What happens if you don’t have enough vitamin C?

Vitamin C is arguably the most famous nutrient in the world. We often associate it with bright citrus fruits and warding off winter colds. Because it is so abundant in fresh food, many of us take our intake for granted.

However, like all essential nutrients, your body relies on vitamin C for critical functions.  Because of that, there are real health consequences if you consistently fail to get enough of it in your diet. 

While modern diets usually provide plenty of vitamin C, understanding what happens when levels drop helps us to appreciate just how important those daily portions of fruit and vegetables really are.

What happens if you don’t get enough vitamin C?

To understand deficiency, you first need to understand how the body handles this specific nutrient. Vitamin C is water-soluble.

Unlike fat-soluble vitamins (like Vitamin A or D) which can be stored in the body for long periods, water-soluble vitamins are not stored efficiently. Your body takes what it needs from your food, and any excess is simply flushed away in your urine. This means you cannot “stock up” on Vitamin C once a month; you need a consistent, daily intake to maintain healthy levels.

Because of this constant turnover, vitamin C deficiency is possible if your dietary intake stops for an extended period. The symptoms of not having enough vitamin C can range from barely noticeable to medically serious, depending entirely on how severe the deficiency is and how long it has lasted.

Mild deficiency symptoms

In the early stages, or if your intake is just slightly below optimal, the signs of vitamin C deficiency are often subtle. You might not immediately realise they are connected to your diet, if you notice them at all.

Common early signs include:

• Fatigue and Weakness: You might feel unusually tired or sluggish, even after resting. Vitamin C is crucial for producing carnitine, a molecule that helps your body turn fat into energy. Without it, energy levels drop.¹
• Irritability: Changes in mood are often reported alongside physical fatigue.
• Dry, Rough Skin: Vitamin C is essential for making collagen, the protein that keeps skin smooth and supple. Low levels can cause rough, bumpy skin (often called “chicken skin”) on the back of the arms or thighs.²
• Joint Discomfort: Collagen is also vital for cushioning healthy joints. Mild deficiency can lead to vague aches and pains in the knees or hips.

These mild symptoms are easily reversible. Usually, increasing your intake of vitamin C-rich foods resolves the issue quickly.

Severe deficiency symptoms

If low intake continues for several months, the condition can progress to severe vitamin C deficiency, historically known as scurvy. While this is now incredibly rare in developed countries, it remains a serious medical condition.

Severe symptoms reflect a breakdown in collagen production and weakened capillary strength:

• Gum Health: The gums may become swollen, purple and spongy. In advanced cases, they may bleed and teeth can eventually become loose.³
• Easy Bruising: You may notice large bruises appearing from very minor bumps. This happens because the tiny blood vessels under the skin become fragile without enough Vitamin C to support them.
• Poor Wound Healing: Cuts and scrapes may take a very long time to heal. Old wounds might even reopen in extreme cases.
• Corkscrew Hairs: Body hair may grow in a twisted or coiled shape due to structural defects in the hair shaft, though this condition is rarely seen as the hairs break off easily.²

It is important to emphasise that reaching this stage takes months of severe dietary neglect. This degree of vitamin C deficiency does not occur simply from missing a few days of consuming fruit.

Why is vitamin C deficiency so rare?

You might read the list of symptoms above and feel concerned. However, the good news is that true Vitamin C deficiency is exceptionally rare in the modern world.

The reason is simple: it is incredibly easy to get enough vitamin C from a standard diet.

The recommended daily intake is relatively low because the body is very efficient at using what it gets. For example, a medium-sized orange contains roughly 70 mg of Vitamin C, which is nearly all of the daily requirement for an adult woman (75mg) and a significant chunk for an adult man (90 mg).⁴ 

Even a single apple, while not a “superfood” for Vitamin C compared to citrus fruits, still contributes significantly to your daily total.

Other common foods that are high in Vitamin C include:

• Red peppers: Often contain more Vitamin C than oranges.
• Broccoli: A standard serving provides a healthy dose.
• Strawberries: A handful is often enough to prevent deficiency.
• Potatoes: Even the humble potato contributes to your intake.

Because this vitamin is found in such a wide variety of plant foods, most people meet the minimum requirement purely by accident, just by eating regular meals. To develop scurvy, you would essentially need to stop eating all fruits and vegetables for weeks or months.

Who is at risk?

While rare, Vitamin C deficiency is more likely in specific groups:

• Smokers: Smoking increases oxidative stress, meaning smokers need significantly more Vitamin C (an extra 35 mg per day) to maintain the same blood levels as non-smokers.4
• Highly Restrictive Diets: People with extremely limited food variety (often due to allergies, sensory issues or disordered eating) may be at higher risk depending on what they eat.
• Malabsorption Issues: Certain medical conditions can affect how nutrients are absorbed.

However, for the vast majority of the population, there is no need to worry. While you should always aim for five portions of fruit and vegetables a day to get a full spectrum of nutrients, preventing Vitamin C deficiency specifically is one of the easier health goals to achieve.

References

1. Vitamin C as an antioxidant: evaluation of its role in disease prevention.” Padayatty, Sebastian J et al. “ Journal of the American College of Nutrition vol. 22,1 (2003): 18-35. doi:10.1080/07315724.2003.10719272
2. Cutaneous manifestations of scurvy. Pimentel, L. American Family Physician, 2003.
3. Vitamin C Deficiency. Maxfield, L., & Crane, J. S. StatPearls Publishing, 2023.
4. Vitamin C: Fact Sheet for Health Professionals. National Institutes of Health (NIH), Office of Dietary Supplements.