Many alternative medical treatments for the common cold include the use of echinacea. It is commonly believed that by consuming large amounts of ecinacea it will increase the body’s immune system and help fight off colds and flus. However, a recent study may show that no matter how much echinacea a person consume it will not help fight any common cold or flu.
A study found in the Annals of Internal Medicine revealed that echinacea may have no effect on the common cold or fly. The study that was published involved 719 patients who were all between the ages of 12 and 80. All of the study participants showed early signs of having the cold or flu. The study involved allowing one group to receive no medical treatment, another group was to receive an echinacea only treatment and the third group contained people who had echinacea or a placebo pill. Those that were given echinacea were given 10.2 grams the first day and 5.1 grams over the next four days. This is the equivalency of what is found in most echinacea cold remedies.
The results of the conducted study showed that those that received an echinacea based treatment only had a cold for seven to ten hours less than those that did not receive any echinacea treatment.
The results of the study showed that while echinacea may not prevent colds it can shorten the lifespan of a cold or flu by a few hours. Since the study showed the echinacea to be neither effective or ineffective many alternative medicine providers are still recommending it to their patients.
