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Scientific Correspondence

Nature 392, 559 (9 April 1998) | doi:10.1038/33308

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Vitamin C exhibits pro-oxidant properties

Ian D. Podmore1, Helen R. Griffiths1, Karl E. Herbert1, Nalini Mistry1, Pratibha Mistry1 & Joseph Lunec1

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Vitamin C is marketed as a dietary supplement, partly because of its 'antioxidant' properties. However, we report here that vitamin C administered as a dietary supplement to healthy humans exhibits a pro-oxidant, as well as an antioxidant, effect in vivo.