document_title: Book of Ruth

question_text: when did the story of ruth take place

question_tokens: when did the story of ruth take place

text: Book of Ruth

text: Structure[edit]

text: The book is structured in four chapters:[5]

text: Act 1: Prologue and Problem: Death and Emptiness (1:1–22)

text:
Scene 1: Setting the scene (1:1–5)
Scene 2: Naomi returns home (1:6–18)
Scene 3: Arrival of Naomi and Ruth in Bethlehem (1:19–22)

tag: ul

text: Act 2: Ruth Meets Boaz, Naomi's Relative, on the Harvest Field (2:1–23)

text:
Scene 1: Ruth in the field of Boaz (2:1–17)
Scene 2: Ruth reports to Naomi (2:18–23)

text: Act 3: Naomi Sends Ruth to Boaz on the Threshing Floor (3:1–18)

text:
Scene 1: Naomi Reveals Her Plan (3:1–5)
Scene 2: Ruth at the threshing-floor of Boaz (3:6–15)
Scene 3: Ruth reports to Naomi (3:16–18)

text: Act 4: Resolution and Epilogue: Life and Fullness (4:1–22)

text:
Scene 1: Boaz with the men at the gate (4:1–12)
Scene 2: A son is born to Ruth (4:13–17)

text: Genealogical appendix (4:18–22)

text: Summary[edit]

text: During the time of the Judges when there was a famine, an Israelite family from Bethlehem – Elimelech, his wife Naomi, and their sons Mahlon and Chilion – emigrated to the nearby country of Moab. Elimelech died, and the sons married two Moabite women: Mahlon married Ruth and Chilion married Orpah.

text: After about ten years, the two sons of Naomi also died in Moab (1:4). Naomi decided to return to Bethlehem. She told her daughters-in-law to return to their own mothers and remarry. Orpah reluctantly left; however, Ruth said, "Intreat me not to leave thee, [or] to return from following after thee: for whither thou goest, I will go; and where thou lodgest, I will lodge: thy people [shall be] my people, and thy God my God: Where thou diest, will I die, and there will I be buried: the LORD do so to me, and more also, [if aught] but death part thee and me." (Ruth 1:16–17 KJV)

text: The two women returned to Bethlehem at the beginning of the barley harvest, and in order to support her mother-in-law and herself, Ruth went to the fields to glean. As it happened, the field she went to belonged to a man named Boaz, who was kind to her because he had heard of her loyalty to her mother-in-law. Ruth told Naomi of Boaz's kindness, and she gleaned in his field through the remainder of barley and wheat harvest.

text: Boaz was a close relative of Naomi's husband's family. He was therefore obliged by the Levirate law to marry Mahlon's widow, Ruth, in order to carry on his family's inheritance. Naomi sent Ruth to the threshing floor at night and told her to go where he slept, and "uncover his feet, and lay thee down; and he will tell thee what thou shalt do" (3:4). Ruth did so. Boaz asked her who she was, and she replied: "I [am] Ruth thine handmaid: spread therefore thy skirt over thine handmaid; for thou [art] a near kinsman." (3:9) Boaz blessed her and agreed to do all that is required, and he noted that, "all the city of my people doth know that thou [art] a virtuous woman." (3:11) He then acknowledged that he was a close relative, but that there was one who was closer, and she remained in submission at his feet until she returned into the city in the morning.

text: Early that day, Boaz went to the city gate to meet with the other male relative before the town elders. The relative is not named: Boaz addresses him as "Friend", ploni almoni, literally "so and so".[6] The Expanded Bible's editors comment that "the man is not named, perhaps ironically because he refused to preserve Naomi’s family name".[7]

text: The unnamed relative was unwilling to jeopardize the inheritance of his own estate by marrying Ruth, and so relinquished his right of redemption, thus allowing Boaz to marry Ruth. They transferred the property and redeemed it, ratified by the nearer kinsman taking off his shoe and handing it over to Boaz. Ruth 4:7 notes for later generations that:

text: Boaz and Ruth were then married and have a son. The women of the city celebrate Naomi's joy, for Naomi found a redeemer for her family name, and Naomi takes the child and places it in her bosom.

text: The child is named Obed, who we discover is "the father of Jesse, the father of David" (Ruth 4:13–17), that is, the grandfather of King David.

text: The book concludes with an appendix which traces the Davidic genealogy all the way back from Perez, "whom Tamar bore to Judah", through to Obed, down to David.

text: Composition[edit]

text: The book does not name its author.[8] It is traditionally ascribed to the prophet Samuel, but Ruth's identity as a non-Israelite and the stress on the need for an inclusive attitude towards foreigners suggests an origin in the fifth century BCE, when intermarriage had become controversial (as seen in Ezra 9:1 and Nehemiah 13:1).[9] A substantial number of scholars therefore date it to the Persian period (6th–4th centuries BC).[10] The genealogy that concludes the book is believed to be a post-exilic Priestly addition, as it adds nothing to the plot; nevertheless, it is carefully crafted and integrates the book into the history of Israel running from Genesis to Kings.[11]

text: Themes and background[edit]

text: Levirate marriage and the "redeemers"[edit]

text: The Book of Ruth illustrates the difficulty of trying to use laws given in books such as Deuteronomy as evidence of actual practice.[10] Naomi plans to provide security for herself and Ruth by arranging a Levirate marriage with Boaz. Her plan is overtly sexual: Ruth is to go to the threshing floor (a place associated with sexual activity), wait until Boaz has finished eating and drinking (a possible allusion to the story of Lot and his daughters, ancestors through incest of the Moabites), and to lie at his uncovered "feet" (a euphemism for genitals).[12][Note 1] Since there was no heir to inherit Elimelech's land, custom required a close relative (usually the dead man's brother) to marry the widow of the deceased in order to continue his family line (Deuteronomy 25:5–10). This relative was called the go'el, the "kinsman-redeemer". As Boaz is not Elimelech's brother, nor is Ruth his widow, scholars refer to the arrangement here as "Levirate-like".[13] A complication arises in the story: another man is a closer relative to Elimelech than Boaz and has first claim on Ruth. It is resolved through the custom that required land to stay in the family: a family could mortgage land to ward off poverty, but the law required a kinsman to purchase it back into the family (Leviticus 25:25ff). Boaz meets the near kinsman at the city gate (the place where contracts are settled); the kinsman first says he will purchase Elimelech's (now Naomi's) land, but, upon hearing he must also take Ruth as his wife, withdraws his offer. Boaz thus becomes Ruth and Naomi's "kinsman-redeemer."[13]

text: Mixed marriage[edit]

text: The book can be read as a political parable relating to issues around the time of Ezra and Nehemiah (the 4th century BCE).[5] The fictional nature of the story is established from the start through the names of the participants: the husband and father is Elimelech, meaning "My God is King", and his wife is Naomi, "Pleasing", but after the deaths of her sons Mahlon, "Sickness", and Chilion, "Wasting", she asks to be called Mara, "Bitter".[5] The reference to Moab raises questions, since in the rest of the biblical literature it is associated with hostility to Israel, sexual perversity, and idolatry, and Deuteronomy 23:3–6 excluded an Ammonite or a Moabite from "the congregation of the LORD; even to their tenth generation".[5] Despite this, Ruth the Moabitess married a Judahite and even after his death still regarded herself a member of his family; she then married another Judahite and bore him a son who became an ancestor of David.[14] Contrary to the message of Ezra-Nehemiah, where marriages between Jewish men and non-Jewish women were broken up, Ruth teaches that foreigners who convert to Judaism can become good Jews, foreign wives can become exemplary followers of Jewish law, and there is no reason to exclude them or their offspring from the community.[14]

text: Contemporary interpretations[edit]

text: Scholars have increasingly explored Ruth in ways which allow it to address contemporary issues. Feminists, for example, have recast the story as one of the dignity of labour and female self-sufficiency, and even as a model for lesbian relations, while others have seen in it a celebration of the relationship between strong and resourceful women. Others have criticised it for its underlying, and potentially exploitative, acceptance of a system of patriarchy in which a woman's worth can only be measured through marriage and child-bearing. Others again have seen it as a book that champions outcast and oppressed peoples.[15]

text: Genealogy: the descent of David from Ruth[edit]

text:
Elimelech

Naomi

Boaz

Ruth

Mahlon

Orpah

Chilion

Obed

Jesse

David


document_title: Fuel taxes in the United States

question_text: taxes on a gallon of gasoline in california

root

text: Fuel taxes in the United States

text: State taxes[edit]

text: The first US state tax on fuel was introduced in February 1919 in Oregon.[4] It was a 1¢/gal tax.[5] In the following decade, all of the US states (48 at the time), along with the District of Columbia, introduced a gasoline tax. By 1939, an average tax of 3.8¢/gal (1¢/L) of fuel was levied by the individual states.

tag: p

text: In the years since being created, state fuel taxes have undergone many revisions.[6] While most fuel taxes were initially levied as a fixed number of cents per gallon, as of 2016[update], nineteen states and District of Columbia have fuel taxes with rates that vary alongside changes in the price of fuel, the inflation rate, vehicle fuel-economy, or other factors[7]

text: The table below includes state and local taxes and fees. The American Petroleum Institute uses a weighted average of local taxes by population of each municipality to come up with an average tax for the entire state. Similarly, the national average is weighted by volume of fuel sold in each state. Because many of the states with the highest taxes also have higher populations, more states have below average taxes than above average taxes.

text: Most states exempt gasoline from general sales taxes. However, several states do collect full or partial sales tax in addition to the excise tax. Sales tax is not reflected in the rates below.

text:
Taxes on gasoline and diesel for transportation by US state in US cents per gallon as of July 2017[3]

State
Gasoline tax
(excludes federal tax of 18.4¢/gal)
Diesel tax
(excludes federal tax of 24.4¢/gal)
Notes

US (volume-weighted) average
31.04
31.01

Alabama
22.91
21.89

Alaska
12.25
12.75

Arizona
19.00
27.00

Arkansas
21.80
22.80

California
41.70
40.01
Gasoline subject to 2.25% sales tax. Diesel subject to 9.25% sales tax.

