Here’s some new evidence about the benefits of Vitamin C. It is widely known as an antioxidant. Now a study hints it also could avert premature aging.

Research from the Quebec Cancer Research Centre in Quebec City showed vitamin C stopped, and even reversed, symptoms of accelerated aging disease in mice.

The results suggest the vitamin, found notably in fruits and vegetables, also may be helpful in other age-related diseases such as Alzheimer's and Parkinson's.

The study showed that before treatment, the ill mice were fat, diabetic, and developing heart disease and cancer.

After the vitamin C treatment, the mice were healthy and enjoyed a normal lifespan.

The researchers think that vitamin C could have a more positive impact on humans since, unlike mice or other animals, we don't produce our own vitamin C.

As always with mouse studies, more study is needed. The researchers are hoping to study groups of aging Canadians who have greater risks of heart disease, stroke, diabetes and cancer to see if they could eventually be treated with vitamin C to lower the risks of developing these illnesses.