Expe iences o company medical se ices wi h i amin C [in Ge man]
By H. Dyllick
Die Medizinische Wel 1967;(17; 29 Ap il):1098-1100
English ansla ion o his pape was a anged by Ha i Hemilä in 2016
ha i.hemila@helsinki. i
h ps://www.m .helsinki. i/home/hemila
This epo was ansla ed as backg ound ma e ial o
esea ch on i amin C and he common cold
by Ha i Hemilä and Elizabe h Chalke , eg.
h ps://doi.o g/10.1002/14651858.CD000980.pub4
h ps://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.go /pmc/a icles/pmc8078152
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The scanned Ge man ex is a he end o his ansla ion.
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1098 Dyllick | Expe iences o company medical se ices wi h i amin C Med. Wel no. 17
Expe iences o company medical se ices wi h i amin C
F om he company medical se ice o Rheins ahl Henschel AG in Kassel
H. DYLLICK
Hypo i aminosis C
In con as o he dis inc de iciency diso de s, la en
i amin de iciencies s ill occu a he equen ly e en in
ou egions despi e imp o ed nu i ional habi s. While
o example “classic” cases o scu y can a ely be
obse ed o a mos in a i icially ed in an s, la en
i amin C de iciency exis s in wide pa s o he
popula ions due o an insu icien supply o his ac i e
subs ance h ough he nu i ion. Mass sc eenings ha
we e ca ied ou a ew yea s ago on mo e han 1,200
esiden s o wo la ge Wes -Ge man ci ies (5) ha e
shown ha he a e age annual supply o i amin C is
insu icien in 65% o he men and in 40% o he women.
This insu icien supply is especially dis inc du ing he
win e mon hs and in he sp ing (up o including
May/June), in which he i amin C con en o ege ables
and especially in po a oes ( he consump ion o which
dec eases mo e and mo e) is only e y low.
Ano he cause o he de elopmen o la en
de iciencies o be conside ed in his con ex is he
communal ca e ing h ough can een ki chens p o iding
he main meal o he majo i y o he wo king
popula ion, as his ype o die o en only supplies a
ac ion o he i amin quan i ies desi able o he
co e age o he daily equi emen (10). Long s o age
pe iods and anspo ou es as well as he ac ha he
ood o en has o be kep wa m o se e al hou s lead o
he ac ha he i amins s ill p esen in he ood be o e
he p epa a ion a e la gely des oyed. Thus, heal h-
ela ed damages a e caused a an inc easing a e by he
au oma ion o mode n li e h ough an insu icien
i amin supply, which a e bound o lead o de as a ing
consequences o e ime.
High losses o i amins ha in pa s amoun ed o up
o 80% in case o i amin C we e de e mined in analyses
o ood se ed by can een ki chens (13, 23). The
ala ming esul s o hese mass sc eenings indica e ha i
is no possible wi h he cu en s a e o he ood
echnology o supply he pa icipan s in communal
ca e ing wi h he quan i ies o i amin C necessa y o
co e he equi emen wi hou addi ional
adminis a ions o his ac i e subs ance. An
adminis a ion o 75-100 mg mus be p esumed o
ensu e he co e age o he daily equi emen o i amin
C.
Howe e , some au ho s also speci y highe alues
ega ding he i amin C dose o be adminis e ed daily,
which is ce ainly indica ed in pe sons who migh
al eady exhibi a la en de iciency o his ac i e
subs ance (11). In such cases in which i s a de ici has
o be co e ed and he ese es ha e o be e illed, he
daily supply can be changed o 75-100 mg once he
i amin C balance has been es o ed. Tha hese
si ua ions a e no a e by a is also p o en by ecen
indings in “clinically heal hy” es pe sons who
ecei ed 1,000 mg i amin C and did no elimina e he
educed subs ance in he u ine a e wa d (15).
Ob iously, he i amin C adminis e ed was needed o
e ill he la en de ici in hese cases.
One o he mos impo an known unc ions o i amin
C is he main enance o he esilience agains in ec ions.
In he e en o a i amin C de iciency, he immune
sys em o he o ganism is clea ly impai ed. On he o he
hand, he i amin C equi emen is clea ly inc eased
when an in ec ious disease is p esen . Especially he
e iculoendo helial sys em mus be ega ded as poin o
a ack o he i amin C in he con ex o an immune
esponse. Vi amin C p omo es he o ma ion o
an ibodies and inc eases he phagocy ic po en ial o he
leucocy es, whe eby he bac e icidal e ec o he blood
inc eases signi ican ly. In addi ion, he i amin is
in ol ed in he syn hesis o co icos e oids, which a e
also o decisi e impo ance o he immune esponse (6,
7, 12, 13, 16). All o hese mechanisms a e impai ed in
he e en o an insu icien supply o i amin C so ha
he immune esponse agains colds is highly impai ed as
a esul .
