Hi all,
To beat colds I swear by something called "Zicam" which is an over-the-counter zinc lozenge. They're gross, but in my experience they work. You take them 1-5 times a day at the very onset of symptoms and the cold goes away before it ever really starts, or the symptoms are just very mild.
I've searched several pharmacies here but all i can find is a a zinc supplement. If anyone knows of a similar product or where I can find Zicam, please let me know. Thanks.
Ben
Hi all,
To beat colds I swear by something called "Zicam" which is an over-the-counter zinc lozenge. They're gross, but in my experience they work. You take them 1-5 times a day at the very onset of symptoms and the cold goes away before it ever really starts, or the symptoms are just very mild.
I've searched several pharmacies here but all i can find is a a zinc supplement. If anyone knows of a similar product or where I can find Zicam, please let me know. Thanks.
Ben
Try the homeopathic pharmacy in rue des Eaux-Vives across the street from the Scala cinema –- No. 2 or 6 trolley-bus stop “rue du Lac”. If they don’t stock the product they may be able to tell who does. For some remedies, you have to go to Annemasse or Ferney.
Try the homeopathic pharmacy in rue des Eaux-Vives across the street from the Scala cinema –- No. 2 or 6 trolley-bus stop “rue du Lac”. If they don’t stock the product they may be able to tell who does. For some remedies, you have to go to Annemasse or Ferney.
You could also try the Pharmacie de Bergues to see if they have it, or an equilavlent
Quai des Bergues 25 1201 Geneve
Tel. 022 / 732 29 85
Fax 022 / 738 76 44
Lundi – vendredi
8.00 – 12.15 / 13.30 – 18.30
Samedi
8.00 – 12.30
You could also try the Pharmacie de Bergues to see if they have it, or an equilavlent
Quai des Bergues 25 1201 Geneve
Tel. 022 / 732 29 85
Fax 022 / 738 76 44
Lundi – vendredi
8.00 – 12.15 / 13.30 – 18.30
Samedi
8.00 – 12.30
Use the Zinc supplement. It is just as effective as Zicam in triggering the placebo effect. For that matter, you can just as well use Tic-Tacs 
Use the Zinc supplement. It is just as effective as Zicam in triggering the placebo effect. For that matter, you can just as well use Tic-Tacs
Ben, on the serious side, it appears Zicam is not harmless:
https://sciencebasedmedicine.org/fda-zicam-warning/
The FDA issued a warning in 2009 and there also have been a number of successful lawsuits against the manufacturer for side effects of the drug. I am not surprised about one of them, anosmia. I am a neuroscientist and the effects of zinc on the olfactory system, at very small amounts, have been known for a while: it blocks the sense of smell by binding to membrane surface receptors of sensory cells in the olfactory bulb. A couple of decades ago, deodorant manufactures began adding zinc to deodorants, as a way of blocking the sense of smell on people around you while they are around you. Only it blocks all smells, not just your bodily smells.
At the amounts you get in Zicam, it can lead to total loss of smell. Not everyone suffers the side effects, and they have a different time of onset. So, you are playing russian roulette.
Do a google search for "Zicam side effects." Look for it in NIH sites or the FDA if you want reliable information.
As for its efficacy in cold prevention, the onset, severity of symptoms and time course of colds is so variable depending on the strain you are exposed to, the state of your health at the time of exposure, etc, that you can't really go by personal experience. It is only through clinical studies, when the effects of a drug are monitored under controlled standard conditions, comparing experimental and control groups that you can reach reliable conclusions.
Ben, on the serious side, it appears Zicam is not harmless:
https://sciencebasedmedicine.org/fda-zicam-warning/
The FDA issued a warning in 2009 and there also have been a number of successful lawsuits against the manufacturer for side effects of the drug. I am not surprised about one of them, anosmia. I am a neuroscientist and the effects of zinc on the olfactory system, at very small amounts, have been known for a while: it blocks the sense of smell by binding to membrane surface receptors of sensory cells in the olfactory bulb. A couple of decades ago, deodorant manufactures began adding zinc to deodorants, as a way of blocking the sense of smell on people around you while they are around you. Only it blocks all smells, not just your bodily smells.
At the amounts you get in Zicam, it can lead to total loss of smell. Not everyone suffers the side effects, and they have a different time of onset. So, you are playing russian roulette.
