Written by Jessica Patella, ND. Taking vitamin C, zinc, and pycnogenol reduced the time that colds affected the lives of participants by 25% and reduced lost work days by 67%.
The common cold is said to be the most common human disease, with each adult being affected on average 2-5 times per year and each child being affected 6-12 times per year (1). Currently over 200 viruses may cause the common cold and no specific prevention, besides washing of hands, is available (1, 3). With as many as 189 million school days and 200 million work days missed each year, the common cold is estimated to cost $20 billion per year in lost work days (1, 4). Therefore, reducing the length of a cold could have drastic benefits to the individual and the economy. Recent research has shown that supplementing with Pycnogenol (French maritime pine bark extract) can decrease the length of a cold episode (1).
The research was conducted over the winter months from November through March, during “cold season.” Participants were instructed at the beginning of November to contact monitoring physicians on the first day of a probable cold. If the cold was clearly defined by the 7 “pillars” of a cold (scratchy sore throat, sneezing, runny nose, stuffy nose, fatigue, cough and temperature- defined by Merck manual 2001) then participants were divided into treatment groups and signs and symptoms were carefully self-monitored.
The treatment groups were:
- Pycnogenol only (100 mg per day, n=43)
- Pycnogenol + vitamin C (100 mg Pycnogenol + 200 mg vitamin C per day, n=40)
- Pycnogenol + zinc (100 mg Pycnogenol + 30 mg zinc per day, n=42)
- Tri-complex = Pycnogenol + vitamin C + zinc (100 mg Pycnogenol + 30 mg zinc + 200 mg vitamin C per day, n=46)
- Control (did not take any supplementation, n=39)
The number of days that the cold significantly affected the participant’s normal life was significantly reduced in the Tri-complex group compared to the control group (3.1 +/- 0.2 days vs. 4.12 +/- 1.0; P<0.05). The Pycnogenol only group also had a similar reduction in days that significantly affected the participants normal life (3.3 +/- 0.5 days; P<0.05) (1).
The number of lost work days was significantly decreased in all Pycnogenol groups (P<0.05). The best results were seen in the Tri-complex group compared to placebo (0.31 +/- 0.2 lost days vs. 0.93 +/- 0.4 lost days, P<0.05) (1).
The total number of days with the cold were significantly decreased in all the Pycnogenol groups (P<0.05) compared to the controls (8.2 +/- 2.1 days). The greatest reduction was seen in the Pycnogenol and zinc group (3.67 +/- 0.4 days, P<0.05) (1).
Complications after 4 days were most frequently described as the cold symptoms lasting longer than 4 days. The best results were observed in the Tri-complex group which was associated with only 4.5% having complications after 4 days, whereas the control group was associated with 39.3% having complications after 4 days (P<0.05) (1).
In conclusion, Pycnogenol could play a role in decreasing the length of colds when used alone and in combination with vitamin C and zinc (1). This was a small scale, pilot study and future double-blinded research should be conducted to confirm results.
Source: Belcaro, G., H. Shu, R. Luzzi, M. Dugall, E. Ippolito, M. R. Cesarone, M. Corsi, and B. Feragalli. “Improvement of common cold with Pycnogenol®: a Winter registry study.” Panminerva medica 56, no. 4 (2014): 301-308.
© 2014 EDIZIONI MINERVA MEDICA
Posted November 12, 2013.
Jessica Patella, ND, is a naturopathic physician specializing in nutrition and homeopathic medicine and offers a holistic approach to health. She earned her ND from Southwest College of Naturopathic Medicine in Tempe, AZ, and is a member of the North Carolina Association of Naturopathic Physicians. Visit her website at www.awarenesswellness.com.
References:
- Belcaro G, et al. The common cold winter study: effects of Pycnogenol on signs, symptoms, complications and costs. Otorinolaringol. 2013 63(3):151-61.
- Ronald E, Olaf W. Common cold (Online-Aug.ed).Basel: Birkhäuser; 2009. p. 197.
- Beers MH, et al. The Merck Manual of diagnosis and therapy. 18th edition; Merck Editions; Whitehous Sta, NJ, USA; 2006.
- Fendrick AM, et al. The economic burden of non-influenza-related viral respiratory tract infection in the United States. Arch Intern Med 2003;163:487-94.
