6 replies to this topic

[Dorian Grey]

I was watching one of Chris Masterjohn's videos recently and noticed his "How to Kill a Cold With Zinc" in the related video column:

 

 

I hate head colds, so I gave it a watch & remembered the zinc acetate product he recommended (Life Extension "Enhanced" Zinc Lozenges) and why it was important to use this form.  

 

Just yesterday, I started feeling a cold coming on while I was out to lunch, & found the LE Enhanced Zinc at the Vitamin Shoppe in the mall I was at.  By the time I got home, I was sure I was sick and popped one of the lozenges into my cheek.  These are BIG (1cmX1cm cylindrical) tabs, & the single tab took over 2 hours to completely dissolve.  

 

My cold was getting worse all the while, & I went through a whole box of tissues before I took a short acting antihistamine and went to bed.  Didn't think much of Chris's cold cure at the time!  I fully expected to wake up drowning in mucus in the middle of the night, which was what I typically experienced with a cold.  I wound up sleeping like a baby all night, & woke up this morning largely symptom free.  I kept waiting for the other shoe to drop, but it never did.  Only 12 hours of symptoms from start to finish.  I typically have a brutal cough and very reactive airway for a week or more after a cold, but not so with this one.  I went out for tacos with hot sauce, which I never would have been able to eat for lunch today, & no choking from the hot sauce.  

 

OK, so I'm impressed!  As Chris states in the video, you really do need to get started on the zinc acetate as early as possible.  I was lucky to find this in a store where I happened to be having lunch and get started on it within 6 hours after my symptoms became noticeable.  The Life Extension Enhanced Zinc Lozenges were only $10 for 30 lozenges, so not a big expense to get these in advance and have them on hand.  If you want to try a different zinc acetate product, please be certain they don't contain the additives (to reduce the metallic taste) Chris mentions in his video.  These additives apparently inhibit absorption into the oral/nasal tissues, which I assume is how this therapy works.  

 

People used to say: "If they can send men to the moon, why can't they cure the common cold".  Well, now there's a finally a cure.  Thank you Dr Masterjohn, for spreading this good news!  

Edited by Dorian Grey, 21 May 2018 - 11:15 PM.

[Rocket]

Zinc gluconate applied to the nasal cavity did CURE the cold in a time period of a couple of days. The powers that control things in the USA forced it to be removed from the market... I used it for what i remember being over 5 years and during that time never had a cold last more than 3 days... People I know used it with the same results. My wife used it. They took it off the market and lied about people losing their sense of smell. This was the most blatant power play I have seen and no one reports on it...

If you want to cure a cold use zinc gluconate in your nasal cavity. Of course you will have to make it yourself.

[Dorian Grey]

Oh I remember Zicam.  Used it myself and had similar results (GOOD).  If I remember correctly, you weren't supposed to sniff it way up into your nose, but just squirt a bit into your lower nose and smear it around.  People were snorting it like nasal spray & that was what was supposed to potentially cause problems with anosmia.  Very few cases of this if I remember correctly.

 

They switched to swabs, but by then the wheels had come off.  I bought a boatload of the swabs before they went off the market.  Great stuff!  I'm interested in hearing if anyone can duplicate my experience with the zinc acetate lozenges.  

[John250]

I use 30mg OptiZinc Monomethionine. Any benefits to acetate? I thought OptiZinc was the best form.

[Dorian Grey]

The acetate lozenge is specific to the cold cure.  I believe it is supposed to be absorbed by the oral mucosa, increasing zinc locally (to a higher concentration than you could get swallowing a pill) in the nose and throat tissue where cold virus live and multiply.  

 

OptiZinc is better for systemic (whole body) supplementation, but this wouldn't provide the high concentrations in the nose and throat required to halt rhinovirus proliferation.  

[aribadabar]

Zinc gluconate applied to the nasal cavity did CURE the cold in a time period of a couple of days. The powers that control things in the USA forced it to be removed from the market...

 What do you mean by  removed?

https://www.swansonv...-50-mg-250-caps

Edited by aribadabar, 01 June 2018 - 01:56 AM.

[Dorian Grey]

The Zicam (zinc gluconate) product that was removed from the market was a gel that you squirted into your nose.  The resulting concentration in nasal tissue was much higher than you could achieve from taking an oral supplement. 

 

The directions clearly stated not to "sniff" the gel high up into your nose, but people tended to do this anyway, as they were used to nasal spray, which you are supposed to sniff up into your nose. There were reports a few patients lost there sense of smell (permanently) sniffing the Zicam high up into their nose which resulted in the product being removed from the market. 

 

Now, getting high enough zinc concentrations into nasal mucosa is difficult, as topical nasal medications are no longer available.  The zinc acetate lozenge appears to be the solution.  As the lozenge slowly dissolves in your mouth, the zinc acetate is absorbed into the mucosa, and apparently concentrations are high enough in the neighboring nasal mucosa to arrest proliferation of cold virus in the nasal tissues.