Michael Hirt->New over the counter meds for the cold and flu
REPORTER
Diana Penna
PHOTOGRAPHER
KOVR 13 News
APPEARED ON
News at 5:00 (12/18/01)
If you're tired of taking the usual over-the-counter products year after year, there are a few new natural products getting lots of attention.
It's that time of year, cold and flu season. If you've been hit with a holiday bug, there are some new over the counter medications that can help. Diana Penna has more.
Andrographis is sold at health food stores under the brand name Remdex.
The cold and flu season is just beginning, but many people have already been bitten by the flu bug or know someone who has.
Dr. Michael Hirt / Nutritionist: "Unfortunately, if you get a cold or flu-like illness, we don't have medications that will cure it."
The good news is you can treat the symptoms. But if you're tired of taking the usual over-the-counter products year after year, there are a few new natural products getting lots of attention.
Dr. Michael Hirt / Nutritionist: "Andrographis, it's new to us, but it's been around for two-thousand years in medicine from the continent of India. And that herb has been shown clinically to reduce symptoms like sore throat, fever, congestion."
Andrographis is sold at health food stores under the brand name Remdex. And remember, just because it's an herb, you still have to follow the directions, and consult your doctor first.
Nutritionist Dr. Michael Hirt compares Remdex to Echinacea. He says it may even be better.
Dr. Michael Hirt / Nutritionist: "That herb has been shown clinically to reduce symptoms like sore throat, fever, congestion. It's been shown to reduce a cold and the number of days that you're sick…think of it as sort of a super Echinacea."
There's another all natural product, a tea, that's flying off the shelves in Europe that we can also get here.
Dr. Michael Hirt / Nutritionist: "The number one selling herb in Europe for congestion and cough is Mullin. Mullin is a tea that you can drink, which you should be drinking anyway. Lots of fluids when you're sick, that can help bring up the mucus and help you clear the congestion faster."
There's another all natural product, a tea, that's flying off the shelves in Europe that we can also get here.
And finally, one last herb that may help fight the flu.
Dr. Michael Hirt / Nutritionist: "There's also black elderberry extract that's been clinically studied to help reduce symptoms of cough and congestion."
Diana Penna, KOVR 13 News
Nutritionists also say certain vegetables can help ward off the flu. Spinach, carrots, yams, broccoli and garlic are all good choices for that.
Posted to the web on 12/18/01 at 10:00 PM
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