Zinc for colds: Lozenges and nasal sprays

You’ve probably heard a lot about zinc for colds. But is zinc really effective for reducing the duration of cold symptoms? Here’s what you should know about zinc and colds.

What is zinc?

Zinc is an essential mineral that is found in almost every cell. Zinc has antioxidant effects and is vital for the body’s resistance to infection. It may also decrease the ability of cold viruses to grow on or bind to the lining of the nose, and zinc is important for tissue repair.

Zinc is found naturally in shellfish, beef and other red meats, nuts and seeds, beans, and milk and cheese. Tea, coffee and certain medications may interfere with zinc absorption in the intestines.

Over-the-counter preparations are sold as the mineral zinc combined with gluconate, sulfate or acetate.

Is zinc an effective cold remedy?

Researchers have studied the use of zinc as a cold remedy and as a way to treat the cold virus. Still, the data from years of scientific studies are mixed.

In some studies, researchers found that zinc lozenges, nasal sprays or nasal gels decreased the duration of colds or the severity of cold symptoms. One recent study looked at using zinc not only as a cold treatment, but also as a preventive when taken daily. In other studies, researchers found no differences in cold symptoms between those who took zinc and those who took a placebo or sugar pill.

What do these findings on zinc and colds mean to you and your family? For now, the study results on using zinc as a cold remedy are inconclusive. For every study showing a positive benefit with zinc, there’s another study showing no benefit at all. In fact, it’s believed that if there is any benefit in taking zinc or zinc lozenges, it is very minor.

There are a few important factors about the use of zinc for the common cold. One is that the formulation (gluconate, sulfate, acetate) and some flavouring additives may make a difference; this detail is still being worked out by researchers. Also, zinc works best when taken regularly (every two hours) at the first sign of a cold, and using 9-24 milligrams of elemental zinc per dose; under-dosing zinc makes it less likely to help.