Colorado
22.00
20.50

Connecticut
39.85
41.70
Subject to additional 8.1% sales tax

Delaware
23.00
22.00

District of Columbia
23.50
23.50

Florida
36.80
33.77

Georgia
26.30[8]
29.40[8]
subject to local sales tax

Hawaii
44.39
41.83
subject to additional sales tax

Idaho
33.00
33.00

Illinois
34.01
35.32
subject to additional sales tax

Indiana
28.00[9]
41.25
subject to additional sales tax

Iowa
30.70
32.50

Kansas
24.03
26.03

Kentucky
26.00
23.00

Louisiana
20.01
20.01

Maine
30.01
31.21

Maryland
33.50
34.25

Massachusetts
26.54
26.54

Michigan
26.3[10]
26.3[11]
subject to additional sales tax

Minnesota
28.60
28.60

Mississippi
18.79
18.40

Missouri
17.30
17.30

Montana
27.75
28.50

Nebraska
28.20
27.60

Nevada
33.52
28.56

New Hampshire
23.83
23.83

New Jersey
37.10
33.40

New Mexico
18.88
22.88

New York
43.88
42.68
subject to additional state sales tax of 4% (capped at $2.00/gal) and local sales tax (not capped)

North Carolina
34.55
34.55

North Dakota
23.00
23.00

Ohio
28.01
28.01

Oklahoma
17.00
14.00

Oregon
31.12
30.36

Pennsylvania
58.20
74.70

Rhode Island
34.00
34.00

South Carolina
16.75
16.75

South Dakota
30.00
30.00

Tennessee
25.40
22.40

Texas
20.00
20.00

Utah
29.41
29.41

Vermont
30.46
32.00

Virginia
22.39
26.08

Washington
49.40
49.40

West Virginia
35.70
35.70

Wisconsin
30.90
30.90

Wyoming
24.00
24.00

tag: table

text: Federal taxes[edit]

text:
5

10

15

20

1940

1950

1960

1970

1980

1990

2000

2010

text: The first federal gasoline tax in the United States was created on June 6, 1932, with the enactment of the Revenue Act of 1932 with a tax of 1¢/gal (0.3¢/L). Since 1993, the US federal gasoline tax has been 18.4¢/gal (4.86¢/L). Unlike most other goods in the US, the price displayed includes all taxes, as opposed to inclusion at the point of purchase.

text: Then-Secretary of Transportation Mary Peters stated on August 15, 2007, that about 60% of federal gas taxes are used for highway and bridge construction. The remaining 40% goes to earmarked programs.[12] However, revenues from other taxes are also used in federal transportation programs.

text: Federal tax revenues[edit]

text: Federal fuel taxes raised $35.2 billion in Fiscal Year 2014, with $25.0 billion raised from gasoline taxes and $10.2 billion raised from taxes on diesel and special motor fuels.[13] The tax was last raised in 1993 and is not indexed to inflation. Total inflation from 1993 until 2015 was 64.6 percent.[14][15]

text: Public policy[edit]

text: Some policy advisors believe that an increased tax is needed to fund and sustain the country's transportation infrastructure. As infrastructure construction costs have grown and vehicles have become more fuel efficient, the purchasing power of fixed-rate gas taxes has declined.[16] To offset this loss of purchasing power, The National Surface Transportation Infrastructure Financing Commission issued a detailed report in February 2009 recommending a 10 cent increase in the gasoline tax, a 15 cent increase in the diesel tax, and a reform tying both tax rates to inflation.[17]

text: Critics of gas tax increases argue that much of the gas tax revenue is diverted to other government programs and debt servicing unrelated to transportation infrastructure.[18] But other researchers have noted that these diversions can occur in both directions, and that gas taxes and "user fees" paid by drivers are not high enough to cover the full cost of road-related spending.[19]

text: Some believe that an increased cost of fuel would also encourage less consumption and reduce America's dependence on foreign oil. Americans sent nearly $430 billion to other countries in 2008 for the cost of imported oil. However, due to increased domestic output (fracking of shale and other energy resource discoveries) as well as rapidly increasing production efficiencies, since 2008 this has already significantly reduced and expected to continue to fall.[20]

text: Aviation fuel taxes[edit]

text: Aviation gasoline (Avgas): The tax on aviation gasoline is $0.194 per gallon. When used in a fractional ownership program aircraft, gasoline also is subject to a surtax of $0.141 per gallon.

text: Kerosene for use in aviation (Jet fuel): Generally, kerosene is taxed at $0.244 per gallon unless a reduced rate applies. For kerosene removed directly from a terminal into the fuel tank of an aircraft for use in non-commercial aviation, the tax rate is $0.219. The rate of $0.219 also applies if kerosene is removed into any aircraft from a qualified refueler truck, tanker, or tank wagon that is loaded with the kerosene from a terminal that is located within an airport. The airport terminal doesn't need to be a secured airport terminal for this rate to apply. However, the refueler truck, tanker, or tank wagon must meet the requirements discussed under certain refueler trucks, tankers, and tank wagons, treated as terminals, later.

text: These taxes mainly fund airport and Air Traffic Control operations by the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), of which commercial aviation is the biggest user.


document_title: Vitamin C

question_text: when was vitamin c discovered and by whom

question_tokens: when was vitamin c discovered and by whom

text: Vitamin C

text: Biology[edit]

text: Significance[edit]

text: Vitamin C is an essential nutrient for certain animals including humans. The term vitamin C encompasses several vitamers that have vitamin C activity in animals. Ascorbate salts such as sodium ascorbate and calcium ascorbate are used in some dietary supplements. These release ascorbate upon digestion. Ascorbate and ascorbic acid are both naturally present in the body, since the forms interconvert according to pH. Oxidized forms of the molecule such as dehydroascorbic acid are converted back to ascorbic acid by reducing agents.[8]

text: Vitamin C is a cofactor in at least eight enzymatic reactions in animals (and humans) important in many essential functions, including wound healing. In humans, vitamin C deficiency compromises collagen synthesis, contributing to the more severe symptoms of scurvy.[8] More generally, the biochemical role of vitamin C is to act as an antioxidant, a reducing agent, donating electrons to various enzymatic and non-enzymatic reactions.[8] Doing so converts vitamin C to an oxidized state - either as semidehydroascorbic acid or dehydroascorbic acid. These compounds can be restored to a reduced state by glutathione and NADPH-dependent enzymatic mechanisms.[15][16][17]

text: In plants, vitamin C is a substrate for ascorbate peroxidase. This enzyme utilizes ascorbate to neutralize toxic hydrogen peroxide (H2O2) by converting it to water (H2O).[9][18]

text: Deficiency[edit]

text: Scurvy is an avitaminosis resulting from lack of vitamin C, since without this vitamin, collagen made by the body is too unstable to perform its function.[9]

text: Scurvy leads to the formation of brown spots on the skin, spongy gums, and bleeding from all mucous membranes. The spots are most abundant on the thighs and legs, and a person with the ailment looks pale, feels depressed, and is partially immobilized. In advanced scurvy there are open, suppurating wounds and loss of teeth and, eventually, death. The human body can store only a certain amount of vitamin C,[19] and so the body stores are depleted if fresh supplies are not consumed. The time frame for onset of symptoms of scurvy in unstressed adults on a completely vitamin C free diet, however, may range from one month to more than six months, depending on previous loading of vitamin C.[20][21]

text: Notable human dietary studies of experimentally induced scurvy have been conducted on conscientious objectors during World War II in Britain and on Iowa state prisoners in the late 1960s to the 1980s. These studies both found that all obvious symptoms of scurvy previously induced by an experimental scorbutic diet with extremely low vitamin C content could be completely reversed by additional vitamin C supplementation of only 10 mg a day. In these experiments, there was no clinical difference noted between men given 70 mg vitamin C per day (which produced blood level of vitamin C of about 0.55 mg/dl, about 1/3 of tissue saturation levels) and those given 10 mg per day. Men in the prison study developed the first signs of scurvy about four weeks after starting the vitamin C-free diet, whereas in the British study, six to eight months were required, possibly due to the pre-loading of this group with a 70 mg/day supplement for six weeks before the scorbutic diet was fed.[20][21]

text: Men in both studies on a diet devoid, or nearly devoid, of vitamin C had blood levels of vitamin C too low to be accurately measured when they developed signs of scurvy, and in the Iowa study, at this time were estimated (by labeled vitamin C dilution) to have a body pool of less than 300 mg, with daily turnover of only 2.5 mg/day, implying an instantaneous half-life of 83 days by this time (elimination constant of 4 months).[20]

text: Uses[edit]

text: Vitamin C has a definitive role in treating scurvy, which is a disease caused by vitamin C deficiency. Beyond that, a role for vitamin C as prevention or treatment for various diseases is disputed, with reviews reporting conflicting results. A 2012 Cochrane review reported no effect of vitamin C supplementation on overall mortality.[22] It is on the World Health Organization's List of Essential Medicines as one of the most effective and safe medicines needed in a health system.[11]

text: Scurvy[edit]

text: The disease scurvy is caused by vitamin C deficiency and can be prevented and treated with vitamin C containing foods or dietary supplements.[1][8] It takes at least a month of little to no vitamin C before symptoms occur.[20] Early symptoms are malaise and lethargy, progressing to shortness of breath, bone pain, bleeding gums, susceptibility to bruising, poor wound healing, and finally fever, convulsions and eventual death.[1] Until quite late in the disease the damage is reversible, as with vitamin C repletion, healthy collagen replaces the defective collagen. Treatment can be orally or by intramuscular or intravenous injection.[1] Scurvy was known to Hippocrates in the classical era. The disease was shown to be prevented by citrus fruit in an early controlled trial by a Royal Navy surgeon, James Lind, in 1747, and from 1796 lemon juice was issued to all Royal Navy crewmen.[23][24]

text: Infection[edit]

text: The effect of vitamin C on the common cold has been extensively researched. The earliest publication of a controlled clinical trial appears to be from 1945.[25] Researchers continued to work on this question, but research interest and public interest spiked after Linus Pauling, two-time awardee of the Nobel Prize (Chemistry Prize, 1954, Peace Prize 1962), started publishing research on the topic and also published a book "Vitamin C and the Common Cold" in 1970.[26] A revised and expanded edition "Vitamin C, the Common Cold and the Flu" was published in 1976.[27]

text: The most recent meta-analysis, a Cochrane Review published in 2013, with inclusion criteria limited to trials that called for at least 200 mg/day, concluded that vitamin C taken on a regular basis was not effective in prevention of the common cold. Limiting inclusion to trials that called for at least 1000 mg/day made no difference. However, taking vitamin C on a regular basis did reduce average duration by 8% in adults and 14% in children, and also reduced severity of colds.[4] A subset of trials reported that supplementation reduced the incidence of colds by half in marathon runners, skiers, or soldiers in subarctic conditions.[4] Another subset of trials looked at therapeutic use, meaning that vitamin C was not started unless the people started to feel the beginnings of a cold. In these, vitamin C did not impact duration or severity.[4] An earlier review stated that vitamin C did not prevent colds, did reduce duration, did not reduce severity.[28] The authors of the Cochrane review concluded that "...given the consistent effect of vitamin C on the duration and severity of colds in the regular supplementation studies, and the low cost and safety, it may be worthwhile for common cold patients to test on an individual basis whether therapeutic vitamin C is beneficial for them."[4]

text: Vitamin C distributes readily in high concentrations into immune cells, has antimicrobial and natural killer cell activities, promotes lymphocyte proliferation, and is consumed quickly during infections, effects indicating a prominent role in immune system regulation.[29] The European Food Safety Authority found a cause and effect relationship exists between the dietary intake of vitamin C and functioning of a normal immune system in adults and in children under three years of age.[30][31]

