Does Vitamin C actually make a difference, or is it overhyped?

A well-known Cochrane review found that regular vitamin C supplementation does not reduce the incidence of the common cold in the general population, though it modestly shortens cold duration and severity — a nuance later confirmed by dedicated meta-analyses of supplementary and higher-dose regimens. Weighing the data: Vitamin C looks an early-stage, lower-priority area for now — the evidence is only emerging (35/100), and its estimated impact (18/100) is on the lower end too.