4 novembre, 2006 20:14

Many ginseng-based cold remedy claims unproven, expert says

Wednesday, November 1, 2006 | 12:16 PM ET

The success of a natural cold remedy has spawned a number of knock-offs based on ginseng, but in most cases, the science behind the products is lacking.

Cold-fX was developed at the University of Alberta and has quickly become the biggest selling cold medicine in Canada.

Labels of other ginseng-based products, some also containing other herbs, claim to help beat the common cold. Full Story

Question: What cold remedies work for you? (chicken soup, gingseng etc.)

Comments

Bill Perry

I have been taking Cold f/x for almost 3 years and have not had a cold yet . I usually get 2 a year . So for the price of a few dinners out, I think its a great deal (hate colds ) .

Posted November 5, 2006 12:38 AM

Andy

I can't help but wonder if all of a sudden a cure was found for something like say perhaps,cancer? Or Aids,and host of other illnesses.A major part of our worlds economy is based in drug research and sales is it not?Billions are poured in drug and research companies world wide providing millions of jobs etc.What would happen if all of a sudden funding stopped due to a "cure" for a specific illness like cancer was found?Certianly a major economic blow to the medical research industry and drug companies.In fact,the result would be catastrophic!If the common cold could be managed or even eliminated with a natural substance that mother nature devised,then what? Perhaps that is why we are constantly told by the medical research/drug manufacturers etc. that none of these natural remedies work.Do they not WANT them to work? When have you ever seen them stand up and say "hey,this natural herb works better than something we make in a lab!" I doubt very much that will ever happen because in the end,it all comes down to one thing....MONEY!!It is really ALL about MONEY is it not? This is not to say that it is all spin, but there just MAY be alternatives in nature that are worth a look.

Bill

Dundas

If only one person in a thousand was lucky enough to go two years without a cold, without taking any medicines at all, that would make 30,000 Canadians. All you need to do to sell vitamin C, or cold fx, or any other cold remedy is to convince just a few of them that their good luck is due to your product. Then have them to travel around with you, telling others how great, how AMAZING your product is, and that’s modern medicine. No, wait, that’s snake oil salesmen of the 1930s. Anybody can go for a year or two without a cold, just by luck, even if they usually get lots of colds. The whole point of this discussion is whether ginseng really works – I’ll take scientific testing over personal experiences any day.

Patricia

The best way to prevent colds is to build up natural immunity by staying healthy overall - healthy diet, exercise, enough sleep, avoiding stress - unless you want to go to the extreme of avoiding all contact - direct or shared - with other people. Nice fantasies! Once the cold virus has taken hold, it will run its course in 7 to 10 days, just as it always has, and the treatment consists of relieving the misery and symptoms. My favourites: any mild analgesic for minor pain and inflammation; lots of fruit juice and hot (clear) drinks, especially with lemon/honey/rum, or with fresh ginger and garlic; hot tea is good for sore throats; Buckleys (only in Canada) for coughs due to post-nasal drip. Home-made salty chicken soup is indeed wonderful, as are hot spicy foods to clear the sinuses. Sugar is bad; it seems to feed the infection and increase fatigue. Say NO to antibiotics unless tests prove that you have a serious bacterial infection. Above all, GET LOTS OF REST! Stay home and baby yourself for the first couple of days, and if you must go back to work or school have the decency to avoid passing the virus on to the rest of us - WASH YOUR HANDS! especially after sneezing or coughing or blowing your nose, and don't touch people or share towels, etc. Once it's over, take comfort in knowing that your body will be on alert for the rest of the winter and the next viruses you pick up will be easier to fight off. Isn't it mind-boggling how something as innocuous and non-life-threatening as the common cold can cause so much abject misery?

Posted November 3, 2006 05:40 PM

Mark

Ottawa

I disagree with the statement "our own anecdotal experiences can't prove anything, because whatever happens might just be a coincidence" as mentionned below.

I know that in the past when I was entering a period of high mental or physical stress (such as overnighters or intenses stretches at work, work travel, etc.) my body more often than not succumbed to colds.

Since taking the cold-fX product, just before and during such periods, I have NOT succumbed -- for two years. Coincidence, placebo, supersition...??? I don't need a "well designed, large trial to show [me]" that this natural product works for me. As everyone's physiology is a little bit different, effectiveness I'm sure varies. But, that's true with everything we ingest.

My "self-administered " trials have been on-going, and the success is about 95%. That's good enough for me -- I'm not waiting for a future, generalized trial to confirm whether I am right or wrong. Stay healthy!

Andre'

Cold FX worked for me last Jan, and it has worked for me again in Sept.

If it works, why change it?

It's healthier than antibiotics for you. Antibiotics should only be used when all else has failed. Many people are allergic to antibiotics. And they cause candida in many women. Most people are not allergic to natural products.

Posted November 2, 2006 07:31 PM

Brad

Guelph

I have not had a cold in over a year and a half, which is surprising since I usually get everything that's going around. And I have taken nothing, so should I attribute my lack of colds to NOT taking cold FX? Had I started taking any remedy 18 months ago I would swear by it, since my lack of colds since then is very unusual. And there lies the problem - our own anecdotal experiences can't prove anything, because whatever happens might just be a coincidence. We need well designed, large trials to show us when the effects seen after taking any drug or natural remedy are unlikely to be due to chance. Look at the anecdotes on this page - some people have had colds after taking cold FX and some haven't. Relying on individual experiences is what starts superstitions: I wore my blue socks and my team won, so it must have been my lucky blue socks. Taking remedy X and then having no colds for a long while does not mean remedy X is the cause. And the existing science is very weak.