text: Cancer[edit]

text: There are two approaches to the question of whether vitamin C has an impact on cancer. First, within the normal range of dietary intake without additional dietary supplementation, are people who consume more vitamin C at lower risk for developing cancer, and if so, does an orally consumed supplement have the same benefit? Second, for people diagnosed with cancer, will large amounts of ascorbic acid administered intravenously treat the cancer, reduce the adverse effects of other treatments, and so prolong survival and improve quality of life? A 2013 Cochrane review found no evidence that vitamin C supplementation reduces the risk of lung cancer in healthy or high risk (smokers and asbestos-exposed) people.[32] A 2014 meta-analysis found that vitamin C intake might protect against lung cancer risk.[33] A second meta-analysis found no effect on the risk of prostate cancer.[34] Two meta-analyses evaluated the effect of vitamin C supplementation on the risk of colorectal cancer. One found a weak association between vitamin C consumption and reduced risk, and the other found no effect of supplementation.[35][36] A 2011 meta-analysis failed to find support for the prevention of breast cancer with vitamin C supplementation,[37] but a second study concluded that vitamin C may be associated with increased survival in those already diagnosed.[38]

text: Under the rubric of orthomolecular medicine, "Intravenous vitamin C is a contentious adjunctive cancer therapy, widely used in naturopathic and integrative oncology settings." [39] With oral administration absorption efficiency decreases as amounts increase. Intravenous administration bypasses this.[40] Doing so makes it possible to achieve plasma concentrations of 5 to 10 millimoles/liter (mmol/L), which far exceed the approximately 0.2 mmol/L limit from oral consumption.[41] The theories of mechanism are contradictory. At high tissue concentrations, ascorbic acid is described as acting as a pro-oxidant, generating hydrogen peroxide (H2O2) to kill tumor cells. The same literature claims that ascorbic acid acts as an antioxidant, thereby reducing the adverse effects of chemotherapy and radiation therapy.[39][40] Research continues in this field, but a 2014 review concluded: "Currently, the use of high-dose intravenous vitamin C [as an anticancer agent] cannot be recommended outside of a clinical trial."[42] A 2015 review added: "There is no high-quality evidence to suggest that ascorbate supplementation in cancer patients either enhances the antitumor effects of chemotherapy or reduces its toxicity. Evidence for ascorbate's anti-tumor effects was limited to case reports and observational and uncontrolled studies."[43]

text: Cardiovascular disease[edit]

text: A 2013 meta-analysis found no evidence that vitamin C supplementation reduces the risk of myocardial infarction, stroke, cardiovascular mortality, or all-cause mortality.[5] However, a second analysis found an inverse relationship between circulating vitamin C levels or dietary vitamin C and the risk of stroke.[44]

text: A meta-analysis of 44 clinical trials has shown a significant positive effect of vitamin C on endothelial function when taken at doses greater than 500 mg per day. The endothelium is a layer of cells that line the interior surface of blood vessels. Endothelial dysfunction is implicated in many aspects of vascular diseases. The researchers noted that the effect of vitamin C supplementation appeared to be dependent on health status, with stronger effects in those at higher cardiovascular disease risk.[45]

text: Other diseases[edit]

text: Studies examining the effects of vitamin C intake on the risk of Alzheimer's disease have reached conflicting conclusions.[46][47] Maintaining a healthy dietary intake is probably more important than supplementation for achieving any potential benefit.[48] A 2010 review found no role for vitamin C supplementation in the treatment of rheumatoid arthritis.[49] Vitamin C supplementation does not prevent or slow the progression of age-related cataract.[50]

text: Side effects[edit]

text: More than two to three grams may cause indigestion, particularly when taken on an empty stomach. However, taking vitamin C in the form of sodium ascorbate and calcium ascorbate may minimize this effect.[27] Other symptoms reported for large dose include nausea, abdominal cramps and diarrhea. These effects are attributed to the osmotic effect of unabsorbed vitamin C passing through the intestine.[8] In theory, high vitamin C intake may cause excessive absorption of iron. A summary of reviews of supplementation in healthy subjects did not report this problem, but left as untested the possibility that individuals with hereditary hemochromatosis might be adversely affected.[8] There is a longstanding belief among the mainstream medical community that vitamin C increases risk of kidney stones.[51] "Reports of kidney stone formation associated with excess ascorbic acid intake are limited to individuals with renal disease".[8] Reviews state that "data from epidemiological studies do not support an association between excess ascorbic acid intake and kidney stone formation in apparently healthy individuals",[8][52] although one large, multi-year trial did report a nearly two-fold increase in kidney stones in men who regularly consumed a vitamin C supplement.[53] Vitamin C is a water-soluble vitamin,[19] with dietary excesses not absorbed, and excesses in the blood rapidly excreted in the urine, so it exhibits remarkably low acute toxicity.[9]

text: Diet[edit]

text: Recommended levels[edit]

text:
US vitamin C recommendations (mg per day)[8]

RDA (children ages 1–3 years)
15

RDA (children ages 4–8 years)
25

RDA (children ages 9–13 years)
45

RDA (girls ages 14–18 years)
65

RDA (boys ages 14–18 years)
75

RDA (adult female)
75

RDA (adult male)
90

RDA (pregnancy)
85

RDA (lactation)
120

UL (adult female)
2,000

UL (adult male)
2,000

text: Recommendations for vitamin C intake by adults have been set by various national agencies:

text:
40 milligrams per day: India National Institute of Nutrition, Hyderabad[54]
45 milligrams per day or 300 milligrams per week: the World Health Organization[55]
80 milligrams per day: the European Commission Council on nutrition labeling[56]
90 mg/day (males) and 75 mg/day (females): Health Canada 2007[57]
90 mg/day (males) and 75 mg/day (females): United States National Academy of Sciences.[8]
100 milligrams per day: Japan National Institute of Health and Nutrition.[58]
110 mg/day (males) and 95 mg/day (females): European Food Safety Authority[59]

text: In 2000 the North American Dietary Reference Intake chapter on vitamin C updated the Recommended Dietary Allowance (RDA) to 90 milligrams per day for adult men and 75 mg/day for adult women, and set a Tolerable upper intake level (UL) for adults of 2,000 mg/day.[8] The table shows RDAs for the United States and Canada for children, and for pregnant and lactating women.[8] For the European Union, the EFSA set higher recommendations for adults, and also for children: 20 mg/day for ages 1–3, 30 mg/day for ages 4–6, 45 mg/day for ages 7–10, 70 mg/day for ages 11–14, 100 mg/day for males ages 15–17, 90 mg/day for females ages 15–17. For pregnancy 100 mg/day; for lactation 155 mg/day.[59] India, on the other hand, has set recommendations much lower: 40 mg/day for ages 1 through adult, 60 mg/day for pregnancy, and 80 mg/day for lactation.[54] Clearly, there is not consensus among countries.

text: Cigarette smokers and people exposed to secondhand smoke have lower plasma vitamin C levels than nonsmokers. The thinking is that inhalation of smoke causes oxidative damage, depleting this antioxidant vitamin.[8][58]. The U.S. Institute of Medicine estimated that smokers need 35 mg more vitamin C per day than nonsmokers, but did not formally establish a higher RDA for smokers.[8] One meta-analysis showed an inverse relationship between vitamin C intake and lung cancer, although it concluded that more research is needed to confirm this observation.[60]

text: The U.S. National Center for Health Statistics conducts biannual National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES) to assess the health and nutritional status of adults and children in the United States. Some results are reported as What We Eat In America. The 2013-2014 survey reported that for adults ages 20 years and older, men consumed on average 83.3 mg/d and women 75.1 mg/d. This means that half the women and more than half the men are not consuming the RDA for vitamin C.[61] The same survey stated that about 30% of adults reported they consumed a vitamin C dietary supplement or a multi-vitamin/mineral supplement that included vitamin C, and that for these people total consumption was between 300 and 400 mg/d.[62]

text: In 2000 the Institute of Medicine of the U.S. National Academy of Sciences set a Tolerable upper intake level (UL) for adults of 2,000 mg/day. The amount was chosen because human trials had reported diarrhea and other gastrointestinal disturbances at intakes of greater than 3,000 mg/day. This was the Lowest-Observed-Adverse-Effect Level (LOAEL), meaning that other adverse effects were observed at higher intakes.[8] The European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) reviewed the safety question in 2006 and reached the conclusion that there was not sufficient evidence to set a UL for vitamin C.[63] The Japan National Institute of Health and Nutrition reviewed the same question in 2010 and also reached the conclusion that there was not sufficient evidence to set a UL.[58]

text: Food labeling[edit]

text: For U.S. food and dietary supplement labeling purposes the amount in a serving is expressed as a percent of Daily Value (%DV). For vitamin C labeling purposes 100% of the Daily Value was 60 mg, but as of May 27, 2016 it was revised to 90 mg to bring it into agreement with the RDA.[64] A table of the old and new adult Daily Values is provided at Reference Daily Intake. Food and supplement companies have until January 1, 2020 to comply with the change.[65] European Union regulations require that labels declare energy, protein, fat, saturated fat, carbohydrates, sugars, and salt. Voluntary nutrients may be shown if present in significant amounts. Instead of Daily Values, amounts are shown as percent of Reference Intakes (RIs). For vitamin C, 100% RI was set at 80 mg in 2011.[66]

text: Sources[edit]

text: The richest natural sources are fruits and vegetables.[9] Vitamin C is the most widely taken nutritional supplement and is available in a variety of forms,[9] including tablets, drink mixes, and in capsules.

text: Vitamin C is absorbed by the intestines using a sodium-ion dependent channel. It is transported through the intestine via both glucose-sensitive and glucose-insensitive mechanisms. The presence of large quantities of sugar either in the intestines or in the blood can slow absorption.[67]

text: Plant sources[edit]

text: While plants are generally a good source of vitamin C, the amount in foods of plant origin depends on the precise variety of the plant, soil condition, climate where it grew, length of time since it was picked, storage conditions, and method of preparation.[68]

text: The following table is approximate and shows the relative abundance in different raw plant sources.[69][70] As some plants were analyzed fresh while others were dried (thus, artifactually increasing concentration of individual constituents like vitamin C), the data are subject to potential variation and difficulties for comparison. The amount is given in milligrams per 100 grams of fruit or vegetable:

text:
Plant source[71]
Amount
(mg / 100g)

Kakadu plum
1000–5300[72]

Camu camu
2800[70][73]

Acerola
1677[74]

Seabuckthorn
695

Indian gooseberry
445

Rose hip
426[75]

Guava
228

Blackcurrant
200

Red bell pepper/capsicum
128

Kale
120

Kiwifruit, broccoli
90

text:
Plant source[71]
Amount
(mg / 100g)

