Elderberry, Echinacea, Cranberries: Miracle Cures or Just Hype for Your Cold and Flu?
A similar study using the herb echinacea found a lessening of symptom scores, but it was of only borderline statistical significance. Nevertheless, even though most of the individual trials didn’t find statistically significant improvements, when all such studies were compiled, it seems there may be about a 20 percent decrease incidence of colds, as seen below and at 2:50 in my video.
Note, though, that there is a concern about publication bias and selective reporting. A number of findings and some entire studies seem to be MIA, suggesting that negative studies may have been quietly shelved. So, we aren’t really sure about echinacea, but all the elderberry studies seem to have positive results, suggesting elderberry supplementation “provides an effective treatment option when advanced or more invasive care [more serious treatment] is not warranted.” This conclusion came from someone with apparent conflicts of interest, though. In fact, each of the four elderberry studies was funded by the elderberry product companies themselves.
Post Comment