All issues > Volume 42(6); 1999

Original Article

J Korean Pediatr Soc. 1999;42(6):748-755. Published online June 15, 1999.

Whole Blood and Plasma Vitamin C Level in Healthy Middle and High School Students in Chinju

Yang-Suk YS Jung¹, Jae-Young JY Lim¹, Eun-A EA Kim¹, Yun-Kyeong YK Cho¹, Chan-Hoo CH Park¹, Hyang-Ok HO Woo¹, Hee-Shang HS Youn¹, Gyung-Hyuck GH Ko², Seung-Chul SC Baik³, Woo-Kon WK Lee³, Myung-Je MJ Cho³, Kwang-Ho KH Rhee³

¹Departments of Pediatrics, Gyeongsang National University College of Medicine, Chinju, Korea
²Departments of Pathology, Gyeongsang National University College of Medicine, Chinju, Korea
³Departments of Microbiology, Gyeongsang National University College of Medicine, Chinju, Korea

Correspondence Hee-Shang HS Youn ,Email: 1

Abstract

Purpose
: Recommended dietary allowance of vitamin C was determined without considering the important function of vitamin C as a first-line antioxidant. We measured the whole blood and plasma vitamin C concentrations of healthy middle and high school students in Chinju to assess the optimal daily vitamin C requirement in these age groups.
Methods
: Whole blood and plasma vitamin C concentrations were measured by the 2, 4-dinitrophenylhydrazine method in 780 students from 1st to 3rd grade of at a middle school and high school in Chinju during June 1996.
Results
: Whole blood and plasma vitamin C concentrations were 1.42¡¾0.40mg/dL and 0.92¡¾0.40 mg/dL, respectively. Whole blood and plasma vitamin C concentrations decreased as the school grade became higher. Whole blood and plasma vitamin C concentrations did not differ between females and males in the middle school. However, female high school students had a significantly higher whole blood and plasma vitamin C concentrations than male high school students(P<0.001). Fourteen of 390 middle school students(3.4%) and 23 of 390 high school students(5.9%) had whole blood vitamin C concentrations of less than 0.8mg/dL. Forty-six of 390 middle school students (11.7%) and 113 of 390 high school students(29.0%) had plasma vitamin C concentrations less than 0.6mg/dL. Especially, 45.2% of male high school students had plasma vitamin C concentrations of less than 0.6mg/dL.
Conclusion
: Some adolescents, especially almost half the male high school students, didn't have satisfactory plasma vitamin C levels.

Keywords :Whole blood, Plasma, Vitamin C, Antioxidant, Adolescents