Loganberry, redcurrant, Brussels sprouts
80

Cloudberry, elderberry
60

Papaya, strawberry
60

Orange, lemon
53

Pineapple, cauliflower
48

Cantaloupe
40

Grapefruit, raspberry
30

Passion fruit, spinach
30

Cabbage, lime
30

Mango
28

Blackberry
21

text:
Plant source[71]
Amount
(mg / 100g)

Potato, honeydew melon
20

Tomato
14

Cranberry
13

Blueberry, grape
10

Apricot, plum, watermelon
10

Avocado
8.8[76]

Onion
7.4[77]

Cherry, peach
7

Carrot, apple, asparagus
6

text: Animal sources[edit]

text: Animal-sourced foods do not provide much vitamin C, and what there is, is destroyed by the heat of cooking. For example, raw chicken liver contains 17.9 mg/100 g, but fried, the content is reduced to 2.7 mg/100 g. Chicken eggs contain no vitamin C, raw or cooked.[79] Vitamin C is present in human breast milk at 5.0 mg/100 g and 6.1 mg/100 g in one tested sample of infant formula, but cow's milk contains only 1.0 mg/ 100 g.[80]

text: Food preparation[edit]

text: Vitamin C chemically decomposes under certain conditions, many of which may occur during the cooking of food. Vitamin C concentrations in various food substances decrease with time in proportion to the temperature at which they are stored[81] and cooking can reduce the vitamin C content of vegetables by around 60% possibly partly due to increased enzymatic destruction as it may be more significant at sub-boiling temperatures.[82] Longer cooking times also add to this effect, as will copper food vessels, which catalyse the decomposition.[83]

text: Another cause of vitamin C being lost from food is leaching, where the water-soluble vitamin dissolves into the cooking water, which is later poured away and not consumed. However, vitamin C does not leach in all vegetables at the same rate; research shows broccoli seems to retain more than any other.[84] Research has also shown that freshly cut fruits do not lose significant nutrients when stored in the refrigerator for a few days.[85]

text: Supplements[edit]

text: Vitamin C dietary supplements are available as tablets, capsules, drink mix packets, in multi-vitamin/mineral formulations, in antioxidant formulations, and as crystalline powder.[1] Vitamin C is also added to some fruit juices and juice drinks. Tablet and capsule content ranges from 25 mg to 1500 mg per serving. The most commonly used supplement compounds are ascorbic acid, sodium ascorbate and calcium ascorbate.[1] Vitamin C molecules can also be bound to the fatty acid palmitate, creating ascorbyl palmitate, or else incorporated into liposomes.[86]

text: Food fortification[edit]

text: In 2014, the Canadian Food Inspection Agency evaluated the effect of fortification of foods with ascorbate in the guidance document, Foods to Which Vitamins, Mineral Nutrients and Amino Acids May or Must be Added.[87] Voluntary and mandatory fortification was described for various classes of foods. Among foods classified for mandatory fortification with vitamin C were fruit-flavored drinks, mixes, and concentrates, foods for a low-energy diet, meal replacement products, and evaporated milk.[87]

text: Mechanism of action[edit]

text: Absorption, transport, and excretion[edit]

text: From the U.S. National Institutes of Health: [In humans] "Approximately 70%–90% of vitamin C is absorbed at moderate intakes of 30–180 mg/day. However, at doses above 1,000 mg/day, absorption falls to less than 50%."[2]

text: Ascorbic acid is absorbed in the body by both active transport and simple diffusion. Sodium-Dependent Active Transport—Sodium-Ascorbate Co-Transporters (SVCTs) and Hexose transporters (GLUTs)—are the two transporter proteins required for active absorption. SVCT1 and SVCT2 import the reduced form of ascorbate across plasma membranes.[88] GLUT1 and GLUT3 are glucose transporters, and transfer only the dehydroascorbic acid (DHA) form of vitamin C.[89] Although dehydroascorbic acid is absorbed in higher rate than ascorbate, the amount of dehydroascorbic acid found in plasma and tissues under normal conditions is low, as cells rapidly reduce dehydroascorbic acid to ascorbate.[90]

text: SVCTs appear to be the predominant system for vitamin C transport in the body,[88] the notable exception being red blood cells, which lose SVCT proteins during maturation.[91] In both vitamin C synthesizers (example: rat) and non-synthesizers (example: human) cells with few exceptions maintain ascorbic acid concentrations much higher than the approximately 50 micromoles/liter (µmol/L) found in plasma. For example, the ascorbic acid content of pituitary and adrenal glands can exceed 2,000 µmol/L, and muscle is at 200-300 µmol/L.[92] The known coenzymatic functions of ascorbic acid do not require such high concentrations, so there may be other, as yet unknown functions. Consequences of all this organ content is that plasma vitamin C is not a good indicator of whole-body status, and people may vary in the amount of time needed to show symptoms of deficiency when consuming a diet very low in vitamin C.[92]

text: Excretion, can be as ascorbic acid, via urine. In humans, during times of low dietary intake, vitamin C is reabsorbed by the kidneys rather than excreted. Only when plasma concentrations are 1.4 mg/dL or higher does re-absorption decline and the excess amounts pass freely into the urine. This salvage process delays onset of deficiency.[93] Ascorbic acid also converts (reversibly) to dehydroascorbate (DHA) and from that compound non-reversibly to 2,3-diketogluonate and then oxalate. These three compounds are also excreted via urine. Humans are better than guinea pigs at converting DHA back to ascorbate, and thus take much longer to become vitamin C deficient.[94]

text: Enzymatic cofactor[edit]

text: Ascorbic acid performs numerous physiological functions in the human body. These functions include the synthesis of collagen, carnitine, and neurotransmitters; the synthesis and catabolism of tyrosine; and the metabolism of microsome.[17] During biosynthesis ascorbate acts as a reducing agent, donating electrons and preventing oxidation to keep iron and copper atoms in their reduced states.

text: Vitamin C acts as an electron donor for eight enzymes:[95]

text:
Three enzymes (prolyl-3-hydroxylase, prolyl-4-hydroxylase, and lysyl hydroxylase) that are required for the hydroxylation of proline and lysine in the synthesis of collagen.[96][97][98] These reactions add hydroxyl groups to the amino acids proline or lysine in the collagen molecule via prolyl hydroxylase and lysyl hydroxylase, both requiring vitamin C as a cofactor. Hydroxylation allows the collagen molecule to assume its triple helix structure, and thus vitamin C is essential to the development and maintenance of scar tissue, blood vessels, and cartilage.[19]
Two enzymes (ε-N-trimethyl-L-lysine hydroxylase and γ-butyrobetaine hydroxylase) that are necessary for synthesis of carnitine.[99][100] Carnitine is essential for the transport of fatty acids into mitochondria for ATP generation.
The remaining three enzymes have the following functions in common, alongside their other functions:

dopamine beta hydroxylase participates in the biosynthesis of norepinephrine from dopamine.[101][102]
Peptidylglycine alpha-amidating monooxygenase amidates peptide hormones by removing the glyoxylate residue from their c-terminal glycine residues. This increases peptide hormone stability and activity.[103][104]
4-hydroxyphenylpyruvate dioxygenase modulates tyrosine metabolism.[105][106]

text: Chemistry[edit]

text: The name "vitamin C" always refers to the L-enantiomer of ascorbic acid and its oxidized forms, such as dehydroascorbate (DHA). Therefore, unless written otherwise, "ascorbate" and "ascorbic acid" refer in the nutritional literature to L-ascorbate and L-ascorbic acid respectively. Ascorbic acid is a weak sugar acid structurally related to glucose. In biological systems, ascorbic acid can be found only at low pH, but in solutions above pH 5 is predominantly found in the ionized form, ascorbate. All of these molecules have vitamin C activity and thus are used synonymously with vitamin C, unless otherwise specified.

text: Numerous analytical methods have been developed for ascorbic acid detection. For example, vitamin C content of a food sample such as fruit juice can be calculated by measuring the volume of the sample required to decolorize a solution of dichlorophenolindophenol (DCPIP) and then calibrating the results by comparison with a known concentration of vitamin C.[107][108]

text: Testing for levels[edit]

text: Simple tests are available to measure the levels of vitamin C in the urine and in serum or blood plasma. However these reflect recent dietary intake rather than total body content.[8] It has been observed that while serum or blood plasma concentrations follow a circadian rhythm or reflect short-term dietary impact, content within tissues is more stable and can give a better view of the availability of ascorbate within the entire organism. However, very few hospital laboratories are adequately equipped and trained to carry out such detailed analyses.[109][110]

text: Synthesis[edit]

text: Biosynthesis[edit]

text: The vast majority of animals and plants are able to synthesize vitamin C, through a sequence of enzyme-driven steps, which convert monosaccharides to vitamin C. In plants, this is accomplished through the conversion of mannose or galactose to ascorbic acid.[111] In some animals, glucose needed to produce ascorbate in the liver (in mammals and perching birds) is extracted from glycogen; ascorbate synthesis is a glycogenolysis-dependent process.[112]

text: Among the mammals that have lost the ability to synthesize vitamin C are simians and tarsiers, which together make up one of two major primate suborders, Haplorrhini. This group includes humans. The other more primitive primates (Strepsirrhini) have the ability to make vitamin C. Synthesis does not occur in a number of species (perhaps all species) in the small rodent family Caviidae that includes guinea pigs and capybaras, but occurs in other rodents (rats and mice do not need vitamin C in their diet, for example).[113]

text: In reptiles and birds the biosynthesis is carried out in the kidneys. A number of species of passerine birds also do not synthesize, but not all of them, and those that do not are not clearly related; there is a theory that the ability was lost separately a number of times in birds.[114] In particular, the ability to synthesize vitamin C is presumed to have been lost and then later re-acquired in at least two cases.[115] The ability to synthesize vitamin C has also been lost in about 96% of fish (the teleosts).[114]

text: Most tested families of bats (order Chiroptera), including major insect and fruit-eating bat families, cannot synthesize vitamin C. A trace of gulonolactone oxidase (GULO) was detected in only 1 of 34 bat species tested, across the range of 6 families of bats tested.[116] There are at least two species of bats, frugivorous bat (Rousettus leschenaultii) and insectivorous bat (Hipposideros armiger), that retain (or regained) their ability of vitamin C production.[117][118]

text: These animals all lack the L-gulonolactone oxidase (GULO) enzyme, which is required in the last step of vitamin C synthesis. The genomes of these species contain GULO as pseudogenes, which serve as insight into the evolutionary past of the species.[119][120][121]

text: Some of these species (including humans) are able to make do with the lower levels available from their diets by recycling oxidised vitamin C.[122]

text: Most simians consume the vitamin in amounts 10 to 20 times higher than that recommended by governments for humans.[123] This discrepancy constitutes much of the basis of the controversy on current recommended dietary allowances. It is countered by arguments that humans are very good at conserving dietary vitamin C, and are able to maintain blood levels of vitamin C comparable with simians on a far smaller dietary intake, perhaps by recycling oxidized vitamin C.[122]

