7 Days of FRUIT-filled christmas Series: #1- Fruits Vs Vitamin C supplements

This is my first post in the "7 days of FRUIT-filled Christmas" series.
When people think about fruits and the benefits, the first thing that crosses their mind aside the sweetness is Vitamin C. In fact The Oxford Dictionary defines fruit as "the sweet and fleshy product of a tree or other plant that contain seed and can be eaten as food,... ". That's my favorite definition of fruit; particularly the "sweet and fleshy" part.

They are mainly sources of Vitamin C (ascorbic acid) which is a water soluble vitamin. It is involved in tissue repair. Vitamin C plays a role (minute in some cases, significant in others) in protecting the body against heart disease, common cold, cancer, osteoarthritis, age-related macular degeneration, asthma, glossitis (inflammed and bleeding gums).
The daily requirement of Vitamin C for adults is 75mg, however, pregnant and breastfeeding mothers require more; 85mg and 120mg respectively. Smokers as well require an additional 35mg per day to replace the amount lost due to smoking.
Some people argue that it is better to just take vitamin C supplements instead of fruits.

However if fruits can be fully understood, it would be clear that fruits are the best option on the long run.
Fruits are naturally occurring while the supplements are factory made. There are a lot of hazards associated with factory made products. One of them being the possibility of the chemicals used to process and preserve them being toxic to some individuals. Some of these vitamin C supplements are made from farm products which people react to.
Supplements however, pack a lot of "juice" (vitamin C) in each tablet. For example a 100mg vitamin C tablet contains a 100mg of vitamin C while a 100g of Orange contain about 53-60mg of vitamin C.

The list below shows the vitamin C content in 100g of each fruit:
Apple- 4.6mg
Avocados- 10mg
Bananas- 8.7mg
Coconut- 3.3mg
Common fig- 1mg
Cranberries- 13.3mg
Durian- 19.7mg
Figs- 2mg
Grapefruit- 31.2mg
Grapes- 4mg
Kiwi- 92.7mg
Lemons- 53mg
Mangoes- 36.4mg
Olives (small) - 0.9mg
Orange- 53.2mg
Papaya (paw paw) - 60.9mg
Passion fruit- 30mg
Peaches- 6.6mg
Pineapple- 46.8mg
Pomegranate- 10.2mg
Strawberry- 58.8mg
Watermelon- 8.1mg

The rest of the weight in oranges as well as other fruits are filled with fluids (water), healthy sugars, antioxidants (which help in immunity), fibers that help in digestion and certain proteins and trace minerals that help the body function optimally.

Pineapples for example is said to contain a good amount of an enzyme called Bromelain which is suspected to help in digestion of proteins. Mangoes contain Zeaxanthan which is an antioxidant. It helps protect the eyes from dangerous blue light rays that add to the development and worsening of macular degeneration. There's also the added satisfaction you get eating them.
If you are the the type with a green thumb, you could plant your favorite fruits and have a yearly supply of your favorite fruits, which you definitely cannot do for the supplement tablets.
Unfortunately you can't find all known fruits at any single known location. Just the way you can find strawberries in Europe but not in western Africa so it is for mangoes (abundant in western Africa) as they don't naturally thrive in those regions.

You can check online for vitamin C content as well as other specific health benefits of the fruits available to you locally.

So let's be FRUIT-ful and FRUIT-filled this season. Cheers.

DON'T FORGET TO ASK QUESTIOMS IF YOU HAVE ANY, UPVOTE AND RESTEEM.

Sources:
Oxford Dictionary
UMM

prevention.com