Origin
In the 1970s, Linus Pauling argued that vitamin C could significantly decrease the incidence of the common cold, which spurred a widespread belief that consuming more vitamin C will reduce the risk of catching a cold and reduce its severity. Spurred by Pauling's claims, NIH conducted one of the first double-blind, placebo-controlled studies of vitamin C. The results showed a moderate decrease in duration and severity of colds, however, a post-trial analysis by the authors suggested to them that the results may have been attributable to a failure of the double-blind protocol. A subsequent meta-analysis found only very minor reduction in duration, and the authors concluded that vitamin C had no value in treating the common cold.
Read more about this topic: Vitamin C And The Common Cold
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