text: Routes[edit]

text: In vertebrates that can synthesize ascorbic acid, the biosynthesis pathway starts with glucose, either taking place in the liver for mammals and some birds, or the kidneys for amphibians, reptiles and some birds.[124] The pathway is the same. Several enzymes catalyze steps from D-glucose to D-glucuronate. Next, the enzyme glucuronate reductase converts D-glucuronate to L-gluconate. Then the enzyme gulonolactonase converts L-gluconate to L-gulonolactone. The final enzymatic conversion is by the enzyme L-gulonolactone oxidase (GLO), to 2-keto-gulonolactone. From this compound, the last step is a spontaneous, i.e., non-enzymatic conversion to ascorbic acid (vitamin C). GLO is the enzyme that is absent in animal species unable to synthesize vitamin C.[94]

text: All plants synthesize ascorbic acid. Ascorbic acid functions as a cofactor for enzymes involved in photosynthesis, synthesis of plant hormones, as an antioxidant and also regenerator of other antioxidants.[125] Plants use multiple pathways to synthesize vitamin C. The major pathway starts with glucose, fructose or mannose (all simple sugars) and proceeds to L-galactose, L-galaconolactone and ascorbic acid.[125][126] There is feedback regulation in place, in that the presence of ascorbic acid suppresses enzymes in the synthesis pathway.[127] This process follows a diurnal rhythm, so that enzyme expression peaks in the morning to support biosynthesis later on when mid-day sunlight intensity demands high ascorbic acid concentrations.[126] Minor pathways may be specific to certain parts of plants; these can be either identical to the vertebrate pathway (including the GLO enzyme), or start with inositol and get to ascorbic acid via L-galactonic acid to L-galactonolactone.[125]

text: Evolution[edit]

text: Ascorbic acid is a common enzymatic cofactor in mammals used in the synthesis of collagen, as well as a powerful reducing agent capable of rapidly scavenging a number of reactive oxygen species (ROS). Given that ascorbate has these important functions, it is surprising that the ability to synthesize this molecule has not always been conserved. In fact, anthropoid primates, Cavia porcellus (guinea pigs), teleost fishes, most bats, and some Passeriform birds have all independently lost the ability to internally synthesize Vitamin C in either the kidney or the liver.[128] In all of the cases where genomic analysis was done on an ascorbic acid auxotroph, the origin of the change was found to be a result of loss-of-function mutations in the gene that codes for L-Gulono-γ-lactone oxidase, the enzyme that catalyzes the last step of the ascorbic acid pathway outlined above.[129]

text: In the case of the simians, it is thought that the loss of the ability to make vitamin C may have occurred much farther back in evolutionary history than the emergence of humans or even apes, since it evidently occurred soon after the appearance of the first primates, yet sometime after the split of early primates into the two major suborders Haplorrhini (which cannot make vitamin C) and its sister suborder of non-tarsier prosimians, the Strepsirrhini ("wet-nosed" primates), which retained the ability to make vitamin C.[130] According to molecular clock dating, these two suborder primate branches parted ways about 63 to 60 million years ago.[131] Approximately three to five million years later (58 million years ago), only a short time afterward from an evolutionary perspective, the infraorder Tarsiiformes, whose only remaining family is that of the tarsier (Tarsiidae), branched off from the other haplorrhines.[132][133] Since tarsiers also cannot make vitamin C, this implies the mutation had already occurred, and thus must have occurred between these two marker points (63 to 58 million years ago).[134]

text: One explanation for the repeated loss of the ability to synthesize vitamin C is that it was the result of genetic drift; assuming that the diet was rich in vitamin C, natural selection would not act to preserve it.[135][136]

text: Some scientists have suggested that loss of the vitamin C biosynthesis pathway may have played a role in rapid evolutionary changes, leading to hominids and the emergence of human beings. According to this theory, the loss of ascorbic acid's anti-oxidizing properties would have led to an increase in free radicals in the body. Free radicals are known to increase the frequency of genetic mutations, which would subsequently increase the speed of evolution.[137][138]

text: It has also been noted that the loss of the ability to synthesize ascorbate strikingly parallels the inability to break down uric acid, also a characteristic of primates. Uric acid and ascorbate are both strong reducing agents. This has led to the suggestion that, in higher primates, uric acid has taken over some of the functions of ascorbate.[139]

text: Industrial[edit]

text: Vitamin C is produced from glucose by two main routes. The Reichstein process, developed in the 1930s, uses a single pre-fermentation followed by a purely chemical route. The modern two-step fermentation process, originally developed in China in the 1960s, uses additional fermentation to replace part of the later chemical stages. Both processes yield approximately 60% vitamin C from the glucose feed.[140]

text: World production of synthesized vitamin C was estimated at approximately 110,000 tonnes annually in 2000. Traditionally, the main producers were BASF/Takeda, DSM, Merck and the China Pharmaceutical Group Ltd. of the People's Republic of China. By 2008 only the DSM plant in Scotland remained operational outside of China because of the strong price competition from China.[141]

text: The world price of vitamin C rose sharply in 2008 partly as a result of rises in basic food prices but also in anticipation of a stoppage of the two Chinese plants, situated at Shijiazhuang near Beijing, as part of a general shutdown of polluting industry in China over the period of the Olympic games.[142] Production resumed after the Olympics, but then five Chinese manufacturers met in 2010, among them Northeast Pharmaceutical Group and North China Pharmaceutical Group, and agreed to temporarily stop production in order to maintain prices.[143] In 2011 an American suit was filed against four Chinese companies that allegedly colluded to limit production and fix prices of vitamin C in the United States. The companies did not deny the accusation but say in their defense that the Chinese government compelled them to act in this way.[144] In January 2012 a United States judge ruled that the Chinese companies can be sued in the U.S. by buyers acting as a group.[145] A verdict was reached in March 2013 imposing a $147.8 million fine. This verdict was reversed by the 2nd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in New York, on the grounds that China formally advised the Court that its laws required the vitamin C makers to violate the Sherman Act, a U.S. antitrust law.[146] In June 2017 the U.S. Supreme Court announced that it would consider an appeal filed to reverse the lower court decision.[147]

text: History[edit]

text: Folk medicine[edit]

text: The need to include fresh plant food or raw animal flesh in the diet to prevent disease was known from ancient times. Native people living in marginal areas incorporated this into their medicinal lore. For example, spruce needles were used in temperate zones in infusions, or the leaves from species of drought-resistant trees in desert areas. In 1536, the French explorers Jacques Cartier and Daniel Knezevic, exploring the St. Lawrence River, used the local natives' knowledge to save his men who were dying of scurvy. He boiled the needles of the arbor vitae tree to make a tea that was later shown to contain 50 mg of vitamin C per 100 grams.[148][149]

text: Scurvy at sea[edit]

text: In the 1497 expedition of Vasco de Gama, the curative effects of citrus fruit were known.[150][151] The Portuguese planted fruit trees and vegetables in Saint Helena, a stopping point for homebound voyages from Asia, and left their sick to be taken home by the next ship.[152]

text: Authorities occasionally recommended plant food to prevent scurvy during long sea voyages. John Woodall, the first surgeon to the British East India Company, recommended the preventive and curative use of lemon juice in his 1617 book, The Surgeon's Mate.[153] In 1734, the Dutch writer Johann Bachstrom gave the firm opinion that "scurvy is solely owing to a total abstinence from fresh vegetable food, and greens."[154][155]

text: Scurvy had long been a principal killer of sailors during the long sea voyages.[156] According to Jonathan Lamb, "In 1499, Vasco da Gama lost 116 of his crew of 170; In 1520, Magellan lost 208 out of 230;...all mainly to scurvy."[157]

text: The first attempt to give scientific basis for the cause of this disease was by a ship's surgeon in the Royal Navy, James Lind. While at sea in May 1747, Lind provided some crew members with two oranges and one lemon per day, in addition to normal rations, while others continued on cider, vinegar, sulfuric acid or seawater, along with their normal rations, in one of the world's first controlled experiments.[24] The results showed that citrus fruits prevented the disease. Lind published his work in 1753 in his Treatise on the Scurvy.[23][158]

text: Fresh fruit was expensive to keep on board, whereas boiling it down to juice allowed easy storage but destroyed the vitamin (especially if boiled in copper kettles).[83] It was 1796 before the British navy adopted lemon juice as standard issue at sea. In 1845, ships in the West Indies were provided with lime juice instead, and in 1860 lime juice was used throughout the Royal Navy, giving rise to the American use of the nickname "limey" for the British.[24] Captain James Cook had previously demonstrated the advantages of carrying "Sour krout" on board, by taking his crews to the Hawaiian Islands without losing any of his men to scurvy.[159] For this, the British Admiralty awarded him a medal.

text: The name antiscorbutic was used in the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries for foods known to prevent scurvy. These foods included lemons, limes, oranges, sauerkraut, cabbage, malt, and portable soup.[160] In 1928, the Canadian Arctic anthropologist Vilhjalmur Stefansson showed that the Inuit avoid scurvy on a diet of largely raw meat. Later studies on traditional food diets of the Yukon First Nations, Dene, Inuit, and Métis of Northern Canada showed that their daily intake of vitamin C averaged between 52 and 62 mg/day,[161] comparable with the Estimated Average Requirement.[8]

text: Discovery[edit]

text: Vitamin C was discovered in 1912, isolated in 1928 and synthesized in 1933, making it the first vitamin to be synthesized.[10] Shortly thereafter Tadeus Reichstein succeeded in synthesizing the vitamin in bulk by what is now called the Reichstein process.[162] This made possible the inexpensive mass-production of vitamin C. In 1934 Hoffmann–La Roche trademarked synthetic vitamin C under the brand name Redoxon[163] and began to market it as a dietary supplement.[a]

text: In 1907 a laboratory animal model which would help to identify the antiscorbutic factor was discovered by the Norwegian physicians Axel Holst and Theodor Frølich, who when studying shipboard beriberi, fed guinea pigs their test diet of grains and flour and were surprised when scurvy resulted instead of beriberi. By luck, this species did not make its own vitamin C, whereas mice and rats do.[165] In 1912, the Polish biochemist Casimir Funk developed the concept of vitamins. One of these was thought to be the anti-scorbutic factor. In 1928, this was referred to as "water-soluble C," although its chemical structure had not been determined.[166]

