Maximise The Intake of Vitamin C on a Carnivore Diet

Why Do I Need Vitamin C on a Carnivore Diet?

Vitamin C, aka Ascorbic Acid, is one of the most-needed nutrients that carry out vital functions in the human body, including the following.

• Improving Immune System: Vitamin C helps produce white blood cells, which are soldiers of the immune system battling infections and diseases. It is also needed for wound healing. Learn why the Carnivore diet is the best for autoimmune disease.
• Working as an Antioxidant: Functioning as a powerful antioxidant, Vitamin C defends body cells from free radicals, which are unstable molecules causing oxidative stress and chronic diseases.
• Synthesising Collagen: Collagen is a protein necessary for healthy skin, bones, and connective tissue. Vitamin C is an integral part of synthesising collagen.
• Boosting Iron Absorption: Vitamin C can increase iron absorption from foods.
• Reducing Chronic Diseases: Vitamin C can protect the body against chronic diseases, including heart disease, cancer, and Alzheimer's disease.

It's no secret that the Carnivore diet is based on animal products, which means it won't allow you to consume plant-based sources rich in Vitamin C.

If Vitamin C is this necessary for the body, what happens if there is not enough of this vitamin in the body? How can we know if we don’t have enough Vitamin C in our body? How does Vitamin C deficiency show itself? How can we get enough Vitamin C on a Carnivore diet? The following sections will tell us!

Vitamin C Deficiency Symptoms on The Carnivore Diet

As you may know, large amounts of Vitamin C are found in fruits and vegetables, including the following.

• Citrus fruits (like oranges, grapefruits, lemons, and lime),
• Berries (strawberries, raspberries, and blackberries),
• Kiwi,
• Pineapple,
• Mango,
• Papaya,
• Melons (like watermelon and cantaloupe),
• Tomatoes,
• Peppers (red, green, yellow),
• Broccoli,
• Brussels sprouts,
• Cauliflower,
• Spinach,
• Kale, and
• Cabbage.

But if you don't consume these plant-based sources or other animal-based sources, which you'll learn later in this article, you may face Vitamin C deficiency problems, like Scurvy.

What Is Scurvy?

One of the issues Carnivore dieters may face is Vitamin C deficiency, which is likely to happen as the Carnivore diet is based on animal products that are not rich in Vitamin C.

If your body doesn’t receive enough Vitamin C, it faces problems producing enough collagen, which causes Scurvy. Although it is not common, it still is a severe condition.

You may spot the symptoms of Scurvy/ Vitamin C deficiency after a few weeks to a few months of inadequate Vitamin C intake. The symptoms are as follows.

• Fatigue and weakness
• Pain in joints and muscles
• Swollen, bleeding gums
• Bruising easily
• Dry, scaly skin
• Anaemia
• Slow wound healing
• Depression and irritability
• Tooth loss

So, to avoid Scurvy/ Vitamin C deficiency, let’s see how much Vitamin C we need on a Carnivore diet to meet our body’s needs.

How Much Vitamin C Do I Need on a Carnivore Diet?

Generally, it’s believed that adults need to consume about 75-90 mg of Vitamin C every day. However, since the Carnivore diet relies on animal products that don’t contain a lot of Vitamin C, the Carnivore dieters may need to look for other sources.

It’s no secret that the amount of daily Vitamin C mentioned above is general, and the healthy dosage differs depending on age, sex, and other factors such as pregnancy or breastfeeding.

So, make sure to consult a healthcare specialist before taking any supplements or making significant changes in your eating habits.

The following table shows the general amount of Vitamin C needed for males and females daily, which also considers age, pregnancy and lactation.

If you’ve checked the above table and wonder how to get enough Vitamin C on a Carnivore diet, scroll to the next section to find out.

How to Get Vitamin C on a Carnivore Diet?

Yes, I know that Vitamin C is mainly found in plant-based products, but we, the Carnivore dieters, need to find a Carnivore-friendly way to take enough Vitamin C to avoid health problems.

The following list shows some good sources of Vitamin C in animal-based foods.

• Beef Liver: It is rich in Vitamin C, i.e., a 3-ounce serving of it contains about 4.5 mg of Vitamin C.
• Beef Spleen: 100 g of cooked beef spleen contains about 50.3 mg of Vitamin C, which provides 84% of the average recommended daily intake.
• Oysters: A 6-ounce serving of oysters can contain about 12 mg of Vitamin C.
• Fish Roe: Fish eggs or roe are also rich in Vitamin C; for example, a 3-ounce serving of salmon roe can provide about 4.5 mg of Vitamin C.
• Organ Meats and Bone Broth: Organ meats like heart and kidney and homemade bone broth can also contain small amounts of Vitamin C.

To know the mg of Vitamin C in meat, seafood, poultry, milk, cheese, and eggs, keep scrolling to the following sections.

Vitamin C in Meat and Poultry

The following list shows how much Vitamin C can be found in 100 grams of different kinds of meat and poultry.

