According to a double-blind study, Zicam, an over the counter nasal spray, cuts duration of the common cold by 75%.

October 12, 2000 1:19 PM

According to a double-blind study, Zicam, an over the counter nasal spray, cuts duration of the common cold by 75%. Now when I call in sick to work, I'll have to say I have cancer.
posted by grumblebee (8 comments total)

"The research was funded by Zicam’s manufacturer, Gel-Tech, and the results confirm the findings of an earlier, smaller study done by company scientists."

Go figure...
posted by smackfu at 1:27 PM on October 12, 2000

I'm astonished by network news's whoredom to "health stories" like this. Isn't the timing too cute, just as autumn kicks into full effect?

It's a virus. There is no cure. Prime your immune system. (Go outside and roll in the mud.) Lock away the antibacterial soap, because it won't help.
posted by holgate at 1:41 PM on October 12, 2000

Well of course the research was funded by the manufacturer. Third-party validation is important for credibility. The issue is whether the third party doing the testing is truly disinterested and objective. The time to raise the red warning flag is when you look at a study like this and don't see 'double blind'.
posted by dws at 2:55 PM on October 12, 2000

What? But the Diamond Council suggests 2 months salary for a ring, and the Ice Cream Coalition told me a cup of rocky road a day would keep me healthy. Are you saying the Bacon Council's suggested 7 servings of bacon fat a day are somehow wrong?
posted by mathowie at 3:25 PM on October 12, 2000

No one has claimed to have cured the cold. This drug (supposedly) reduces the duration.
posted by grumblebee at 8:07 PM on October 12, 2000

Looks good to me--you snort the zinc right up your nose, so it's topically applied and unmitigated by the citric acid in the lozenges. For 10 bucks I'll conduct my own experiment.
posted by mecran01 at 8:57 AM on October 13, 2000

Here's a different take on getting rid of those nasty cold viruses.
posted by Taken Outtacontext at 9:01 AM on October 13, 2000

Wonder if it's similair to "snore-away" -- spray-on coating to grease up and stop snoreing.
posted by stbalbach at 8:20 AM on October 15, 2000