From the Desk of Carolyn Dean MD ND
Between the sun, the drinks, and the grill, your body is spending nutrients faster than the buffet table is replacing them.
Labor Day has a particular rhythm. You spend the afternoon outside, move between the sunshine and the shade, visit with family or friends, eat a little differently than you normally would, and perhaps enjoy a drink or two.
Nobody is thinking, I’m putting my body under physiological stress today.
You’re relaxing. You’re celebrating. You’re having fun.
And that’s exactly why I find this kind of day so interesting.
Your body doesn’t distinguish between “good stress” and “bad stress” quite as neatly as our brain does. A long day in the sun, lots of stimulation, social activity, changes in your usual meals, a bunch of sugary drinks and desserts, and the work of processing everything you’ve consumed can all increase the demands on your nutrient reserves.
As a result, you may feel perfectly fine while your body is quietly working overtime. That’s why I think Labor Day nutrient depletion is worth talking about.
However, I’m not suggesting that you need to avoid the cookout, inspect every plate, or turn Labor Day into a nutrition project. Far from it.
Instead, I want you to understand what your body is doing in the background. That way, you can support it before you find yourself wondering why you feel so depleted the next morning.
One nutrient I want you to pay particular attention to is Vitamin C.
Labor Day Nutrient Depletion: A Day That Asks a Lot of Your Body
Think about a typical Labor Day cookout.
You’ve been outside for hours. It’s warm, you’re moving around, talking, laughing, and perhaps sweating more than you realize. Meanwhile, the food may be heavier in sodium and refined carbohydrates than your usual meals.
At the same time, the fresh fruits and vegetables that normally contribute vitamin C may be sitting in the refrigerator at home.
Again, none of this means you’ve done anything wrong.
It’s simply a different kind of day.
The body is constantly using nutrients to manage its environment. When the demands increase, the nutrients involved in those processes are being called upon more heavily.
That’s particularly important when we’re talking about stress because the stress response isn’t reserved for emergencies. Your adrenal glands respond to physical and emotional demands, and the nutrients involved in that response have to come from somewhere.
Therefore, this is one reason I encourage people to think regularly about nutrient reserves rather than waiting until they feel depleted before thinking about replenishment.
A holiday can make the contrast especially obvious.
The cookout table may be full, but being full isn’t the same thing as being well nourished. A plate can provide plenty of calories without providing much of the vitamin C and minerals your body needs for its day-to-day cellular work.
Vitamin C Is Your Body’s “Ultimate Antidote”
In my recently published book, Vitamin C: Listening to the Experts, I devote a chapter to what I call “The Ultimate Antidote.”
I’m using that phrase to describe the remarkable range of work vitamin C performs in the body, including its role in helping the body process various substances it encounters.
Alcohol is one of those substances.
However, I want to be careful with this point because nutrition conversations around alcohol can quickly turn into claims that a particular vitamin somehow makes drinking harmless.
That isn’t what I’m saying.
Vitamin C doesn’t give you a free pass to drink, and I don’t want anyone interpreting nutrient support as a way to offset the effects of alcohol.
Instead, what interests me is the underlying physiology.
When your body is processing substances that require metabolic work, nutrients are involved in that work. Vitamin C is one of the nutrients I believe deserves considerably more attention in that conversation.
So, if you’ve spent an entire afternoon outside, had a few drinks, eaten a meal that’s heavier than usual, and stayed up later than normal, your body has had a busy day—even if you experienced it as relaxation.
That’s the part we tend to forget.
Your Adrenal Glands Have a Special Relationship With Vitamin C
One of the reasons vitamin C becomes particularly interesting during stressful periods is its relationship with the adrenal glands.
The adrenal glands contain some of the highest concentrations of vitamin C in the body. In my work, I explain that during a stress response, cortisol helps move vitamin C into cells where it can be used.
Therefore, the more frequently the stress response is activated, the more important it becomes to have adequate nutritional support available.
And “stress” here doesn’t necessarily mean that something terrible happened.
In fact, your body can experience a demanding day even when your mind is having a wonderful time.
A full day of sun exposure, constant conversation, travel, disrupted routines, sensory stimulation, physical activity, and a later-than-usual bedtime can all add to the overall workload your body has to manage.
In my teaching, I also discuss the way adrenal stress can draw on several nutrients at the same time, including vitamin C, B vitamins, magnesium, and sodium.
This is why I don’t like the idea of looking at one nutrient in isolation.
The body doesn’t work that way.
When demands increase, I prefer consistent replenishment to the idea of waiting until the tank feels empty and then trying to catch up.
Your Minerals Are Being Spent, Too
Vitamin C may be the focus of this conversation, but I don’t want you to forget about your minerals.
