Does Airborne really work??

[Pixiedust34]

Dh was sick all last week but is on the mend. Now I can feel myself getting sick.

I hope I'm not sick for Christmas. We were supposed to get together with friends on Thursday night, but they are flying to CA this weekend for Christmas and I don't want to expose them to my germs before their big trip, so I think I'm going to cancel. : (

I took an Airborne this morning, but my sore throat got progressively worse throughout the day. Do you think Airborne will put a dent into whatever bad throat/sinus/yucky thing I'm coming down with?

 

[hpygrll]

I swear by Airbornne - keep taking it - I take it three times a day if I feel like I'm getting sick or if someone around me is sick and my colds don't get too bad usually. I also suck on the Halls Vitamin C drops...

Hope you feel better!
Jenny

 

[Faerie]

DBF swears by it. It makes me sick to my stomach so I take Zicam which works for me

 

[DVC-Don]

Maybe, maybe not:

Cold-fighting claims like Airborne's may be hot air
By MARY DUENWALD
New York Times

Airborne, a dietary supplement that many people take to help prevent and treat the common cold, is getting a lot of buzz.

"This stuff works," a young woman told a stranger in a Times Square pharmacy as she reached for one of the last three packages.

Sally Firth, 37, a respiratory therapist in Milwaukee, said she recommended the effervescent tablets "to everyone who says hello."

Airborne was created by schoolteacher Victoria Knight-McDowell, who was tired of getting colds from her students. She founded Knight-McDowell Labs, which makes the product.

Oprah Winfrey lauded Airborne on her talk show. Howard Stern did the same.

The company watched its sales rise to more than $17 million last year, according to Information Resources Inc., which tracks retail sales. The cold treatment has become America's 10th-largest selling multivitamin.

But does Airborne work?

Doctors say there is so far no evidence to demonstrate that it does and many are skeptical about its effectiveness.

Knight-McDowell commissioned a small clinical trial, and the results suggest that the product can fight colds, said Rider McDowell, a co-founder of the company. But the study has not been published in a medical journal. McDowell would not disclose where the study was done.

Airborne contains many of the same vitamins, minerals and herbs that are individually cited for fighting colds, including zinc, echinacea, garlic, ginger and a hefty dose (1,000 milligrams) of vitamin C.

Many people take these supplements, especially at this time of year, but doctors rarely recommend them.

"You can show that certain components of vitamins are essential to the body's normal immune response, but nobody's ever shown that a particular supplement prevents colds," said Aaron Glatt of Our Lady of Mercy Medical Center in the Bronx, a spokesman for the Infectious Diseases Society of America.

Eric Larson, an internist at Group Health in Seattle, said, "If anybody actually found a way to prevent a cold, we'd all know about it and we'd all be using it, and there would be no disagreement among doctors."

 

[sha_lyn]

I prefer Emergen-C Immune formula, but yes I believe products like airborne work.

 

[mickeyboat]

I have used it a couple of times, and it seemed to work for me. Maybe coincidence, maybe not.

Denae

 

[harleyquinn]

DBF swears by it. It makes me sick to my stomach so I take Zicam which works for me

Yep, it makes me sick too. Took me 3 days to realize it was the Airborne making me sick.

 

[Pixiedust34]

Thanks. Right now my throat feels like it's beyond taking anything for prevention of getting sick in general, but I might try another dose of Airborne at bedtime.

 

[sha_lyn]

for the sore throat try Traditional Medicinals Throat Coat Tea.
Some grocery stores (I know Kroger has it) carries either in their organic or pharmacy section. Or check natural/health food stores

 

[Kathi OD]

My mother swears by the stuff. I think that by the time it starts working your immune system has successfully gotten rid of the invaders. Then again, what do I know?

 

[yasmina]

Works for me, as long as I take it as soon as I feel the first tickle of a sore throat. Then take it every 2-4 hours.

For 3 weeks before my surgery in Sept., I was scared to death of getting sick. If I had any symptoms of a cold, they would have postponed it. So I took Airborne twice a day. Even though within a week of going back to school, everyone was coughing and hacking, I stayed healthy.

 

[Cool-Beans]

No, it really doesn't. When your body gets mega-doses of vitamins it takes the amount it needs and puts the rest into storage OR sends it out as waste.

You would be as well off eating a healthy diet or taking a multivitamin.

The article is silly. Doctors say it doesn't work, but Oprah, Howard Stern, and the people selling it say it does.

It can't hurt you, but it doesn't work because it can't work. Even if the vitamins/minerals could prevent the cold, you CAN'T put excess amounts of them into your blood (or wherever people think this stuff is going) to help you. Your body will not allow it. It keeps that delicate balance.

If people want to spend their money on it, I'm all for it. Have at it! But, OP, if your question is sincere, the answer is "No."

 

[Chicago526]

I find that the biggest single contributor to me gettting sick, is me being stressed out! Stress supresses my immune system BIG TIME (not to mention getting my hormones out of wack, causing "female problems").

Airborne and vitamins may help, and certainly won't hurt, so since you obviously already laid out the money, you may as well keep taking it. But also try and reduce your stress (easier said than done this time of year, I know!) and get plenty of sleep (something else that can reduce your immune system, lack of sleep!). Too late for you, but for others reading this thread, also try and wash your hands throughout the day and try to keep your hands away from your face, this will help keep the germs from getting into your body to begin with.

I hope you feel better soon!

 

[IwasatWDWforamonth]

Im not sure it really prevents any thing but when I start to get a cold and then take airborne and it seems to stop me from getting really sick.

 

[Pixiedust34]

Thanks, everyone. I'm already sick now, but I might take another couple of Airborne doses because I figure the extra vistamins can't hurt. I did cancel our get-together with our friends on Thursday night. I'd feel awful if they got sick from me before their trip and Christmas. I hope I'm better for Christmas and that the kids stay healthy.

 

[aprilgail2]

Airborne has always worked great for me, I take it the first sign of a cold and the cold never develops! Zicam on the other hand made me so sick I vomit when I take it so I won't ever be using that stuff again-

 

[Kath2003]

You'd be better off either improving your diet to get more vitamins etc. naturally (your body can't store the excessive quantities in tablets etc. anyway) or giving your immune system a good work-out by letting it fight the cold.

No one likes being sick but it actually does your body some good to get sick with minor illnesses like colds occasionally...

 

[SadieDog]

DBF swears by it. It makes me sick to my stomach so I take Zicam which works for me

I can't stomach Airborne either and I also use Zicam.

 

[SadieDog]

Airborne has always worked great for me, I take it the first sign of a cold and the cold never develops! Zicam on the other hand made me so sick I vomit when I take it so I won't ever be using that stuff again-

I should have said that I only use the Zicam nasal gel. My stomach also rejects the mouth spray and dissolving tablets.

 

[PixiePop]

I love them.