Vitamin C is vitamins for the brain, it turns out that the brain can function properly. This hypothesis comes after the recent discovery that nerve cells in the eye require vitamin C. Findings from a study by scientists at Oregon Health & Science University have been published in the Journal of Neuroscience.It was found that cells in the retina requires high doses of vitamin C in order to function better. Because the retina is part of the central nervous system, this suggests a possible role for vitamin C throughout the brain.
The brain has special receptors, called GABA, to assist modulation rapid communication between cells in the brain. GABAÂ receptors in the brain acts as a "brake" on the inhibition of excitatory neurons in the brain. The researchers found that GABA in retinal cells stopped functioning properly when vitamin C is lost from the body.
Because retinal cells is a type of brain cell that is very accessible, it is likely that GABA receptors elsewhere in the brain also require vitamin C to function properly. Vitamin C is also an antioxidant naturally, so what happens is maintaining receptors and cells from premature damage.
The function of vitamin C in the brain is not well understood. In fact, when the human body is deficient in vitamin C, vitamin C levels be kept high on brain than other body parts. These findings also have implications for other diseases, such as glaucoma and epilepsy. Both conditions are caused by dysfunction of nerve cells in the retina and brain occur because GABA receptors are not functioning properly.
