High-Dose Vitamin C Drips: What an IV Vitamin C Infusion Does and Who It Is Not For

A vitamin C drip delivers a dose of vitamin C that no tablet can match, straight into the bloodstream. That much is simple chemistry. What the dose does for you once it is there is a more complicated question, and the internet answers it with a confidence the evidence does not support. This guide sets out what is in our vitamin C drip, what it can and cannot be expected to do, the safety checks that matter more for vitamin C than for any other vitamin drip, and what the appointment is like.

What is in the drip

Our vitamin C drip contains 8 grams of vitamin C (ascorbic acid) in a 1 litre bag of fluid, given over about 45 minutes from start to finish. For comparison, the UK recommended daily intake is 40mg, so 8 grams is roughly 200 times that. It costs £139, and no blood test is needed before a drip at this dose.

Vitamin C is also part of three combination visits:

• The Immunity Drip, £199: two bags in one visit, the Myers cocktail followed by 8 grams of vitamin C as a second bag. About 90 minutes. Vitamin C, zinc, selenium, B6 and B12 all contribute to the normal function of the immune system.
• The Glow Drip, £169: the vitamin C drip followed by a 750mg glutathione push once the bag has finished. Vitamin C contributes to normal collagen formation for the normal function of skin.
• The Works, £259: the Myers cocktail, then 8 grams of vitamin C, then a glutathione push and a B12 injection, each given separately in sequence. About 90 minutes.

Glutathione, B12, B complex and vitamin D injections can be added after any vitamin C drip. They are given separately once the bag is finished and are never mixed into it.

Why intravenous vitamin C is different from tablets

The gut has a limit to how much vitamin C it will absorb. Above a few hundred milligrams a day the proportion absorbed falls sharply, and the kidneys clear the excess, so taking very large oral doses mostly produces expensive urine and, at high enough doses, diarrhoea. Blood levels from tablets plateau at a level the body sets.

Giving vitamin C into a vein bypasses that limit. Blood concentrations after an intravenous dose can be many times higher than anything achievable by mouth. That is the one claim about vitamin C drips that is beyond dispute. The peak is temporary; the kidneys clear it over the following hours, which is why there is no such thing as a one-off drip that lasts for weeks.

What vitamin C is known to do

The authorised health claims for vitamin C, the ones with enough evidence behind them for regulators to permit, are that it contributes to the normal function of the immune system, to normal collagen formation for the normal function of skin, blood vessels, bones, cartilage, gums and teeth, to the protection of cells from oxidative stress, and to the reduction of tiredness and fatigue. Those claims describe what vitamin C does when you have enough of it. They do not say that more than enough does more.

The honest position on the evidence

This is where a GP-written guide has to part company with most clinic websites.

• Scurvy. The only condition for which vitamin C is a proven treatment is vitamin C deficiency, which is rare in the UK but does occur in people with very restricted diets, alcohol dependence or malabsorption. If you suspect it, a vitamin C blood test and a few weeks of tablets will usually settle it; a drip is not needed.
• The common cold. Regular vitamin C supplementation modestly shortens colds in trials (by around 8% in adults), but does not prevent them in the general population, and the effect of a one-off drip has not been studied.
• Cancer and sepsis. There is genuine research interest in very high-dose intravenous vitamin C in cancer and critical illness, using doses far higher than ours and under hospital trial conditions. The results so far are mixed and inconclusive. Our vitamin C drip is not a cancer treatment and we do not offer it as one. Anyone who tells you otherwise is not being straight with you.
• Energy, skin and immunity in healthy people. There are no good trials showing that an 8 gram drip makes a healthy, well-nourished person more energetic, more resistant to infection or better-looking. People do report feeling brighter after one; that is a report, not a result.

Safety: why vitamin C needs more checks than other drips

High-dose vitamin C has three specific safety issues that the other vitamin drips do not, and the consultation before the drip is where they are picked up.

Haemolytic conditions, especially G6PD deficiency

G6PD deficiency is an inherited enzyme deficiency, most common in people with family origins in Africa, the Mediterranean, the Middle East and South and South East Asia. In someone with it, a high dose of vitamin C can trigger haemolysis, the breakdown of red blood cells, which can be serious. The same caution applies to sickle cell disease, spherocytosis and thalassaemia. If you have any of these, or a family history of them, or you are from a higher-risk background and have never been tested, tell us. A G6PD deficiency screen is a simple blood test and settles the question before any drip.

