For mild viruses, thinking you'll feel better if you do X is probably enough, even if X is meaningless. A hardcore flu will probably kick your ass either way.

And, as you say, it doesn't hurt. Plus, maybe it does help, a little. If you don't eat as well as you should and don't take a quality vitamin supplement, simply getting a sudden boost of a few key vitamins may help you feel a bit better, even if the virus itself isn't getting touched.

I dunno. I don't use these sorts of remedies, but the placebo effect is well-documented. It may not have worked, but for some people, it may have "worked." Still, fraudulent claims shouldn't be tolerated. They were fairly benign in this case, but they're not always so inconsequential.

'Airborne can't hurt you, either'

Actually it's pretty easy to get too much Vitamin A from Airborne:

http://purplekangaroopuzzle.blogspot.com/2006/01/airborne-cold-remedy-helpful-dangerous.html

Looks to me like this is just like that cr*p "Head On" (APPLY DIRECTLY TO YOUR WALLET!) and the Male Enhancement Pills: Just modern day Snake Oil.

On the one hand, fraud is fraud. But on the other, Farhad, you REALLY should have known better than to fall for this kind of idiocy. "Head On", for example, is a so-called "Homeopathic" remedy; all it's really meant to remedy is that annoying weight in your wallet. A remedy claimed to have been invented by some school teacher should have rung all manners of warning bells. But no...

The real question here, is *Why DID you fall for it?*. Let me offer one suggestion:

The "Forrest Gump" syndrome

The idea that intellect is to be seen with suspicion, and idiocy with respect. The same syndrome responsible for most Americans' support for GW. Americans have, on the whole, a MASSIVE inferiority complex when it comes to intellectual matters; they have convinced themselves that they are idiots, and that only other idiots (like them) are trustworthy.

GET OVER IT!

Scientific American Frontiers with Alan Alda had a great saying about the placebo effect and cold remedies: "Take one of these remedies, and your cold will be gone in 7 days. And if you didn't take the remedy, it might last a week."

Since most people have a 'eh, what could it hurt' stance towards the herbal/unproven remedies, I'd like to reiterate what Penn & Teller constantly point out about fake healers/scams/etc:

1) People may skip necessary medical care or treatment because they're relying on a non-effective remedy.

2) The placebo effect may be the reason you feel better, but do you need to pay $17/30 doses to get it?

It's a pretty good racket to throw 50 cents worth of vitamins in a box and slap 'clinically tested' and 'created by a SCHOOLTEACHER' on the box...

...I tried it because I wanted to see if it'd work.

That stuff really costs $17-30?

Good lord!

who can you trust?

Wash your hands and face a lot, keep hydrated, don't get too close to people. That's the best advice. And eat the kosher meal.

this stuff was Voodoo Magic. I was surprised to see my mother had bought a bottle of the stuff. She told me it really works. Apparently she took it after she went on a flight and she didn't get sick!

Then I told her you're supposed to take it before getting on the plane.

Gotta love the Placebo effect!

"So maybe it doesn't always work -- you take it, and still get sick. What about the times it does work? Sure, maybe the effect is only placebo. But doesn't that still count?"

No, it doesn't count. Even a little. It never works. Ever.

Apparently Farhad isn't mad about being lied to, he just wishes they'd been better liars.

So, if I understand this correctly, there is a free $63.00 to be had, and all you have to do is perjure yourslef?

All in all, not a bad deal.

I've purchased a couple of the tubes of Airborne tablets (seems like they were about $4) and used them while travelling for business. I don't remember anything on the label about it being able to "cure" a cold. I bought them because they seemed like a good supplement in the winter to get a quick boost. I wasn't particularly sold by the herbal element of the recipe, but at the same time, they did seem to lift me out of that run-down feeling you get from being in close proximity with people coughing and sneezing openly into the confined space of an airplane.

I've taken Emergen-C daily for 3 or 4 years and have had one episode of cold/flu-like symptoms during that time. While I don't think it is curing anything or killing viruses, I do think it helps me maintain levels of important nutrients and help keep my stress levels low. The best thing to remember is that if someone really had invented a cure for the cold, you can be sure the major pharm companies would have gotten hold of it and would be charging 2-3 times what you pay for Airborne now.

I thought the whole point of the effect was that people BELIEVED they were taking an effective drug. If you know Airborne is nothing but an ineffective mix of vitamins and carbon dioxide fizz, how could it possibly still have an effect on you?

If you just need to stuff something -anything- in your mouth because you don't feel well, why not try some Tic-Tacs? Just tell yourself they are helping, and save some of your hard-earned money.

Why did you even think it might work?

You just proved my point.

Thanks.

YOu know I just knew it was too good to be true. Airborne is such an excellent product I knew someday they would try to sabotage it. I take one glass of airborne every morning and if I feel like I may be coming down with something I drink it every 4 hours. Since starting this at the end of the summer I have not been sick once. I usually have 3 or 4 colds every winter. NADA nothing. I went to England a few weeks ago and usually always catch a cold, nope. I even gave extra boxes to my cousin and she wants me to start sending it to her in the UK. It has been proven that effervescent vitamins are more beneficial than tablets. They get into your system quicker and do there thing. So they smarta** that says they do not work is just misinformed or is lying through his teeth. Try them for yourself. I am going to buy as many as possible before they leave the shelves. Someone is just out to ruin this company. It is always the little guys that get it. This mega pharmaceutical companies don't want cures they want people to be on their expensive antbiotics. Don't bet me wrong I not some nutter I am just angry. This is a good product and I want to be able to buy it cause it works for me.Thanks for reading this.