text: From 1928 to 1932, Albert Szent-Györgyi and Joseph L. Svirbely's Hungarian team, and Charles Glen King's American team, identified the anti-scorbutic factor. Szent-Györgyi isolated hexuronic acid from animal adrenal glands, and suspected it to be the antiscorbutic factor.[167] In late 1931, Szent-Györgyi gave Svirbely the last of his adrenal-derived hexuronic acid with the suggestion that it might be the anti-scorbutic factor. By the spring of 1932, King's laboratory had proven this, but published the result without giving Szent-Györgyi credit for it. This led to a bitter dispute over priority.[167] In 1933, Walter Norman Haworth chemically identified the vitamin as L-hexuronic acid, proving this by synthesis in 1933.[168][169][170][171] Haworth and Szent-Györgyi proposed that L-hexuronic acid be named a-scorbic acid, and chemically L-ascorbic acid, in honor of its activity against scurvy.[171][10] The term's etymology is from Latin, "a-" meaning away, or off from, while -scorbic is from Medieval Latin scorbuticus (pertaining to scurvy), cognate with Old Norse skyrbjugr, French scorbut, Dutch scheurbuik and Low German scharbock.[172] Partly for this discovery, Szent-Györgyi was awarded the 1937 Nobel Prize in Medicine,[173] and Haworth shared that year's Nobel Prize in Chemistry.[14]

text: In 1957, J.J. Burns showed that some mammals are susceptible to scurvy as their liver does not produce the enzyme L-gulonolactone oxidase, the last of the chain of four enzymes that synthesize vitamin C.[174][175] American biochemist Irwin Stone was the first to exploit vitamin C for its food preservative properties. He later developed the theory that humans possess a mutated form of the L-gulonolactone oxidase coding gene.[176]

text: In 2008, researchers at the University of Montpellier discovered that in humans and other primates the red blood cells have evolved a mechanism to more efficiently utilize the vitamin C present in the body by recycling oxidized L-dehydroascorbic acid (DHA) back into ascorbic acid for reuse by the body. The mechanism was not found to be present in mammals that synthesize their own vitamin C.[122]

text: Large doses[edit]

text: Vitamin C megadosage is a term describing the consumption or injection of vitamin C in doses comparable to or higher than the amounts produced by the livers of mammals which are able to synthesize vitamin C. The theory behind this, although not the actual term, was described in 1970 in an article by Linus Pauling, a famous scientist who had been awarded the Nobel Prize in Chemistry in 1954. Briefly, his position was that for optimal health, humans should be consuming at least 2,300 mg/day to compensate for the inability to synthesize vitamin C. The recommendation also fell into the consumption range for gorillas - a non-synthesizing near-relative to humans.[177] A second argument for high intake is that serum ascorbic acid concentrations increase as intake increases until it plateaus at about 190 to 200 micromoles per liter (µmol/L) once consumption exceeds 1,250 milligrams.[178] As noted, government recommendations are a range of 40 to 110 mg/day and normal plasma is approximately 50 µmol/L, so 'normal' is about 25% of what can be achieved when oral consumption is in the proposed megadose range.

text: Linus Pauling, famous awardee of the Nobel Prize for Chemistry, popularized the concept of high dose vitamin C as prevention and treatment of the common cold in 1970. A few years later he proposed that vitamin C would prevent cardiovascular disease, and that 10 grams/day, initially (10 days) administered intravenously and thereafter orally, would cure late-stage cancer.[179] Mega-dosing with ascorbic acid has other champions, among them chemist Irwin Stone and the controversial Matthias Rath and Patrick Holford, who both have been accused of making unsubstantiated treatment claims for treating cancer and HIV infection.

text: The mega-dosing theory is to a large degree discredited. Modest benefits are demonstrated for the common cold. Benefits are not superior when supplement intakes of more than 1,000 mg/day are compared to intakes between 200 and 1,000 mg/day, and so not limited to the mega-dose range.[180][181] The theory that large amounts of intravenous ascorbic acid can be used to treat late-stage cancer is - some forty years after Pauling's seminal paper - still considered unproven and still in need of high quality research.[42][43] However, a lack of conclusive evidence has not stopped individual physicians from prescribing intravenous ascorbic acid to thousands of people with cancer.[43]

text: Society and culture[edit]

text: In February 2011, the Swiss Post issued a postage stamp bearing a depiction of a model of a molecule of vitamin C to mark the International Year of Chemistry.[182]

text: Notes[edit]

text: Jump up ^ "In 1934, Hoffman-La Roche, which bought the Reichstein process patent, became the first pharmaceutical company to mass produce and market synthetic vitamin C, under the brand name Redoxon."[164]

tag: ol


document_title: Legends of the Fall

question_text: where was legends of the fall movie filmed

text: Legends of the Fall

text: Plot[edit]

text: Sick of betrayals the United States government perpetrated on the Native Americans, Colonel William Ludlow leaves the Army and moves to a remote part of Montana. Along with One Stab, a Cree friend, he builds a ranch and raises his family. Accompanying them are hired hand and former outlaw Decker, Decker's Cree wife Pet, and daughter Isabel Two. Ludlow has three sons: Alfred, the eldest, is responsible and cautious; Tristan, the Colonel's favorite son, is wild and well-versed in American Indian traditions; Samuel, the youngest, is educated but naive and constantly watched over by his brothers.

text: Ludlow's wife Isabel does not adapt to the harsh Montana winters and moves to the East Coast; Tristan vows never to speak of her again. At age 12, Tristan touches a sleeping grizzly bear. The bear awakens and injures him, but he stabs at the bear's paw and cuts off a claw.

text: Years later, Samuel returns from Harvard University with his fiancée, Susannah. Susannah talks with Isabel Two and learns of her fondness for Tristan. Susannah finds Tristan captivating but loves Samuel. Before they can marry, Samuel announces his intention to join the Canadian Expeditionary Force and aid Britain in the fight against Germany. Much to their father's displeasure, Alfred also joins. Although Tristan does not want to join, he does so to protect his brothers.

text: During World War I, the brothers find themselves in the 10th Battalion, CEF. Alfred, commissioned as an officer, leads a charge into no man's land. The attack results in heavy casualties and Alfred is wounded. While visiting Alfred in the field hospital, Tristan learns that Samuel has volunteered for a dangerous reconnaissance mission. He rushes off to protect his brother but arrives too late. A devastated Tristan holds Samuel until he dies, then cuts out his brother's heart and sends it home to be buried at the ranch. Tristan single-handedly raids the German lines. He returns to camp with the scalps of German soldiers hanging around his neck, horrifying his fellow soldiers. He is discharged but does not go home. Alfred returns to Montana and proposes to Susannah, but she declines.

text: Tristan returns home, where Susannah finds him weeping over Samuel's grave. She comforts him, and they become lovers. A jealous Alfred confronts Tristan and leaves to make his name in Helena. Tristan is plagued with guilt over Samuel's death and feels responsible for driving Alfred away; he leaves Montana for several years. Susannah waits for him, only to receive a letter telling her to marry someone else. Alfred comforts Susannah. Ludlow finds them together, which leads to a falling out between him and Alfred. Ludlow later suffers a stroke. He does not speak for years and the ranch deteriorates. Susannah marries Alfred, now a congressman. Alfred's business and politics cause him to get involved with the O'Banion brothers, bootleggers and gangsters.

text: Tristan returns during Prohibition, bringing life back to the ranch and his father. He falls in love with Isabel Two and they marry. They have two children, the elder being a boy named Samuel. Tristan becomes involved in small-scale rum-running, finding himself at odds with the O'Banion brothers. Isabel is accidentally killed by a police officer working for the O'Banions. In a fit of grief, Tristan beats the officer nearly to death and is jailed. Susannah visits Tristan, still having feelings for him, but he refuses her advances. After his release, Tristan and Decker kill those responsible for Isabel's death, including one of the O'Banion brothers.

text: Realizing she cannot live without Tristan, Susannah commits suicide. The remaining O'Banion brother, along with the corrupt sheriff and another police officer, comes after Tristan for revenge. At the ranch, Ludlow and Alfred kill the attackers. Alfred reconciles with his father and brother. The family realizes that Tristan is likely to be blamed for the deaths, which prompts Tristan to ask Alfred to take care of his children. One Stab's narration explains that later during the night they bury the bodies and dump the car in the Missouri River. He reflects that rather than dying young as he, the American Indian, had expected, Tristan lived to watch his children and grandchildren grow. One Stab observes that it was the people Tristan loved and wanted to protect most that died young. The last scene takes place in 1963. Tristan, now an old man living in the North Country investigates an animal carcass as he is confronted by a grizzly bear. He draws his knife and fights it. As they struggle, the image freeze-frames as One Stab narrates, "It was a good death".

text: Cast[edit]

text:
Brad Pitt as Tristan Ludlow

Keegan MacIntosh as Young Tristan Ludlow

Anthony Hopkins as Col. William Ludlow
Aidan Quinn as Alfred Ludlow
Julia Ormond as Susannah Fincannon-Ludlow
Henry Thomas as Samuel Ludlow
Karina Lombard as Isabel "Isabel II" Decker/Isabel Decker Ludlow

Sekwan Auger as Young Isabel II Decker

Gordon Tootoosis as One Stab
Christina Pickles as Isabel Ludlow
Paul Desmond as Roscoe Decker
Tantoo Cardinal as Pet Decker
Robert Wisden as John T. O'Banion
John Novak as James O'Banion
Kenneth Welsh as Sheriff Tynert
Bart the Bear as the Bear

text: Production[edit]

text: Filming[edit]

text: Legends of the Fall was primarily filmed on location in Alberta and British Columbia, Canada. Principal photography began in mid-September 1993.[4] The World War I battlefield scenes took two weeks to film and were shot near Morley, Alberta, with hundreds of locals and a few Canadian Forces soldiers recruited as extras.[5] The Ghost River Wilderness Area in Alberta served as the filming location for the Ludlow ranch; additional outdoor scenes, as well as the funeral and cemetery scenes, were shot at the Bow River near Banff National Park. A historic harbour area in Vancouver called Gastown was augmented with period building facades for the Helena, Montana street scenes. Hotel scenes were shot at the Hotel Europe at 43 Powell Street in Vancouver. Additional scenes were shot at Maple Leaf Square in Gastown, Vancouver, and Ocho Rios in Saint Ann, Jamaica. Filming wrapped up around January 1994.[6]

text: Reception[edit]

text: Box office[edit]

text: The film opened in limited release on December 23, 1994, and expanded to a wide release on January 13, 1995. During its first weekend in wide release, which was a four-day weekend due to Martin Luther King, Jr. Day, the film reached number one at the domestic box office after grossing $14 million.[7] After its initial run, the film brought in a final box office total of $160,638,883.[8] Against its $30 million budget, the film was a financial success.

text: Critical response[edit]

text: Review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes reports that 56% of 54 film critics have given the film a positive review, with a rating average of 5.8 out of 10.[9] Metacritic, which assigns a weighted average score out of 100 to reviews from mainstream critics, gives the film a score of 45 based on 23 reviews, indicating "mixed or average reviews".[10] IMBD gave the film a score of 7.5/10 based on reviews from critics, indicating generally positive reviews.

