35 ounces -- or milligrams -- of prevention for the common cold

It's that time of the year again -- the cold bug is rearing its ugly head. Did you know that, in addition to keeping your hands clean, getting lots of sleep and plenty of fluids, you should also watch your vitamin C intake to prevent a cold? Studies have shown that vitamin C might protect us from the common cold, or speed our recovery time.
The Recommended Daily Allowance of vitamin C for adults is a measly 60 mg. For babies 6 months to one year old, the RDA is 35 mg. While this is not a lot of vitamin C, to say the least, you should make sure that you and your baby are getting at least that much, preferrably more, everyday.
Vitamin C is what the nutrition folks call an antioxidant -- it finds free radicals (the "bad guys" in our bodies created by a plethora of things, such as smoking, pollution, poor sleep or diet) and neutralizes them. It is also what is referred to as a water soluble vitamin. This, in general terms, means that your body stores very little vitamin C and thus requires daily replenishment. Too little vitamin C stores in the body can lead to conditions such as bleeding gums and scurvy. Too much vitamin C can lead to "bowel intolerance."
Fortunately, babies who drink juice are getting vitamin C. Beech-Nut's white grape juice contains 120 percent of the RDA per 4 ounces of juice. If you dilute your juice to at least 50 percent like you should be doing, this means your baby is getting about 60 percent of his vitamin C needs from juice, assuming you are giving him about 4 ounces of diluted juice everyday. In milligrams, this probably equates to about 15 to 20 mg of vitamin C.
But there are foods you can make your baby that contain just as much vitamin C, but not all the sugar the juices contain. These include:

1/2 medium kiwi: 38 mg

1/8 cantaloupe: 32 mg

1/8 papaya: 21 mg

2 tablespoons broccoli: 14 mg

1 small banana: 10 mg

1/2 cup mashed potatoes: 10 mg

1/8 mango: 9 mg

If your baby is already sniffling, you may want to even try mixing a pinch (and I mean a pinch!) of powdered vitamin C in with his food. You can find powdered vitamin C at your local health food store, and 1/4 of a teaspoon is 1,000 mg of vitamin C, so a few grains will do! Beware of too much vitamin C -- increased urination or bowel movements.

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