Posted November 2, 2006 05:07 PM

Mark

Ottawa

In terms of natural rememdies, I've tried only the echinacea and Cold-fX thing, aside from trying to take care of myself through exercise, rest, nutrition. The former worked sometimes, but too unreliably to say it was because of that. Since taking Cold-fX I have not been sick (for about 2 years).

I don't take it everyday; moreso when I know I'm coming up to a stressful period at work, e.g. intense prep for a deadline or presentation, travel, throughout the first 6 weeks sicne our baby was born (unrelenting lack of sleep), etc. For 730+ straight it's been well worth the cost (which isn't actually that much in the manner I take it).

I can't speak to whether it speeds up recovery or alleviates symptoms, since I haven't been sick for a couple of years now (I definitely used to have one serious cold per year) -- but I don't believe it's designed to work that way.

I think the studies are encouraging but all I really need to know is that it's almost entirely effective for myself and wife -- the main studies that matter.

I'm glad this product exists, and obviously others too given its widespread enthusiam. I would, and do recommend it to my friends.

Mark

Posted November 2, 2006 01:07 PM

MEL

N.-B.

People are still looking for a magic bullet that will give them health. There is no such thing. Not in prescription drugs and not in non-prescription remedy's.

We have to manage our health, balance our everyday living, try to improve our health on a day to day basis. Conversely, we can realistically minimize our chances of getting sick.

Personally, I have quit smoking, I have taken up a routine of daily exercise, I'm working much harder at keeping a good diet, I have lost weight, increased my personal interest time, etc. These are the basics of feeling healthier and more energetic. At the same I am less likely to fall sick with degenerative diseases including cancer, flu's and colds.

Now, on top of the aforementioned basics of health I use a few vitamin tablets on a regular basis, and a few herbs, including ginseng, on a staggered/regular basis. I have personally researched the above, and in fact, there is quality research, a lot of it European, on many herbs and vitamins.

They all read the same way, including most prescription drugs. Rest, drink water, exercise, eat better etc...

So, on top of my daily habits, the vitamins and herbs that I consume are noticeably helpful to me.

MEL

Posted November 2, 2006 11:04 AM

Bill

Vancouver

I would like all substances available at any pharmacy counter or alternative therapy outlet, to be required to undergo the same stringent scientific study as drugs. That means double blind, peer review, subject to replication, published. If cold remedies or Saint Johns wort or medical marijuana (sic) or echinacea are to be sold anywhere, then we owe ourselves the same protection that we expect from any other medication. Do some mainstream medications still fail us? Of course they do. But at least we have a process for re-examining their effectiveness.

Posted November 2, 2006 11:01 AM

Shannon

Ottawa

I have tried Cold-FX on 3 occasions, all in the first 24 hours of a cold. The cold promptly went away each time, allowing me to go back to work. I have had similar results in the past with a combination of echinacea, zinc lozenges and vitamin C - but I find that Cold FX delivers an unequivocal knock-out, especially if taken as soon as you feel the first symptoms.

Anecdotal - sure. Coincidental - maybe. But compared to being miserable for the next 7 days, for me it's worth giving it a try.

Posted November 2, 2006 08:55 AM

Brad

Guelph

I have read the Cold FX studies, and they are very weak. I suspect that if a better designed, larger study were done by people not benefitting financially from the sale of the product, the results would be negative. Responsible scientists sometimes recognize the weaknesses of their own studies and repeat them, sometimes finding that the effect isn't real after all. I guess we can't blame people for wanting to cash in, and if the general public and gullible scientists are willing to accept weak (or no) data for natural health products, then people will cash in big at the expense of society. A pharmaceutical company invests about $300 million to study its products before they go on the market, but you can sell pretty well anything "natural" with next to no investment. Easy money...

Posted November 1, 2006 06:57 PM

Fred

Ontario

The studies I've seen quoted for Cold-FX are all on the preventative side and they seem fairly limited (a few hundred participants at most). Cold-FX may have some benefits in preventing colds ... however ...

As far as I know, there have been no clinical studies at all on the remedy side for Cold-FX and from my own personal experience it had *no beneficial effect whatsoever* when I took it, as directed (yes, 18 pills over 3 days) for a recent cold. It's expensive and I won't waste my money on Cold-FX again. Next time I'll go with a tried and true real cold medicine. At least I know they work!

As for what else works - well, I know I crave chicken noodle soup (chunky soup preferred) when I have a cold. They say, listen to your body; it usually knows what it needs. I think in this case, it's right. Chicken soup is not only good for the soul, it's good for the body too! :)

Posted November 1, 2006 04:09 PM

Debbie Mills

Toronto

I have tried Gingseng when I had a terrible cold, it doesn't help one bit.

These companies that sell it claim its the cure for just about anything you have.

From memory loss, weight management, cancer, and now colds. I have even been in a restaurant where they put it in tea as an energy booster! Its there anything this stuff can't do??!! Its merely snake oil in pill form.

Posted November 1, 2006 03:41 PM