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Can i take zinc and vitamin c together: A combination of high-dose vitamin C plus zinc for the common cold

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Cleveland Clinic Study Reveals Zinc and Vitamin C Not Effective Treatments for COVID-19 – Cleveland Clinic Newsroom

Cleveland Clinic researchers have found that zinc or ascorbic acid (vitamin C) – or a combination of the two – do not significantly decrease the severity or duration of symptoms in COVID-19-positive patients, when compared to standard care. The study was published today in JAMA Open Network.

Since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic there has been widespread speculation about the role of various vitamins and supplements to prevent or treat it, but there remains limited scientific evidence. Zinc is known to be important for immune function. It also has a role in antibody and white blood cell production and can fight infections. Vitamin C, an antioxidant, can help reduce damage to cells, and has shown to be immune-boosting.

The COVIDAtoZ clinical trial enrolled 214 adult patients with a confirmed COVID-19 infection. Patients were randomized and either received 10 days of zinc gluconate (50 mg), vitamin C (8000 mg), both agents, or standard of care from April 2020 to October 2020. The study was stopped for futility, with no significant difference among the four groups. Specifically the endpoint of a 50% reduction in symptoms showed no significant difference between the usual care, vitamin C, zinc gluconate or the group receiving both vitamin C and zinc gluconate.

“When we began this trial, there was no research to support supplemental therapy for the prevention or treatment of patients with COVID-19,” said Milind Desai, M.D., MBA, director, clinical operations in Cleveland Clinic’s Heart Vascular & Thoracic Institute and co-principal investigator of the study. “As we watched the pandemic spread across the globe, infecting and killing millions, the medical community and consumers alike scrambled to try supplements that they believed could possibly prevent infection, or ease COVID-19 symptoms, but the research is just now catching up. While vitamin C and zinc proved ineffective as a treatment when clinically compared to standard care, the study of other therapeutics continues.

The patients enrolled in this study were not hospitalized, but rather managed on an outpatient basis. “We know that not all patients with COVID-19 require hospital admission, and compared to those being treated in a hospital setting, they are more likely to be seeking out supplements that could help them, so it was an important population to study,” said Suma Thomas, M.D., MBA, vice-chairman of strategic operations in Cleveland Clinic’s Heart Vascular & Thoracic Institute and co-principal investigator of the study.

A total of four safety events were observed during the trial, including 3 deaths, however the data safety monitoring board did not believe that any of the adverse events were caused by individual treatments that patients received as a part of the study.

There are steps people can take to reduce the risk of infection. When possible, get a COVID-19 vaccine. Continue to socially distance, wash your hands often, and wear a mask in public.

Zinc, Vitamin C supplements do not help Covid patients recover, says study 

A woman undergoes a Covid-19 test | Representational image | Photo: ANI


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New Delhi: Vitamin C and zinc supplements do not help Covid-19 patients recover from their illness, a new study published in the journal JAMA Network Open has found.

Zinc and Vitamin C are commonly available, over-the-counter supplements that patients across the world take for the treatment of viral illnesses. 

Zinc is thought to aid the cells’ ability to fight off infection, and Vitamin C is an antioxidant that may play a role in immune response.

Sales of both Vitamin C and zinc supplements in India significantly shot up during the pandemic, since both are marketed as immunity boosters.  

Limited evidence suggests that high doses of Vitamin C and zinc may reduce duration of common cold symptoms and decrease the severity of symptoms.

The study

Until now, the role of zinc and Vitamin C in decreasing symptoms and improving recovery in patients diagnosed with SARS-CoV-2 infection was uncertain. 

So, a team from Cleveland Clinic in the US sought to determine whether either reduces the severity or duration of symptoms associated with SARS-CoV-2 compared with usual care.

For the study conducted from April to October 2020, researchers assessed how 214 adults with confirmed Covid-19 infection responded to 10 days of zinc supplements, 10 days of vitamin C, both, or usual care.

There was no significant difference among the four groups in reduction of Covid symptoms. 

Patients who received usual care without supplementation achieved a 50 per cent reduction in symptoms after about 6.7 days compared with 5.5 days for the Vitamin C group, 5.9 days for the zinc group, and 5.5 days for the group receiving both. 

There was no reduction in hospitalisations or deaths among the groups.

‘Research now catching up’

“When we began this trial, there was no research to support supplemental therapy for the prevention or treatment of patients with Covid-19,” Milind Desai, director of clinical operations at Cleveland Clinic’s Heart, Vascular & Thoracic Institute, said in a statement. 

“As we watched the pandemic spread across the globe, infecting and killing millions, the medical community and consumers alike scrambled to try supplements that they believed could possibly prevent infection, or ease COVID-19 symptoms, but the research is just now catching up,” Desai said.  

“We know that not all patients with Covid-19 require hospital admission, and compared to those being treated in a hospital setting, they are more likely to be seeking out supplements that could help them, so it was an important population to study,” said study co-author Suma Thomas, vice chair of strategic operations at the institute.


Also read: Why 50% Indians will be happy to have some Neanderthal DNA. Hint: It has to do with Covid


 

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Content of vitamins and minerals in the recommended daily dose – 1 tablet

(% of the recommended dietary allowance)

magnesium

56.25 mg

(15%)

Vitamin B6

1.4 mg

(100%)