text: Roger Ebert of the Chicago Sun-Times described the film as "pretty good ... with full-blooded performances and heartfelt melodrama".[11] Peter Travers of Rolling Stone particularly praised Pitt's performance saying, "Though the admirable Quinn has the toughest role, Pitt carries the picture. The blue-eyed boy who seemed a bit lost in Interview with the Vampire proves himself a bona fide movie star, stealing every scene he's in."[12] Comparatively, Chris Hicks of Deseret News noted, "Pitt is the hunk of the moment, and Legends of the Fall will only further cement his big-screen, romantic leading-man status. And he is satisfying as the internalized, rebellious Tristan (look for that name to be given to more than a few babies over the next few years). Even if the character seems only a slight twist on the similar role he played in A River Runs Through It. (He even becomes a bootlegger!)"[13]

text: On the other hand, Rita Kempley of The Washington Post stated that the film's "yarn doesn't so much sweep as sprawl across the screen in all its panoramic idiocy".[14] Janet Maslin of The New York Times commented, "Before it turns exhaustingly hollow, this film shows the potential for bringing Mr. Harrison's tough, brooding tale to life. And the actors may have captured the spirit of the story, but that's impossible to know." She concluded, "These are performances that lost too much in the editing room, smothered by music and overshadowed by a picture-postcard vision of the American West."[15]

text: Accolades[edit]

text: The film was nominated for the Academy Awards for Best Cinematography (John Toll), Best Art Direction (Lilly Kilvert, Dorree Cooper), and Best Sound (Paul Massey, David E. Campbell, Chris David and Douglas Ganton), and won the category for Best Cinematography.[2][16] In addition, the film was nominated for the Golden Globes for Best Picture – Drama, Best Actor – Drama (Brad Pitt), Best Director (Edward Zwick), and Best Original Score (James Horner).[17]

text: Home media[edit]

text: Legends of the Fall was first released on DVD on April 29, 1997, and once again on October 17, 2000.[18] The film was later released on Blu-ray on February 8, 2011, with bonus content that includes two audio commentaries, deleted scenes with optional commentary and two behind-the-scenes featurettes.[19]


document_title: Total Drama Island

question_text: who won the first season of total drama island

text: Total Drama Island

text: Plot[edit]

text: Total Drama Island sets in a fictional titular reality show that follows the competition of 22 unsuspecting and unknowing teenagers at Camp Wawanakwa, the most rundown, bug-infested, disgusting island located in an unspecified area in Muskoka, Ontario. The campers participate in competitions and challenges which get more insane and dangerous each week to avoid being voted off the island by their fellow campers and teammates. At the end of the series, the winning contestant will win C$100,000. The competition is hosted by Chris McLean, who is assisted by the camp's chef, Chef Hatchet, who is also Chris McLean's best friend despite being mistreated at times. Egotistical and immoral to them, unless it affects him legally, Chris places the show's contestants in various life-threatening challenges.

text: At the beginning of the season, the twenty-two 16-year-old teenage campers are placed into two groups of eleven, the "Screaming Gophers" and the "Killer Bass". In each episode, the teams participate in a challenge, in which one or more campers can win invincibility for their team. The losing team is called to the campfire that night, where they vote one of their members off the island. The camper with the most votes is eliminated from the competition. At this campfire, McLean passes out marshmallows to the campers who have not been voted off, while the one who does not get a marshmallow must walk down the Dock of Shame to the Boat of Losers, which will take them away from the island and they will "never, never, never, ever, ever, ever, come back, ever" according to Chris (this was proved a lie in "No Pain, No Game", when he brought Eva and Izzy back into the game).

text: About halfway through the season, the teams are disbanded, so it is every camper for themselves, after which the challenges continue; the winner of each challenge then only receives invincibility for him or herself, whereupon the rest of the campers vote one camper without invincibility off the island. This process of elimination continued on until two players remain on the island. These two players, Gwen and Owen, were then subject to a final contest. At the end of the season, Owen wins the competition, while Gwen ends up being the runner-up. Total Drama Island is a parody of the reality show Survivor. Host Chris McLean is very similar to Survivor host Jeff Probst.[4] This is the first season in which the winner does not get to keep the money, due to it being eaten by a shark in the episode "Total Drama Drama Drama Drama Island".

text: Episodes[edit]

text: Total Drama Island is a Canadian animated television series which premiered on July 8, 2007, on the Teletoon channel. This season has 26 episodes, each 22 minutes in duration, and two special episodes.[5] It was the third Cartoon Network show outside of Adult Swim and Toonami to have the U.S. rating of either "TV-PG" or "TV-PG-D", and a parental-guidance warning after every commercial break and at the beginning of the show (the first two being Sunday Pants and IGPX). Its rating in Canada was initially "G" while current broadcasts are rated "PG".

text:
Season
Episodes
Country
Network
First air date
Last air date

1
27[6]
Canada
Teletoon
July 8, 2007
November 29, 2008

United States
Cartoon Network
June 5, 2008
December 18, 2008

United Kingdom
Jetix
April 1, 2009
May 6, 2009

text: Characters[edit]

text: Staff[edit]

text:
Character
Voice actor
Description

Chris McLean
Christian Potenza
Chris is the host of the series.

Chef Hatchet
Clé Bennett
Hatchet is the cook and co-host of the series.

text: Contestants[edit]

text: There are 22 original contestants who competed in Total Drama Island. They are Beth, Bridgette, Cody, Courtney, DJ, Duncan, Eva, Ezekiel, Geoff, Gwen, Harold, Heather, Izzy, Justin, Katie, Leshawna, Lindsay, Noah, Owen, Sadie, Trent, and Tyler. Many of the characters return in later seasons either as contestants or as guests.

text:
List of Total Drama Island contestants

Contestant
Original team
Merge
Finish

Ezekiel
The Home Schooled Guy
Killer Bass

16 !22nd place

Eva
Killer Bass
Returned to game

Noah
The Schemer
Screaming Gophers
14 !21st place

Justin
The Eye Candy
Screaming Gophers
13 !20th place

Katie
The Sweet Girl
Killer Bass[a]
12 !19th place

Tyler
The Jock
Killer Bass
11 !18th place

Izzy
Screaming Gophers
6 !Quit[b]
Returned to game

Cody
The Geek
Screaming Gophers
09 !17th place

Beth
The Wannabe
Screaming Gophers
08 !16th place

Sadie
The Sweet Girl's Best Friend
Killer Bass
08 !15th place

Courtney
The Type A
Killer Bass
07 !14th place[c]

Harold
The Dweeb
Killer Bass
08 !13th place

Eva
The Female Bully
Killer Bass
Merge
04 !12th place

Trent
The Cool Guy
Screaming Gophers
03 !11th place

Bridgette
The Surfer Girl
Killer Bass
03 !10th place

Lindsay
The Dumb Princess
Screaming Gophers
03 !9th place[d]

DJ
The Brickhouse With a Heart
Killer Bass
03 !8th place

Izzy
The Psycho Hose Beast
Screaming Gophers[e]
03 !7th place

Geoff
The Funniest Guy Around
Killer Bass
03 !6th place

Leshawna
The Sister With 'Tude
Screaming Gophers
03 !5th place[f]

Duncan
The Delinquent
Killer Bass
03 !4th place

Heather
The Queen Bee
Screaming Gophers
03 !3rd place[g]

Gwen
The Loner
Screaming Gophers
6 !Winner/Runner-up[h]

Owen
The Party Guy
Screaming Gophers
6 !Winner/Runner-up[i]

text:
Contestant
Voice actor
Label
Placement
Description

Beth
Sarah Gadon[j]
The Wannabe
7001160000000000000♠16th
Beth was born and raised on a farm with only animal friends and her parents to keep her company. Thanks to her background, she never developed proper social skills, and while she excels at getting others to stop and stare, it is more often than not for embarrassing reasons. In the third episode of Total Drama Island, she joins a three-way alliance between Heather, Lindsay, and herself, but leaves it after standing up to Heather and her bossy attitude.

Bridgette
Kristin Fairlie
The Surfer Girl
7001100000000000000♠10th
Bridgette is a calm, compassionate surfer girl who loves animals almost as much as she loves the water. She ends up being the last girl standing on the Killer Bass, leading her to form a friendship with Gwen and Leshawna after the team merge. She develops a crush on Geoff and the two eventually become a couple.

Cody
Peter Oldring
The Geek
7001170000000000000♠17th
Cody is a tech-savvy geek, who sees himself as a ladies' man instead of a nerd. He has a large crush on Gwen and tries unsuccessfully to flirt with her, but settles for making Gwen happy by hooking her up with Trent.

Courtney
Emilie-Claire Barlow[k]
The Type A
7001140000000000000♠14th
Courtney is a perfectionist who desires to be best at everything, and sees herself as a born leader. Her desire for success often clashes with her own principles and can come off as being quite bossy and critical, which leads her to be disliked by many contestants. She has a crush on Duncan, but denies it. Later on in the series, the two form a romantic relationship, leading to her unfair elimination as Harold rigged the votes for Courtney to leave to get back at Duncan for bullying him.

DJ
Clé Bennett
The Brickhouse With Heart
7000800000000000000♠8th
DJ is a very soft-spoken and sensitive guy who is compassionate and kind to those around him despite his intimidating size. He has a fear of heights and snakes, but manages to overcome them as the season progresses.

Duncan
Drew Nelson
The Delinquent
7000400000000000000♠4th
Duncan is a crafty juvenile delinquent and apparent bully who knows many tactics from his time spent in juvenile detention centers. His experience in juvy has made him into a strong and ruthless competitor, but he still shows affection towards his teammates from time to time, particularly towards Courtney. During the merge, he forms a guys alliance with DJ, Geoff, and Owen to help the men stay in the competition. He ends up being tough enough to make it to the final four.

Eva
Julia Chantrey
The Female Bully
7001120000000000000♠12th
Eva is very competitive and physically strong, but she is often overly aggressive. She is known to have a short temper and violent ways of exhibiting her anger. While her temper got her eliminated from the competition early, she was allowed to return to compete after the merge (which lasted one episode because the contestants still didn't want to deal with her violent behavior). Eva is one out of three contestants from the original cast to only compete on Total Drama Island and not on any of its follow-up seasons.

Ezekiel
Peter Oldring
The Home Schooled Guy
7001220000000000000♠22nd
Ezekiel is a naïve country boy who was homeschooled at his farm. His lack of interaction with other kids has left him with incredibly poor social skills. He is the first one voted off the competition due to his rude remarks towards the female competitors.

Geoff
Dan Petronijevic
The Funniest Guy Around
7000600000000000000♠6th
Geoff may not be the smartest contestant in the bunch, but he has a positive attitude, loves people, and is always up for a party. He forms a strong friendship with DJ and Duncan, and develops a crush on fellow surfer Bridgette. He tries to get closer to her, however, the relationship between the two is often a rocky one, as many of his attempts to impress her instead end up putting her off. As the season progresses, Bridgette shows signs of returning his feelings, and the two officially become a couple.

