Oral zinc supplements can cut length of common cold if taken within 24 hours

Indian researchers have found that oral zinc supplements can reduce the length of common cold, if taken within 24 hours of the first symptoms.

According to pediatricians Rashmi Rajan Das, of the All India Institute of Medical Sciences in Bhubaneswar, and Meenu Singh, of the Post-Graduate Institute of Medical Education and Research in Chandigarh, given the high heterogeneity of data, these results should be interpreted with caution, the New York Daily News reported.

The researchers also said that the prevalence of adverse effects with zinc lozenges is high.

The study also revealed that the preventative use of zinc over a period of five months reduced the incidence of colds in children, but the side effects associated with excessive zinc intake limit the attractiveness of prescribing the supplement to children over an extended period.

The study was published in the Journal of the American Medical Association.