• Beef spleen (cooked, braised): 50.3
• Veal thymus: 49.2
• Beef spleen: 45.5
• Veal spleen: 41.0
• Beef lung: 38.5
• Beef lung (cooked, braised): 32.7
• Lamb lungs: 31.0
• Beef pancreas (cooked, braised): 20.3
• Beef pancreas: 13.7
• Beef brain: 10.7
• Beef brain (cooked, simmered): 10.5
• Beef kidney: 9.4
• Lamb heart: 5.0
• Lamb liver: 4.0
• Beef tongue: 3.1
• Grass-fed beef: 2.5
• Beef heart: 2.0
• Grain-fed beef: 1.6
• Beef liver: 1.3
• Pork spleen: 28.5
• Pork liver: 25.3
• Pork liver (cooked, braised): 23.6
• Capon giblet: 18.4
• Pork brain (cooked, braised): 14.0
• Veal lungs: 39.0
• Pork brain: 13.5
• Pork kidney: 13.3
• Pork lung: 12.3
• Pork heart: 5.3
• Pork sirloin: 0.9
• Pork leg: 1.1
• Pork shoulder: 0.8
• Pork belly: 0.3
• Ground pork: 0.7
• Chicken liver (cooked, simmered): 27.9
• Turkey liver: 24.5
• Chicken liver: 17.9
• Capon giblet: 13.1
• Chicken giblet: 16.2
• Chicken dark meat: 4.6
• Chicken heart: 3.2
• Chicken thigh: 2.3
• Chicken wing: 0.7
• Lean chicken: 1.2
• Quail meat: 7.2
• Wild duck meat: 6.2
• Duck meat and skin: 2.8
• Goose meat: 7.2

Vitamin C in Seafood

The list below shows how much Vitamin C can be found in the 100 grams of seafoods allowed on the Carnivore diet.

• Clam (canned): 22.1
• Fish roe (cooked): 16.4
• Fish roe: 16.0
• Clam: 13.0
• Crab (cooked): 7.6
• Crab: 7.0
• Octopus: 5.0
• Oyster: 4.7
• Atlantic salmon: 3.9
• Trout: 2.9
• Shrimp: 2.2
• Mackerel: 2.0
• Herring: 1.0
• Mackerel: 0.4

Vitamin C in Milk and Cheese

The following list displays the amount of Vitamin C found in 100 ml of different kinds of milk.

Read More: What Is The Best Butter for The Carnivore Diet? Salted, Unsalted, Ghee or Grass-fed?

• Raw milk: 2.2
• Reconstituted whole milk from powder: 1.3
• Pasteurized milk: 0.6
• Reconstituted evaporated milk: 0.2

Other kinds of milk and cheese shown below do not contain considerable amounts of Vitamin C, i.e., up to 1mg at a maximum.

• Ricotta cheese (part-skim cow's milk)
• Feta cheese (goat and sheep's milk)
• Whole goat's milk
• Reduced-fat goat's milk
• Skim goat's milk
• Whole sheep's milk
• Reduced-fat sheep's milk
• Skim sheep's milk

Read More: Can You Eat Cheese on The Carnivore Diet? What Is The Best Cheese?

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Vitamin C in Eggs

Eggs do not contain considerable amounts of Vitamin C, with large eggs containing less than 0.5 mg.

So, as you witnessed above, different kinds of meat, poultry, seafood, and dairy contain various amounts of Vitamin C. Let’s wrap up what we’ve learned so far and check out the list of the best sources of Vitamin C on the Carnivore diet.

Here are some easy and super yummy Carnivore recipes containing eggs:

• Carnivore Diet Bacon Tacos with Egg for Breakfast
• Carnivore Smoked Salmon Egg Scramble
• Carnivore Diet Three Cheese Omelette
• Carnivore Diet Egg Salad with Bacon and Crisps
• Carnivore Diet Sausage and Egg Salad

The Best Sources of Vitamin C on The Carnivore Diet

The list below is your ultimate guideline on how to get Vitamin C on a Carnivore diet, as it shows the best sources of Vitamin C found in animal products.

1. Veal thymus: 49.2
2. Beef spleen: 45.5
3. Veal spleen: 41.0
4. Veal lungs: 39.0
5. Beef lungs: 38.5
6. Lamb lungs: 31.0
7. Pork spleen: 28.5
8. Pork liver: 25.3
9. Turkey liver: 24.5
10. Lamb spleen: 23.0
11. Capon giblet: 18.4
12. Chicken liver: 17.9
13. Chicken giblet: 16.2
14. Lamb brain: 16.0
15. Veal pancreas: 16.0
16. Fish roe: 16.0
17. Beef pancreas: 13.7
18. Pork brain: 13.5
19. Pork kidney: 13.3
20. Chicken giblet: 13.1
21. Clam: 13.0
22. Pork lung: 12.3
23. Lamb kidney: 11.0
24. Beef brain: 10.7
25. Beef kidney: 9.4
26. Goose meat: 7.2
27. Quail meat: 7.2
28. Crab: 7.0
29. Wild duck meat: 6.2
30. Pork heart: 5.3

Summary

This article tried to scrutinise on how to get Vitamin C on a Carnivore diet, so you can avoid Vitamin C on this diet. Consuming animal-based foods rich in Vitamin C, including liver, beef, and seafood, can meet your need for this essential nutrient.

Taking supplements is another way of providing the Vitamin C needed for a healthy body, but remember that you must consult a healthcare professional first to avoid disorders and illnesses.

Also, if you’re looking for delicious foods with the mentioned animal-based products, take a look at these Carnivore diet recipes.