From a stuffy nose to a hacking cough, everyone knows the misery of the common cold, caused by the rhinovirus. Zinc can both shorten the length of a cold and prevent the illness. But the mineral doesn't help a lot -- and you must take it within 24 hours of the first symptoms of a cold for it to be effective.
Zinc
The essential mineral zinc plays a role in wound healing, immune function, vision and reproduction. It can be found in such foods as whole wheat, red meat and nuts. Your body also needs zinc for the senses of taste and smell to function properly. It is not stored in the body, so you must consume zinc each day.
Zinc for Colds
Zinc supplements in pill form won't help with colds. It is only effective in a lozenge, gel or syrup so it can attack the virus in the throat, where it is most prevalent. If you take lozenges, you must allow them to completely dissolve for them to be effective. Zinc gluconate and zinc acetate work best to stop the rhinovirus from replicating, according to the National Institutes of Health Office of Dietary Supplements. The usual dose of zinc for cold relief is 13 to 23 mg of zinc every two hours, according to the Psychology Today website.
Evidence
Although studies on zinc's effects on colds have been contradictory, overall the mineral appears to shorten the duration of a cold by about one day and help prevent colds in about one-third of the people who use it prophylactically, according a review of studies the Cochrane Library published in 2011. Doctors from the Postgraduate Institute of Medical Education and Research in Chandigarh, India, reviewed the results of 18 trials using zinc as a cold treatment and two prevention studies in which 1,300 people took part.
Side Effects and Concerns
Zinc can cause some side effects, namely nausea. It also has an unpleasant taste. In 2009, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration issued an advisory after it received more than 130 reports that users of the nasal form of the zinc-containing cold remedy Zicam had lost their sense of smell. Too much zinc can be toxic, interfering with copper absorption. In addition, zinc lozenges are a choking hazard for small children.
References
- ABC News; Can Zinc Kill the Common Cold? Doctors Skeptical; Kate Moisse; February 2011
- Psychology Today; Zinc and the Common Cold: Just the Facts; Martina M. Cartwright, Ph.D., R.D.; March 2011
- ScienceDaily; Zinc Lozenges May Shorten Common Cold Duration, Finnish Research Suggests; July 2011
- Office of Dietary Supplements: Dietary Supplement Fact Sheet: Zinc
- Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews; Zinc for the Common Cold; Meenu Singh, et al.; 2011
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