Vitamin C ‘may do more harm . . .'

Press, 27 October 1982, Page 39

Vitamin C ‘may do more harm . . .'

PA Auckland Drinking orange juice and taking Vitamin C to ward off a cold may do more harm than good, a Brisbane hyperactivity researcher believes.

Mrs Patricia Holborow, of the University of Queensland, says that oranges, and any other fruits, contain aspirinlike substances called salicylates which can inhibit the body’s immune responses. Vitamin C slowed the excretion of these substances, she said.

The salicylates act in the same way as artificial colourings and food additives, which many researchers believe contribute to hyperactivity in children. Mrs Holborow has been in Britain for nine months surveying and studying hyperac-

tivity. She was a guest speaker at a recent meeting of the Auckland Hyperactivity Association. “So many parents think they are doing their children good by giving them copious amounts of fruit juice, but they may be doing more harm than good in children with salicylate sensitivity,” she said. Mrs Holborow says about 10 per cent of primary school children can be classed as hyperactive, but most would be undiagnosed. An allergy to food additives and artifical colourings may cause different responses in girls and boys. “It may make girls depressed and weepy, but make boys run round damaging things. That is why hyperactivity is so much more common in boys.” she said.