Research
In the past 40 years, numerous epidemiological and placebo-controlled trials have examined the effect of vitamin C supplementation on the prevention and treatment of colds. More than 30 clinical trials with over 10,000 participants have examined the effects of taking daily vitamin C in doses up to 2 g/day. The majority of studies of non-athletic people, when looked at collectively, led researchers to conclude that vitamin C does not prevent or treat the common cold, but highly physically active people training in stressful conditions (e.g. soldiers training in the Arctic) may benefit from supplementation. A recent literature review concluded that vitamin C consumption decreased the duration of cold symptoms, but did not prevent a cold or affect symptom severity.
Claims of vitamin C's efficacy in treating the common cold have been criticized by many researchers. The most-cited reviews of the subject have concluded that there are no beneficial effects beyond a placebo. A review of 72 studies, published in January 2013, found no significant effect of consuming vitamin C supplementation on the incidence of colds. However, the analysis did find that vitamin C may reduce the duration of cold symptoms.
Read more about this topic: Vitamin C And The Common Cold
Famous quotes containing the word research:
“I did my research and decided I just had to live it.”
—Karina O’Malley, U.S. sociologist and educator. As quoted in the Chronicle of Higher Education, p. A5 (September 16, 1992)
“One of the most important findings to come out of our research is that being where you want to be is good for you. We found a very strong correlation between preferring the role you are in and well-being. The homemaker who is at home because she likes that “job,” because it meets her own desires and needs, tends to feel good about her life. The woman at work who wants to be there also rates high in well-being.”
—Grace Baruch (20th century)
“To be sure, nothing is more important to the integrity of the universities ... than a rigorously enforced divorce from war- oriented research and all connected enterprises.”
—Hannah Arendt (1906–1975)