Vitamin C and pneumonia & other severe infections

by Harri Hemilä

Department of Public Health
University of Helsinki, Finland
harri.hemila@helsinki.fi
http://www.mv.helsinki.fi/home/hemila
Feb 24, 2020 

1. Pneumonia

2. Tuberculosis

3. Tetanus

4. Other infections and commentaries

Pneumonia

Three controlled trials have found significant decrease in the incidence of pneumonia and two found treatment benefit for pneumonia patients.
Hemilä H, Louhiala P.
Vitamin C for preventing and treating pneumonia.
Cochrane Database Syst Rev 2013; CD005532

http://dx.doi.org/10.1002/14651858.CD005532.pub3
https://helda.helsinki.fi/handle/10138/225862
http://www.mv.helsinki.fi/home/hemila/CP/2013_Coch_Pneu_CD005532.pdf
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/23925826


A short review
Hemilä H, Louhiala P.
Vitamin C may affect lung infections.
JRSM 2007;100:495-498
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2099400
https://doi.org/10.1177/014107680710001109


Hemilä H.
Vitamin C intake and susceptibility to pneumonia.
Pediatr Infect Dis J 1997;16:836-837
http://dx.doi.org/10.1097/00006454-199709000-00003
https://helda.helsinki.fi/handle/10138/225875
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/9306475


Hemilä H.
Vitamin C supplementation and respiratory infections: a systematic review.
Military Medicine 2004;169:920-925
https://doi.org/10.7205/MILMED.169.11.920
https://helda.helsinki.fi/handle/10138/225867
http://www.mv.helsinki.fi/home/hemila/H/HH_2004.pdf
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/15605943

Hemilä H, Douglas RM.
Vitamin C and acute respiratory infections.
Int J TB Lung Dis 1999;3:756-761
http://www.ingentaconnect.com/content/iuatld/ijtld/1999/00000003/00000009/art00004
http://www.mv.helsinki.fi/home/hemila/H/HH_1999_IJTLD.pdf
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/10488881

Modification of vitamin E effect by vitamin C also means that vitamin C influences pneumonia risk.
Hemilä H, Kaprio J.
Vitamin E supplementation and pneumonia risk in males who initiated smoking at an early age: effect modification by body weight and vitamin C. Nutr J 2008;7:33
http://dx.doi.org/10.1186/1475-2891-7-33
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2603040
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/19019244

Comment:
Hemilä H. Vitamin C and Community-acquired Pneumonia.
AJRCCM 2011;184:621-2.
http://dx.doi.org/10.1164/ajrccm.184.5.621a

Tuberculosis

Modification of vitamin E effect by vitamin C also means that vitamin C influences TB risk.
Furthermore, high dietary vitamin C intake was associated with 60% lower TB risk in the participants who were not administered vitamin E.
Hemilä H, Kaprio J.
Vitamin E supplementation may transiently increase tuberculosis risk in males who smoke heavily and have high dietary vitamin C intake. Br J Nutr 2008;100:896-902
http://dx.doi.org/10.1017/S0007114508923709
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/18279551
    Discussion: BJN 2009;101:145-147
    Comment:
    http://dx.doi.org/10.1017/S0007114508994411
    Reply:
    http://dx.doi.org/10.1017/S0007114508994423

Hemilä H, Kaprio J, Pietinen P, Albanes D, Heinonen OP.
Vitamin C and other compounds in vitamin C rich food in relation to risk of tuberculosis in male smokers.
Am J Epidemiol 1999;150:632-641
http://dx.doi.org/10.1093/oxfordjournals.aje.a010062
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/10490003

Tetanus

One study in Bangladesh found significant benefit of vitamin C for tetanus patients, see analysis in:
Hemilä H, Koivula TT
Vitamin C for preventing and treating tetanus.
Cochrane Database Syst Rev 2013; CD006665

Summary in
French
https://www.mv.helsinki.fi/home/hemila/TFrench.html
Spanish
https://www.mv.helsinki.fi/home/hemila/CD006665_es_abstract.pdf
https://www.mv.helsinki.fi/home/hemila/TSpanish.html
Japanese
https://www.mv.helsinki.fi/home/hemila/TJapanese.html
Korean
https://www.mv.helsinki.fi/home/hemila/TKorean.html

http://dx.doi.org/10.1002/14651858.CD006665.pub3
https://helda.helsinki.fi/handle/10138/225863
http://www.mv.helsinki.fi/home/hemila/CT/2013_Coch_Tetanus_CD006665.pdf
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/24226506
References to the review:
http://www.mv.helsinki.fi/home/hemila/CT


Hemilä H. Vitamin C and tetanus. Annals of African Medicine 2010;9:108-109
http://www.annalsafrmed.org/text.asp?2010/9/2/108/64742
https://doi.org/10.4103/1596-3519.64742

Other infections and commentaries

Hemilä H. Infections in animals.
In: Do vitamins C and E affect respiratory infections? Thesis 2006 pp. 7-9
http://hdl.handle.net/10138/20335
http://www.mv.helsinki.fi/home/hemila/animals

Hemilä H.
Vitamin C and infections
Nutrients 2017;9(4):339.
https://doi.org/10.3390/nu9040339

Hemilä H.
Vitamin C and rabies. PLoS Neglected Tropical Diseases 2011
http://www.plosntds.org/annotation/listThread.action?root=6307

Hemilä H.
Vitamin C and SARS coronavirus.
JAC 2003;52:1049-1050
http://dx.doi.org/10.1093/jac/dkh002
https://www.mv.helsinki.fi/home/hemila/H/2003_L_JAC

Hemilä H.
Randomised trials on vitamin C.
Br J Nutr 2011;105:485-487
http://dx.doi.org/10.1017/S000711451000351X

Hemilä H.
Spectacular reduction in the mortality of acutely injured patients by the administration of vitamins C and E and selenium. JPEN 2009;33:447-448
http://dx.doi.org/10.1177/0148607108328520
http://hdl.handle.net/10138/16985

Hemilä H.
The protective effect of vitamins A and C on endotoxin-induced oxidative renal tissue damage in rats.
Tohoku J Exp Med 2006;208:99-100
http://dx.doi.org/10.1620/tjem.208.99