Aside om hese heo e ical e lec ions, a p ophylac ic
adminis a ion o i amin C o he p e en ion o colds
can ce ainly be called a ecommendable measu e o he
educ ion o he sickness a e based on nume ous epo s
om he p ac ice (1-4, 17-22). Expe iences o company
medical se ices we e epo ed especially by Scheune
(20) as well as Renke and Wegne (17) in his con ex ,
who ca ied ou s udies on 4,000 o espec i ely 1,200
pe sons. The indings o Ri zel (19) om a double-blind
s udy in pa icipan s o a ski camp wi h daily
adminis a ions o 1 g i amin C should also be
men ioned, he s a is ical e alua ion o which
29 Ap il 1967 Med. Wel Dyllick | Expe iences o company medical se ices wi h i amin C 1099
clea ly con i med he p ophylac ic e icacy o i amin
C.
Acco ding o he obse a ions o di e en au ho s, a
su icien ly high dose o i amin C appea s o be he
p e equisi e o achie ing a p ophylac ic e ec . We
he e o e selec ed a daily dose o 1,000 mg o ou own
es s in he local plan . In con as o o he esea che s
(17, 20), he adminis a ion o he i amin C able was
no en us ed o he plan o emen o o he pe sons bu
ca ied ou by he au ho himsel o his employees and
ca e ully moni o ed. Ou obse a ions co e a ime
pe iod o six mon hs (Oc obe 1965 o Ma ch 1966) and
ela e o a o al o 200 employees o he main ac o y
supplied daily wi h i amin C able s. These es pe sons
ce ainly p esen a ep esen a i e c oss-sec ion o hose
depa men s o he ac o y ha ha e a high le el o
public a ic o whe e employees a e especially a isk
o in ec ions due o hei ac i i ies. This especially
conce ns he s a o he company heal h insu ance,
employees in a aining wo kshop, lo y d i e s, d i e s
o elec ic olleys and shun e s o indus ial ailways
who exhibi ed an excep ionally high numbe o sick
days due o colds in he p e ious yea s and in whom a
p ophylaxis would be especially indica ed. The selec ion
o s udy pa icipan s om hese g oups o employees
occu ed based on coinciden al ci cums ances. A
possible economic down u n was no o be an icipa ed a
he ime o he execu ion o ou s udy so ha an e ec
on ou esul was no o be assumed in his ega d. This
assump ion is suppo ed by he de elopmen o he o al
numbe o sick days in he i s qua e o 1966.
The es pe sons ecei ed one Cebion® e e escen
able * daily. The able s we e dis ibu ed o he es
pe sons o hei days o wi h he ins uc ion o ake one
able each day. The daily supply o a 1 g i amin C dose
can be ega ded as comple ely sa e measu e as he ac i e
subs ance is “a comple ely sa e subs ance, e en i daily
amoun s a e ch onically supplied ha exceed he
equi emen ” (14). E en he supposedly un a ou able
e ec s o high doses o i amin C on he ca bohyd a e
me abolism (9) ha we e discussed some ime ago ha e
been disp o en in he meanwhile by di e en wo k
g oups (8, 15).
The esul s o ou s udy clea ly indica e he alue o a
p ophylac ic adminis a ion o i amin C in plan
employees especially a isk o in ec ions.
* Manu ac u e : E. Me ck AG., Da ms ad .
While he numbe o he cases o espi a o y in ec ions
in he s a no p o ec ed by an addi ional i amin C
supply amoun ed o 2.15% ( ou h qua e 1965) o
2.82% [sic!] ( i s qua e 1966)wi h a o al sickness
a e o 7.4% o espec i ely 8.6% in he wo qua e s,
no espi a o y in ec ions we e obse ed a all in he
pe sons ea ed wi h Cebion in he ou h qua e o
1965 and only 1.5% in he i s qua e o 1966 (see
able).
Respi a o y diso de s
Wi hou i amin C
Wi h i amin C
IV/65
2.15%
0
I/66
2.28%
1.15%
Respi a o y diso de s hus accoun ed o maximally
17% o he o al sickness a e in he plan employees
supplied wi h p ophylac ic i amin C in compa ison o
29–33% in he unp o ec ed s a ; acco dingly, hey
could be educed by app oxima ely hal . Whils mild
uppe espi a o y ac in ec ions did occu in some es
pe sons in he ou h qua e o 1965, hese howe e did
no lead o an incapaci y o wo k, so ha he conclusion
ha he cold did no b eak ou in hese cases due o he
adminis a ion o i amin C is ce ainly jus i ied. Based
on hese obse a ions, he p ophylac ic adminis a ion o
i amin C can de ini ely be ecommended as measu e
implemen ed by he company medical se ices o educe
he numbe o sick days due o colds.
Summa y
The alue o a i amin C p ophylaxis implemen ed
by he company medical se ices was es ed in 200
andomly selec ed es pe sons o a plan a isk o
in ec ions ia Cebion® e e escen able s. The es s
ca ied ou o e a six-mon h pe iod (Oc obe 1965 o
Ma ch 1966) indica ed ha he p ophylac ic
adminis a ion o i amin C can be ecommended as a
highly aluable measu e o he educ ion o he
sickness a e due o colds.
Li e a u e
Add ess o he au ho :
o he
company doc o
