Not so fast, say researchers
at the University of Virginia School of Medicine. In
a study appearing in the New England Journal of Medicine,
these researchers claim that Echinacea does nothing
to either head off a cold or treat it once it’s
taken hold.
The study involved 437 people, most of
them college students so hard up for money that they
would consent to have cold viruses dripped into their
noses. Some of the participants took Echinacea or a
placebo a week prior to the time of infection, while
others took Echinacea or a placebo at the moment of
infection. All were secluded in hotel rooms for five
days and monitored for signs of the virus or signs of
an immune system protein, interleukin-8, that was thought
to be stimulated by Echinacea (and the reason for its
“cold remedy” association).
And the results? Nada. The researchers
found no difference among any of the groups involved.
Critics of the study point out that it only used the
root portion of one version of the plant, the purple
coneflower, and that the dosage was too low to be effective.
As far as we know, Mom’s chicken
soup still works, though.
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