Kidney stones and kidney disease

Vitamin C is partly broken down to oxalate, and high doses raise oxalate in the urine, which can promote calcium oxalate kidney stones in people prone to them. If you have had kidney stones before we will usually adjust the plan rather than cancel, but you must tell us. Anyone with established kidney disease should not have a high-dose vitamin C drip; the kidneys are what clear it.

Diabetes

High blood levels of vitamin C interfere with the chemistry of some finger-prick glucose meters and can make them read falsely high for about 6 hours after the drip. If you have diabetes, tell us so we can adjust the plan, and do not change your insulin on the strength of a meter reading in the hours afterwards. Continuous glucose monitors can also be affected.

Beyond those three, the standard rules for every drip apply. We do not give a vitamin C drip if you are pregnant or breastfeeding, if you have a kidney or liver condition or heart failure, if you are under 18 or over 60, or if you have a known allergy to any vitamin or mineral. We also do not give the Immunity Drip, or any drip, during a fever: wait until it has settled.

What happens at the appointment

Eat something and drink water before you come; do not arrive fasting. Bring a list of your medications and supplements. Every drip starts with a short consultation with the doctor, who checks your history against the safety list above and takes your pulse and blood pressure. A small cannula is placed in a vein in your arm, the bag runs over about 45 minutes, and you sit comfortably with a drink. A warm feeling, a flush or a metallic taste during the drip is normal and passes. Your pulse and blood pressure are checked again before you leave, and you can drive home.

After a vitamin C drip, eat and drink normally over the next 4 hours. Mild tiredness or a headache for a day afterwards can happen.

Side effects and what to watch for

At 8 grams, side effects are usually minor: the flush and metallic taste during the drip, a little bruising at the cannula site, mild tiredness or a headache for a day. Nausea can happen if you arrive on an empty stomach, which is why we ask you to eat first. Because the dose is cleared by the kidneys you may pass more urine than usual for a few hours.

Contact us if the cannula site becomes hot, swollen or painful in the days afterwards, or if you develop a fever or a rash. If you have severe difficulty breathing or swelling of the face or lips, call 999. If you notice dark urine, yellowing of the skin or eyes, or sudden breathlessness after the drip, seek urgent medical help: those can be signs of haemolysis.

Where we are

OneMedicine is a CQC-registered clinic at 1 High Street, Kings Heath, Birmingham B14 7AR, opposite Kings Heath railway station, with free parking at the rear of the clinic. Drips are given by Dr Ahmed in the Infusions and Vitamins Room and everything is booked online, with no referral needed.

Frequently asked questions

How much vitamin C is in the drip?

8 grams of ascorbic acid in a 1 litre bag. That is about 200 times the UK recommended daily intake of 40mg, and far more than the gut would absorb from tablets.

How long does a vitamin C drip take?

About 45 minutes from start to finish, including the consultation and the checks before you leave. The Immunity Drip and The Works are two-bag visits and take about 90 minutes.

How long does it last?

Blood levels peak during the drip and the kidneys clear the excess over the following hours. There is no lasting store in the body, which is why the drip is not a once-a-month top-up in any meaningful sense.

Does IV vitamin C boost your immune system?

Vitamin C contributes to the normal function of the immune system, which is an authorised claim for having enough of it. There is no good evidence that an 8 gram drip makes a well-nourished person more resistant to infection, and we do not claim it does.

Is a vitamin C drip safe for everyone?

No. It is not given to people with G6PD deficiency or other haemolytic conditions, kidney disease, pregnancy or breastfeeding, under 18s or over 60s, or anyone with a fever. A history of kidney stones or diabetes means the plan is adjusted. The consultation before the drip is where this is checked.

Can a vitamin C drip treat cancer?

No. Very high-dose intravenous vitamin C is being studied in cancer under hospital trial conditions, with mixed results so far. Our drip is not a cancer treatment, we do not offer it as one, and no one should delay or replace conventional treatment on the strength of a vitamin drip.

How much does a vitamin C drip cost?

£139 at OneMedicine, including the GP consultation. The Glow Drip with glutathione is £169, the Immunity Drip with the Myers cocktail is £199 and The Works is £259.

Is there a vitamin C drip near me in Birmingham?

Yes. OneMedicine is in Kings Heath, south Birmingham, opposite the railway station with free parking at the rear, and appointments are booked online.

Written by Dr Ibrar Ahmed — MBChB MRCP MRCGP PhD PG Dip (Cardiology)
Specialist interest: Cardiovascular Medicine · OneMedicine, CQC-registered clinic