First they said no, now they say yes!
Turns out zinc, a historically hotly debated supplement, can in fact help thin the distance of the usual cold. This, according to a new survey conducted by the Cochrane Collaboration, the same group of researchers that in 1999 found zinc to be little more efficient than a placebo.
Well things change.
In this review the researchers studied placebo-controlled, double-blind trials examining zinc dating as far rearward as 1984. Pulling from 15 trials (as opposed to the 8 examined in the 1999 review) of more than 1,300 people, Cochrane determined that zinc not only cut the duration of the usual cold - if taken within 24 hours of first symptoms -but also lessened the severity.
But here's the real ringer from the Cochrane Collaboration's study: "Zinc supplementation for at least five months reduces incidence, school absenteeism and prescription of antibiotics for children with the usual cold." That's right, a steady supplementation of zinc may dilute the the incidence of the usual cold, even save you forth from the doctor's office.
Still there are skeptics. "The possibility is great, but the work is not," said Dr. Richard Besser, Chief Health and Medical Editor for ABC News. "They're not look at any new data, they are looking at everything that has been published so far, and the worst piece of this is the information on prevention. I actually see very slight evidence that it prevents infection."
Before running out to carry up on zinc lozenges, pills and syrups, keep in judgement that zinc still has its drawbacks. Side effects can include nausea, a bad taste in the mouth, loss of smell (when administered in the nose), diarrhea, dry mouth and abdominal pain. (Because the doses of zinc administered varied from field to study, Cochrane reviewers did not pinpoint an exact dose likely to have side effects. See here for recommended daily doses of zinc.
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