis, vital for tendon health, requires Vitamin C. This article explores the effectiveness of both standard and Ester-C® forms of Vitamin C in addressing these issues.
Mitmesser et al. (2015) emphasize Vitamin C’s role in collagen synthesis. Ester-C®, a calcium ascorbate with Vitamin C metabolites, may offer higher biological availability than ascorbic acid, potentially leading to more effective suppression of cytokine production and inflammation in the knee (Mitmesser, Zhang, & Ye, 2015).
Patlar (2017) investigated the effect of Vitamin C supplementation on lipid peroxidation and lactate levels in sedentary athletes. The study suggests that Vitamin C supplementation might offset the increase in free radical production and lactate levels induced by exhaustive exercise, indicating its potential benefit for athlete health and performance (Patlar, Baltaci, Mogulkoc, & Günay, 2017).
Oikonomidis et al. (2014) conducted a study to evaluate the effectiveness of vitamin C and E supplementation in the treatment of chronic degenerative arthritis of the knee. This study suggests that standard forms of Vitamin C, alongside Vitamin E, can be as effective as certain medications in remitting symptoms of knee osteoarthritis, offering a potential therapeutic alternative (Oikonomidis, Simos, Toliopoulos, Verginadis, Oikonomidis, Ragos, Karkabounas, & Evangelou, 2014).
Both Ester-C® and standard forms of Vitamin C show promise in managing chronic knee issues in athletes. Ester-C® may offer superior biological availability and inflammatory suppression, while standard Vitamin C can also effectively alleviate symptoms of knee osteoarthritis. These findings highlight the potential of Vitamin C supplementation in athlete health and knee injury recovery.
References
Mitmesser, S., Zhang, Z.-y., & Ye, Q. (2015). Effects of a Unique Vitamin C Ingredient on Chronic Knee Complaints. The FASEB Journal, 29.
https://doi.org/10.1096/fasebj.29.1_supplement.lb351
Patlar, S., Baltaci, A., Mogulkoc, R., & Günay, M. (2017). Effect of Vitamin C Supplementation on Lipid Peroxidation and Lactate Levels in Individuals Performing Exhaustion Exercise. Annals of Applied Sport Science, 5(2), 21-27.
https://doi.org/10.18869/ACADPUB.AASSJOURNAL.5.2.21
Oikonomidis, S., Simos, Y., Toliopoulos, I. K., Verginadis, I., Oikonomidis, A. S., Ragos, V., Karkabounas, S., & Evangelou, A. (2014). Vitamin C and E Supplementation Versus Standard Meloxicam Regimen in the Treatment of Patients with Chronic Degenerative Arthritis of the Knee: A Preliminary Pilot Study. Journal of Musculoskeletal Research, 17(2), 1450003.
https://doi.org/10.1142/S0218957714500031