Gwen
Megan Fahlenbock
The Loner
7000200000000000000♠Finalist
Gwen is a goth girl whose interests lie in art and astronomy. She is smart, independent, kind and level-headed, stating her best quality is her inability to get excited over minuscule things. Her attitude at first seems very harsh and sarcastic, but she is not a bitter person. During the season, she develops a crush on Trent and forms an intense rivalry with her teammate Heather. Despite the numerous physical and social obstacles in her way, Gwen is strong enough to make it to the finale alongside Owen.

Harold
Brian Froud
The Dweeb
7001130000000000000♠13th
Harold is a skinny, awkward-looking guy who takes pride in his knowledge, resourcefulness, and "Mad Skills" in subjects like filming and beatboxing. He is frequently bullied by Duncan and is often underestimated by his teammates and competitors, as he's pulled through and won challenges for the Killer Bass a number of times despite nearly getting voted off at several elimination ceremonies. It's revealed later in the season that he's developed a large crush on Leshawna.

Heather
Rachel Wilson
The Queen Bee
7000300000000000000♠3rd
Heather competes with her sights solely on the prize money and not on making friends, using others at her advantage and only being kind when she may ultimately be benefited. Early in the season, she forms an alliance with Beth and Lindsay and frequently forces the latter to place Heather's priorities above her own. Despite everyone's hatred towards her (particularly from Gwen and Leshawna), she manages to make it to the final three thanks to either performing strongly in the competition or manipulating others to get what she wants.

Izzy
Katie Crown
The Psycho Hose Beast
7000700000000000000♠7th
Izzy is seen as one of the show's craziest contestants. She is fun but hard to handle and to the other contestants, more trouble than she is worth. Izzy has extraordinary athletic and fighting abilities, and also sticks herself to the wild environment. Early in the season, she is forced to leave the competition after being chased out by the Royal Canadian Mountain Police, but Chris allows her to return after the teams merge into one. During the merge, she develops a strong crush on Owen.

Justin
Adam Reid
The Eye Candy
7001200000000000000♠20th
Justin is a supermodel of incredible beauty. He is so handsome that he can make everyone around, whether they are female, male, or animal, stop dead in his or her tracks at the mere sight of him. While Justin does speak in the first and last episodes of the season, he remains mute for the majority of the time, letting his appearance speak for itself.

Katie
Stephanie Anne Mills
The Sweet Girl
7001190000000000000♠19th
Katie and Sadie are two best friends who do everything together. They are sensitive, cheerful, and boy-crazy and when they grow attracted to someone, they will fawn over him endlessly. After Katie's elimination, Sadie struggles at first to compete without her, but adapts more as she continues. They are two out of three contestants from the original cast to only compete on Total Drama Island and not any of its follow-up seasons.

Leshawna
Novie Edwards
The Sister With 'Tude
7000500000000000000♠5th
Leshawna is loyal and sassy, yet also can be affectionate and caring. If shown respect, she will reciprocate it indefinitely. Leshawna tells it like it is, and has no fear whatsoever of calling people out on their mistakes. She forms a friendship with Gwen and a strong rivalry against Heather.

Lindsay
Stephanie Anne Mills
The Dumb Princess
7000900000000000000♠9th
Lindsay is described as being beautiful, but not vain. While Lindsay is one of the prettiest competitors on the show and is spoilt silly by her father, she is kind hearted and is able to make friends with almost everyone. However her lack of intelligence often leads to her downfall. She forms an alliance with Heather early on in the season and is often forced by her to do various tasks to benefit Heather more than herself. She also begins one of the show's first romances with Tyler.

Noah
Carter Hayden
The Schemer
7001210000000000000♠21st
Noah comes off as being sarcastic, cynical, and a bit too lazy. He is extremely intelligent, but finds physical activity as laughable as the ridiculous antics of some of his peers.

Owen
Scott McCord
The Party Guy
7000100000000000000♠Finalist
Owen is a huggable, upbeat, fun-loving, friendly, passionate, and optimistic competitor, who is basically in Total Drama to have fun more than win the grand prize. Owen's three biggest loves are eating, having a good time and passing a large amount of gas. Among his peers, he is arguably the most popular contestant of all time for his cheerful ways, optimistic viewpoints no matter what the situation is, and ability to see the best in other people. Despite his obesity, he makes it to the finale with Gwen thanks to his popularity amongst the cast and surprising athletic abilities. He develops a crush on Izzy while they were walking through the woods in their horror movie survival challenge.

Sadie
Lauren Lipson
The Sweet Girl's Best Friend
7001150000000000000♠15th
Sadie and Katie are best friends who do everything together. They are sensitive, cheerful, and boy-crazy and when they has grow attracted to someone, they will fawn over him endlessly. After Katie's elimination, Sadie struggles at first to compete without her, but adapts more as she continues. They are two out of three contestants from the original cast to only compete on Total Drama Island and not any of its follow-up seasons.

Trent
Scott McCord
The Cool Guy
7001110000000000000♠11th
Trent is relaxed, nice guy who tends to get along with everyone with his social skills and ability to play the guitar. He is also shown as being a pain magnet, suffering a number of near-death experiences and mishaps during the season. He has a crush on Gwen and when the two try to get together, Heather tries to break them apart seeing their affection as a threat towards her alliance.

Tyler
Peter Oldring
The Jock
7001180000000000000♠18th
Tyler is a sports fan who loves anything physical. Unfortunately, he is extremely uncoordinated and dim, constantly putting himself and others at risk with his clumsiness. He and Lindsay become one of the show's first couples.

text: Episode finale variations[edit]

text: For every season, the show's producers create two alternate endings for the final episode, such that the winner seen in one country's broadcasts is the runner-up in other countries (and vice versa) where the show airs. Owen is the original winner in Canada, but he is also shown as the winner in Australia, Brazil, Bulgaria, Croatia, Denmark, France, Hungary, Israel, Italy, Latin America, the Middle East, the Netherlands, New Zealand, the Philippines, Portugal, Russia, Serbia, Singapore, Spain, South Africa, Turkey, United Kingdom, and the United States.[citation needed] Gwen is the original runner-up in Canada, but she is also the winner in Finland, Norway, Poland, Romania, and Sweden.[citation needed]

text: Production[edit]

text: Total Drama Island was developed and produced by Fresh TV starting in 2006 with an early name for the series being Camp TV.[7] The season was animated at Elliott Animation and was directed by Todd Kauffman and Mark Thornton.[8] It is primarily targeted at eight-to-twelve-year-olds, and the creators, Tom McGillis and Jennifer Pertsch, studied what teenagers liked and disliked about reality television shows in the writing process.[9] McGillis says they used a "countrywide online research project" to determine this demographic's likes.[10] Fresh TV Inc. partners McGillis, Pertsch, Elliott and Irving produced the series.[11] The budget for the series was $8 million.[12] It was animated in Flash,[8] at Elliott Animation's studio in Toronto.[11] Every cast and crew member on Total Drama Island had to sign a confidentiality agreement not to disclose who the winner was.[13] All the characters were designed by Kauffman.[14] Voice actors from the FreshTV series 6teen have lent their voices for Total Drama Island: Christian Potenza, who played the character Jude on 6teen, played the role of host Chris McLean. Potenza said that the best part of the job was that his character could not be voted off the show.[15] Emilie-Claire Barlow plays a recurring role as Chrissy on 6teen and plays Courtney on Total Drama Island. Barlow stated that Courtney was her favorite character that she had ever played.[16] Other voice actors from 6teen include Julia Chantrey as Eva; Drew Nelson (Kai) as Duncan; Megan Fahlenbock (Jen) as Gwen; Adam Reid (Wayne) as Justin; Stephanie Anne Mills (Kirsten) as Lindsay and Katie; and Rachel Wilson (Melinda Wilson) as Heather.

text: Reception[edit]

text: Ratings[edit]

text: Carole Bonneau, the Vice President of programming of Teletoon Canada stated that Total Drama Island, along with Fresh TV's 6teen were "consistently top performers" for audiences of ages 6–11, and also helped to bring in older viewers as well.[17] When Total Drama Island aired on the American Cartoon Network, it performed very well; The Toronto Star reported that, "in some ages groups [Total Drama Island showed] a 500 per cent ratings increase in [its] time slot."[10] On December 11, 2008, Total Drama Island garnered 3.5 million viewers.[18] That year, the series was the top "regularly scheduled Thursday night program at 9 p.m. on all television throughout third quarter among boys 2-11, 6-11 and 9-14," according to the Animation World Network.[19] On Memorial Day weekend of 2009, a marathon of Total Drama Island increased viewership in age groups 2-11, 6-11, and 9-14, each by 20% or more compared to the same week in 2008.[20] As of 2011, Total Drama Island has aired in over 188 countries.[21]

text: Critical reaction[edit]

text: Total Drama Island has received critical acclaim. Common Sense Media gave the show 4 out of 5 stars, calling it a "[c]lever cartoon reality show spoof", even though it also describes it as too intense for young children to watch.[22] The series was nominated for a Gemini Award for "Best Animated Program or Series", shared by Tom McGillis, Jennifer Pertsch, George Elliott and Brian Irving.[23] Debi Enker of The Age gave a negative review of the season's last episode, calling the art, design and writing "lamentable."[24]

text: Public reaction[edit]

text: Total Drama Island received a score of 8.2 on Metacritic from users.[25]

text: Media[edit]

text: DVD releases[edit]

text: A DVD was released by Cartoon Network on August 18, 2009 in the United States. It contains all of the 27 episodes (including TDI Rundown) of season one of this series in a 4 disc set, for a total of 594 minutes long. In addition, its bonus features (entitled as X-tras) are the audition tapes of twenty two campers, as well as Izzy's second audition tape and her exclusive interview with Chris. In Australia, Total Drama Island is on Region 4 DVD as separate volumes. This series of discs contains the widescreen version with uncut scenes and original dialogue, as seen on Teletoon and ABC3. In reviewing the DVD for season, Matthew Price of The Oklahoman wrote that while the show started out "unbelievably slowly," the series became more interesting as campers began getting voted off. Price also praised the parody of reality shows.[26] In another review of the DVD, Jeffrey Kauffman of DVD Talk wrote that the character development was compelling and that the parody of reality shows were very funny.[27] Mac McEntire of DVD Verdict praised the character development as well, but noted that the show sometimes sinks to "lowbrow gross-outs".[28] Both Kauffman and McEntire recommended the series DVD.

text: Total Drama Island Interactive[edit]

text: Total Drama Island Interactive was an online game in Canada marketed in conjunction with the television series. It was produced by Xenophile Media. By registering a free account, the player could play games using a customizable avatar to earn points for marshmallows. Marshmallows are used as money in the game so the player can buy in-game items. The player who earned the most points had their avatar make a cameo appearance in the season finale.[29] The games were based on the challenges in the show.[30] Total Drama Island Interactive was nominated for an Interactive Emmy Award in 2007.[29] However, the website is currently no longer available, as it has been replaced by Total Drama Online and by the Teletoon official site.[31]