Is it important to cook spaghetti sauce for eight hours?

It is not necessary to cook spaghetti sauce for eight hours. I know Italians who do cook their sauce all day and I know Italians who cook their sauce only to serving temperature. Prolonged heat and extended cooking destroy the vitamin C in tomatoes. You only need to heat spaghetti sauce to serving temperature. Refrigerating homemade spaghetti or marinara sauce overnight does allow the spices to more fully season the sauce.