Trialling vitamin C supplements for faster wound healing in people with diabetes-related foot ulcers
Could a daily dose of vitamin C be a simple, effective and affordable treatment for people with diabetes-related foot ulcers?

Diabetes is Australia’s fastest growing chronic disease. Of the approximately $10 billion total cost of diabetes to the Australian economy each year, it’s been estimated that $1.6 billion is due to diabetes-related foot disease.
“With around 1,700 deaths a year in Australia directly related to diabetes-related foot disease there is an urgent need for affordable, practical and safe therapies to complement standard care and management,” Professor Wadley said.
Diabetes-related foot ulcers (DFUs) are a common complication for people with both type 1 and type 2 diabetes that can lead to amputations and other serious health issues.
Professor Glenn Wadley aims to determine if taking a vitamin C supplement can improve wound healing in people with DFUs. He is leading the FOOT-C Study, a clinical trial funded by Diabetes Australia, sponsored and led by Deakin University and conducted in collaboration with Monash Health.
Vitamin C plays an important role in wound healing and the immune system, and half of Australian patients with diabetes-related foot disease are reported to have low vitamin C levels.
There is a strong association with low vitamin C levels and high levels of amputation in people with DFUs. Recent small studies have reported vitamin C improved the wound healing of DFUs, but larger studies and studies specific to DFUs are needed.
For the clinical trial, people with a DFU will take either vitamin C or placebo capsules for eight weeks. During this period Professor Wadley and team will measure the healing rate of their wounds.
“The outcomes of this study will provide the evidence needed to determine whether there is a place in clinical practice for vitamin C supplementation to improve DFU healing.”
Professor Wadley hypothesises that oral vitamin C supplementation could improve the healing rate of DFUs by up to 50%.
He said the study may eventually lead to routine screening for vitamin C status for people with DFUs.
But he cautioned that while the study will establish the effectiveness of vitamin C to improve wound healing, much larger scale trials would then be needed to establish if the treatment can lead to lower amputation rates and thus change clinical practice.