Vitamin C: can it cure colds and cancer?

Vitamin C: can it cure colds and cancer?

From What's That Rash? by ABC Australia

March 3, 2026 · 19 min

About this episode

The episode explores the claims surrounding vitamin C's effectiveness in treating colds and cancer, featuring insights from a notable Nobel laureate.

Many people believe that taking vitamin C supplements helps their immune system fight off colds. But there are even bigger claims attached to this supplement – that it not only boosts immunity, but fights cancer. Norman and Tegan introduce us to the Nobel laureate who pushed these theories decades ago, and whether there’s any truth to them. References: The Discovery of Vitamin C Treatment for scurvy not discovered by Lind Linus Pauling’s Vitamin C Crusade Ascorbic Acid in Cancer Treatment: Let the Phoenix Fly A randomized trial of pharmacological ascorbate, gemcitabine, and nab-paclitaxel for metastatic pancreatic cancer The Role of Vitamin C in Cancer Prevention and Therapy: A Literature Review High-dose vitamin C: A promising anti-tumor agent, insight from mechanisms, clinical research, and challenges Vitamin C reduces the severity of common colds: a meta-analysis Two Faces of Vitamin C—Antioxidative and Pro-Oxidative Agent Vitamin C - Australian Institute of Sport Vitamin C – EatforHealth.gov.au If you enjoyed this episode, check these out! Multivitamins: Are they a scam? Can consuming dairy really give you acne? Is sitting the new smoking?

People in this episode

Hosts: Norman, Tegan

Topics covered

  • Vitamin C
  • immune system
  • cancer treatment
  • supplements
  • health claims

Keywords

  • Vitamin C
  • colds
  • cancer
  • immune system
  • supplements
  • Linus Pauling

Mentioned in this episode

Organizations: Australian Institute of Sport, EatforHealth.gov.au

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