Alcohol is one factor I discuss in my work in relation to magnesium depletion. Magnesium is involved in hundreds of enzymatic processes throughout the body. Therefore, maintaining adequate magnesium is part of maintaining normal cellular function.
Then consider the typical cookout meal.
Salty processed foods can contribute plenty of sodium. Meanwhile, foods such as buns, chips, condiments, and sweetened beverages may provide relatively little magnesium and potassium.
That’s when you end up with bags under your eyes from retaining too much of that sodium.
The issue isn’t that sodium is “bad” or that you should totally avoid these foods.
The issue is balance.
This is where I think people sometimes misunderstand electrolytes and minerals. More of one mineral isn’t automatically the answer.
Instead, your body needs a broad nutritional foundation, not a single number pushed higher.
That is particularly important on a day when you’re sweating, eating differently, and asking your body to process more than usual.
What’s Actually on the Labor Day Table?
Here’s where I want to make this practical.
You don’t need to redesign your Labor Day menu to support your nutrient reserves.
Keep the burgers. Keep the coleslaw. Enjoy the meal.
Instead, simply look for a few easy places to add foods that naturally contribute vitamin C.
Watermelon is an easy addition to a summer table. Likewise, bell pepper strips require almost no preparation and bring a significant amount of vitamin C to the plate.
A citrus-based coleslaw can do the same thing while still feeling like cookout food rather than “health food.”
In addition, citrus fruit, berries, tomatoes, broccoli, and other colorful produce can contribute vitamin C.
The point isn’t to create a perfect plate.
It’s to notice what might be missing.
I find this much more useful than labeling foods as “good” or “bad.” For example, if most of the meal is built around grilled meat, bread, chips, condiments, and beverages, simply adding a couple of fresh, vitamin-C-rich foods changes the nutritional picture.
And you can do it without turning the gathering into a wellness retreat.
Sometimes the smartest nutritional strategy is the one that doesn’t make your life harder.
The Morning After: Think Replenishment, Not Punishment
Now let’s talk about the next morning.
If you wake up after a long Labor Day weekend feeling like your body has been through more than you expected, I don’t want your first thought to be, I was bad yesterday.
That’s not a useful nutritional framework.
Instead, ask yourself a better question:
What did my body spend yesterday, and what can I replenish today?
This is the mindset I want people to develop around nutrients.
Your body isn’t keeping score on whether you deserved that hamburger or whether you stayed outside in the sun for too long. It’s continually using nutrients to support normal cellular functions.
Therefore, when the demands of a particular day are greater, it makes sense to pay attention to replenishment afterward.
For vitamin C support, Whole C ReSet provides an organic vitamin C complex that can become part of that nutritional routine. And because vitamin C is only one piece of the picture, ReMyte provides a broad-spectrum mineral foundation.
I don’t position either one as a way to prevent or undo the effects of alcohol. Likewise, I certainly don’t want anyone thinking of supplements as permission to overindulge.
That’s not the point.
The point is much simpler: support your body’s nutrient reserves when you’ve had a demanding day.
Your Body Doesn’t Take Labor Day Off
Remember, we tend to think of Labor Day as a day when we get to take a break.
But your body doesn’t actually stop working because you’re relaxing by the grill.
Your adrenal glands are still responding to demands. Your cells are still producing energy. Meanwhile, your liver is still processing what you’ve consumed.
At the same time, your nervous system is still responding to all the stimulation around you. And your body is still using vitamins and minerals to keep all of those processes moving.
That’s why I like the idea of looking at a holiday weekend through the lens of replenishment rather than restriction.
Enjoy the sunshine. Enjoy the people you’re with. Eat the food you enjoy.
In addition, add some colorful produce where you can.
Oh, and before I forget—stay hydrated and, if you can, put ¼ tsp of sea salt in each liter of drinking water.
Then, when the weekend is over, give your body some of the nutritional support it has been using up.
Vitamin C, Minerals, and the Bigger Picture
This fall we’ll begin our Vitamin C Series, and here’s the idea I want you to carry with you: vitamin C isn’t just something you remember when you’re reaching for an orange because you’re feeling under the weather.
Instead, it is involved in everyday cellular work, particularly when your body is managing stress and increased demands.
The same is true of minerals.
Ultimately, Labor Day nutrient depletion is less about restricting yourself during a holiday and more about recognizing what your body may be using while you’re enjoying the day.
Your body is remarkably good at adapting.
My job is to remind you that adaptation requires raw materials.
Explore Whole C ReSet, Flora Revive and ReMyte—help support what a full day of sun, socializing, and cookout food actually spends.
This content is for educational purposes only and discusses nutritional and lifestyle support for normal structure and function of the body. It is not intended to diagnose, treat, or cure disease. Consult a qualified healthcare professional for personal medical guidance.
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