Winter is here, and everyone and their grandma is popping vitamin C like it's candy. But all candies aren't created equal. Welcome to the showdown: tablets, gummies, and powders, each with its own grungy secrets.

Jennifer L. Mora, PharmD, your friendly neighborhood pharmacist from Baptist Health South Florida, asserts that all supplement forms are effective when taken at same dosage. But some candies have extra perks. Tablets, the unsweetened heroes of the supplement world, are shelf-stable, provide an accurate dose, and even have time-release perks that help your body absorb the vitamin more efficiently.

But wait, there's more! Vitamin C tablets are often buffered with minerals, making them gentler on the stomach. That's right; even your vitamin C supplement cares about your gastric comfort.

And for the anti-pill brigade, there are other options: capsules for a quick fix, chewables for an oral workout (watch out for that enamel though), and even high-dose single pills for the overachievers. Powders are where things get a bit gritty. They're highly customizable (choose your dose, choose your adventure), but the higher acidity might have your enamel crying for mercy.

Gummies fall into the 'guilty pleasure' category. They're sweet, easy to chew, but sneak in added sugar and lower doses of vitamin C. You're tearing through a pack just to match the vitamin C dose in a single tablet.

Liposomal vitamin C, like a fancy Chanel handbag, is efficiently absorbed but costs an arm and a leg. Before you select your supplement of choice, ask yourself: do I even need this? Humanity survived millennia on vitamin C from food, not from candies with lab origins.

Registered Dietitian Daniela Novotny lays it straight: "More isn't necessarily better". Too much vitamin C might give you an upset stomach or diarrhea, and honestly, it's not even that effective.

So forget oranges, strawberries, and peppers at your own peril. They're not just colorful additions to your meal, but your personal bodyguards against scurvy. Healthy adults aim for 75mg for women, 90mg for men. More is not always better, and your health can't be bought off a pharmacy shelf.