Do a google search for "Zicam side effects." Look for it in NIH sites or the FDA if you want reliable information.
As for its efficacy in cold prevention, the onset, severity of symptoms and time course of colds is so variable depending on the strain you are exposed to, the state of your health at the time of exposure, etc, that you can't really go by personal experience. It is only through clinical studies, when the effects of a drug are monitored under controlled standard conditions, comparing experimental and control groups that you can reach reliable conclusions.
Ben, on the serious side, it appears Zicam is not harmless:
https://sciencebasedmedicine.org/fda-zicam-warning/
The FDA issued a warning in 2009 and there also have been a number of successful lawsuits against the manufacturer for side effects of the drug. I am not surprised about one of them, anosmia. I am a neuroscientist and the effects of zinc on the olfactory system, at very small amounts, have been known for a while: it blocks the sense of smell by binding to membrane surface receptors of sensory cells in the olfactory bulb. A couple of decades ago, deodorant manufactures began adding zinc to deodorants, as a way of blocking the sense of smell on people around you while they are around you. Only it blocks all smells, not just your bodily smells.
At the amounts you get in Zicam, it can lead to total loss of smell. Not everyone suffers the side effects, and they have a different time of onset. So, you are playing russian roulette.
Do a google search for "Zicam side effects." Look for it in NIH sites or the FDA if you want reliable information.
As for its efficacy in cold prevention, the onset, severity of symptoms and time course of colds is so variable depending on the strain you are exposed to, the state of your health at the time of exposure, etc, that you can't really go by personal experience. It is only through clinical studies, when the effects of a drug are monitored under controlled standard conditions, comparing experimental and control groups that you can reach reliable conclusions.
Come out with it JR, you work for Zicam's competition, right? 
Well intentioned or not, JR, I appreciate the contribution. I'm well aware of the history with that product, that is not the one I use. There is no danger in zinc supplements from time to time if you don't exceed 50 mg in a day.
As far as efficacy: if something continues to work in my experience and isn't killing or damaging me, I couldn't care less about the opposing testimony of others or if it's a placebo effect. I'll be laughing on the slopes cold-free while the zinc-less are at home sniffling over their keyboards! :)
Well intentioned or not, JR, I appreciate the contribution. I'm well aware of the history with that product, that is not the one I use. There is no danger in zinc supplements from time to time if you don't exceed 50 mg in a day.
As far as efficacy: if something continues to work in my experience and isn't killing or damaging me, I couldn't care less about the opposing testimony of others or if it's a placebo effect. I'll be laughing on the slopes cold-free while the zinc-less are at home sniffling over their keyboards! :)
Come out with it JR, you work for Zicam's competition, right?
There is no competition Nir, there is no cure or palliative for the common cold. But to each his own life. There is a number of legal firms making a killing from suing two manufacturers after users have experience chronic adverse health effects. It is only them and the manufacturers who have a vested interest on this issue.
I am a scientist, currently working on global health after years of working as a reasearcher and Professor at the UCLA school of Medicine. The reason I made the switch to health policy is because of a sense of social obligation. Please do not project the motives that drive your life on me.
Ben, you referred to Zicam in your thread. Maybe you should read the title of your post. That is the product that the FDA has issued a warning about. But it is your life.
I mean, who knew, the cold is nothing but a zicam deficiency.
I have known many people in my life who dismissed concerns about the risks of their smoking because they had not gotten cancer after smoking for 20 years. Well, Let natural selection do its work....
There is no competition Nir, there is no cure or palliative for the common cold. But to each his own life. There is a number of legal firms making a killing from suing two manufacturers after users have experience chronic adverse health effects. It is only them and the manufacturers who have a vested interest on this issue.
I am a scientist, currently working on global health after years of working as a reasearcher and Professor at the UCLA school of Medicine. The reason I made the switch to health policy is because of a sense of social obligation. Please do not project the motives that drive your life on me.
Ben, you referred to Zicam in your thread. Maybe you should read the title of your post. That is the product that the FDA has issued a warning about. But it is your life.
I mean, who knew, the cold is nothing but a zicam deficiency.
I have known many people in my life who dismissed concerns about the risks of their smoking because they had not gotten cancer after smoking for 20 years. Well, Let natural selection do its work....
