description=This vibrant, crystalline form of vitamin C (ascorbic acid) shows off some of the vitamin's beauty. Vitamin C saved untold lives of sailors when it was found that citrus fruits could cure and prevent scurvy, a disease that causes severe bleeding, debilitating weakness, and death. Later, British sailors were nicknamed "limeys" because they knew a lime a day would keep scurvy away. Many people now claim ascorbic acid can cure the common cold, the flu, and even cancer. This image was magnified 10 times under a microscope using a polarized light source. ìÄ
