A study has shown that Cold-fX, an anti-flu, anti-cold pill, reduced the incidence and frequency of recurrent colds by more than half. It also cut the duration of colds and significantly reduced their severity.

Cold-fX is a highly purified natural product obtained from roots of North American ginseng ( Panax quinquefolius sp.) which has a very different chemical and biological profile than Asian ginseng. Because Cold-fX is comprised of specific active viral-targeted, immune-enhancing molecules, oligo- and poly- saccharides, it doesn’t exhibit the other effects typically associated with ginseng products such as enhanced vitality, mental alertness and mood improvements.

The number of upper respiratory infections in each subject was significantly reduced by 25% in the Cold-fX group during the 4 month treatment period. Also, recurrent infections were reduced by 56% (10.0% in the Cold-fX group v. 22.8% in the placebo group, an absolute difference of 12.8% ).

Cold-fX treatment also had a significant effect in reducing the total symptom score and the duration of infections. The incidence of adverse events was low and the prevalence was found to be similar between the two groups.

The study involved 323 adults from the general population ( 18-65 years of age ) with a history of at least two upper respiratory infections in the previous year.
Participants were given either Cold-fX or a placebo for four months during the winter of 2003/04.
Subjects graded the severity and duration of their respiratory-related symptoms on a 4-point scale.

The authors of the study, Gerry Predy of the Capital Health in Edmonton and Tapan Basu of the University of Alberta, concluded that the Cold-fX treatment appeared to be an attractive natural prophylactic treatment for upper respiratory infections.
Regular intake of Cold-fX was shown in the clinical trial to be effective not only for the prevention of upper respiratory infections, but also for relief of symptoms if an infection did occur. The results were similar to those observed in previous clinical studies on Cold-fX.

Basu said, " One of biggest challenges in clinical studies with natural based compounds is the lack of standardization of the testing material. Most natural health products do not offer batch-to-batch consistency and do not produce consistent clinical results. This trial was unique in that it examined a unique natural extract with the same rigor used for conducting trials of drug candidates in the pharmaceutical industry, a practice that is rarely found in the natural health product business."

" We are interested in the potential positive implications for our residents and the results from clinical trials done to date are encouraging " said Predy. " For example, in participants taking Cold-fX daily for prevention, recurrent infections were reduced by more than half. In addition, there was a 31% reduction in the severity of their symptoms."

In two previous trials involving 198 nursing home seniors conducted under FDA's drug regulations by Janet McElhaney, at the University of British Columbia, Cold-fX showed an 89% reduction in clinical illness caused by influenza and cold viral infection confirmed by virological testing.
The four month study conducted while McElhaney was at Eastern Virginia Medical School also demonstrated an excellent safety profile in that group.

Source: University of Alberta, 2005


XagenaMedicine2005