Human Utilization of Dehydroascorbic Acid

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Abstract
In two experiments, designed to compare the utilization of dehydroascorbic acid with that of ascorbic acid, 12 young men consumed from 92 to 96% of their total daily ascorbic acid intake alternately as ascorbic acid and as dehydroascorbic acid in 4 8-day test periods. By the criterion of blood plasma content of ascorbic and total ascorbic acid, dehydroascorbic acid was as well utilized as ascorbic acid at two levels of intake, 75 and 110 mg per day. Urinary excretions of both ascorbic and total ascorbic acid were less on dehydroascorbic acid intake than on ascorbic acid intake. On the basis of total ascorbic acid retention, the utilization of dehydroascorbic acid was 85% that of ascorbic acid on daily intakes of 110 mg and 98% on daily intakes of 75 mg. Although it was concluded on the basis of urinary returns that dehydroascorbic acid was less well utilized by these subjects than was ascorbic acid, the extent of utilization of dehydroascorbic acid sufficiently approached that of ascorbic acid at both levels of intake for the maintenance of comparable blood plasma levels of ascorbic acid on both forms of intake.