Pelargonium sidoides

Cold symptoms and pelargonium herbal extract:

A double-blind study of 133 adults who had just come down with the common cold found that use of a standardized pelargonium herbal extract significantly reduced the severity and duration of symptoms as compared to placebo. Patients received either 30 drops (1.5 mL) of pelargonium sidoides or a placebo 3 times daily for 10 days. Ten cold symptoms were evaluated: nasal drainage, sore throat, nasal congestion, sneezing, scratchy throat, hoarseness, cough, headache, muscle aches, and fever. From day one to day five the treatment group had a significant reduction in symptoms compared to placebo group. The average cold intensity score decreased by 10.4 points in the treatment group compared to a 5.6 point improvement for placebo. Average duration of absence from work also improved (6.9 days for treatment vs 8.2 days for placebo). After 10 days, 78.8% of those taking pelargonium were clinically cured compared to 31.4% of placebo. (4)