Monday November 1, 4:02 pm Eastern Time
Nose spray stops colds after a day,
study claims
WASHINGTON, Nov 1 (Reuters) - A nose spray containing
zinc can cut the misery of the common cold from a week or more
to little more than a day, the company that makes the spray said
on Monday.
Woodland Hills, California-based Gel-Tech LLC said its drug Zicam reduced the average duration
of a cold from more than nine days to 1.5 days in 104 people it tested.
The spray is available in stores, sold as a homeopathic medication.
Gel-Tech, a joint venture between GumTech International, Inc., (NasdaqNM:GUMM - news) and
BioDelivery Technologies, Inc, said its study would be published next year in the American Journal
of Infection Control.
''This initial clinical research showed that participants who used Zicam at the onset of symptoms
significantly reduced the duration of their colds,'' Dr. Charles Hensley, chief of research at Gel-Tech,
said in a statement.
Gel-Tech scientists ran their study over two cold seasons. Their 104 volunteers, who had at least
three of nine cold symptoms for 24 hours or less, used either Zicam or a dummy spray four times a
day.
''Colds were determined to be over when all symptoms were resolved,'' the company statement
said.
Those who got Zicam suffered from sneezing, runny noses and other symptoms for 1.5 days on
average, while those who got the placebo had colds lasting 9.8 days.
Other research has suggested that zinc can help colds, and certain zinc lozenges have been shown in
some studies to reduce their duration.
Colds are caused by a number of viruses in the rhinovirus or adenovirus family.
The viruses attack cells by attaching to a receptor, or a kind of cellular doorway, known as
Intercellular adhesion molecule-1 (ICAM-1).
Scientists believe that zinc may block the lock-and-key connections that the viruses use to attach to
ICAM-1.
Gel-Tech said an estimated $5.5 billion is spent on colds each year in the United States, with about
$2.3 billion spent on over-the-counter cold remedies.
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