By Anthony LaMesa Cavalier Daily Senior Writer Echinacea might not be a valuable weapon in the seemingly endless war against the common cold.
The popular herbal supplement does not directly help combat cold symptoms like sneezing and sniffling, concluded a multi-year study spearheaded by University Medical School Prof. Ronald Turner.
Results of the extensive research were published last week in the July 28 issue of the New England Journal of Medicine. The $2.2 million study, which took about three years to complete, was financed by the National Institutes of Health National Center for Complimentary and Alternative Medicine.
"Either alone or in combination [echinacea does] not have clinically significant effects on infection with a rhinovirus or on the clinical illness that results from it," the study found.
Turner said three different preparations of echinacea were looked at to determine if the supplement was capable of preventing an individual from becoming infected with a cold, as well as if it was able to alleviate cold symptoms in someone already sick.
"None had any effect," he said.
In carrying out the study, a total of 399 healthy college students were sequestered in hotel rooms for five days after being artificially infected with a cold. Some students were given echinacea to treat their colds, while others were given a placebo.
Susan Dunlap, nutrition information specialist at Charlottesville's Rebecca's Natural Food, said even in light of the national media attention given to the University's study, sales of echinacea-based products have remained steady at her store.
"We haven't actually seen a change at all," Dunlap said. "It may be passing over people's heads at this point."
She added that her store stocks over 20 different brands and varieties of products containing echinacea.
Dunlap, who said she still uses echinacea herself, also had some critical words regarding the study's methodology.
"I take echinacea, but what I have found is that it does make a difference on the brand, and that's what I think is a concern on a study that is only using one species," she said. "It makes sense to me that they didn't get great results, because they're not using the best product."
Turner, however, said this study only confirms previous investigations that have indicated echinacea has little effect on colds.
"I think certainly this study, together with other studies that have been published recently, suggests that echinacea may not be useful for the common cold," he said.
Long a leading research destination for studying the common cold, though the University is in the early stages of planning additional cold studies that could begin this fall, one of which might focus on the use of an antioxidant to stave off cold symptoms, Turner said.
Past cold studies at the University have included tests of a nasal spray and "hand treatments" to see if cold viruses can be killed before they are transmitted to others.
Ironically, though, even if a magic bullet is found for the common cold, consumers may actually be reluctant to take advantage of the remedy, Turner said.
"Because [the cold] is a relatively benign illness people aren't willing to spend a lot of money to treat it," he said.
Read More
University sees increase in fraudulent emails and phishing attempts
By Bertie Azqueta | 9 hours agoSome of these phishing attempts come from @virginia.edu email addresses, making it more challenging for University Outlook users to differentiate fraudulent emails.
Faculty Senate discusses proposal to separate faculty position renewal from promotion
By Lexie Stadler | YesterdayAGF are non-tenure-track professors who hold roles primarily focused on teaching, research, academic librarianship and clinical service.
Board of Visitors approves increased tuition and other rates for 2025-26 school year
By Brandon Kile | December 11, 2024Increases for tuition at the graduate schools ranged from a 0.6 percent increase on the lower end at the Graduate School of Engineering to a 4.1 percent increase on the higher end at the Graduate School of Data Science.
