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Airborne (dietary supplement)

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Airborne is a dietary supplement and health formula which is said to help ward off harmful bacteria and germs, and help prevent the flu and the common cold. The formula contains herbal extracts, amino acids, antioxidants, electrolytes, vitamins and other nutrients, and can be purchased in many U.S. retail stores over-the-counter in two different forms: a tablet which can be taken orally or dissolved in water, or a chewable "Gummi" lozenge.

Contents

Invention and Retail Success

The formula for Airborne was developed by Victoria Knight-McDowell, an elementary school teacher from Carmel, CA. In the early 1990s, she began brewing herbal and vitamin cocktails (to ward off the germs spread by her 2nd grade students), "experimenting with vitamins C, E and A, as well as zinc, selenium and herbs including forsythia, ginger, isatis root and echinacea."[#endnote_A] When she felt she had developed an effective preventative formula against colds, Knight-McDowell began selling it in tablet form to local drug stores. Over the next few years, largely by word-of-mouth, the formula's popularity grew. In 1997 specialty grocery chain Trader Joe's ordered 300 cases of Airborne tablets to sell, and by 1999 other larger chains, such as Wal-Mart and Rite Aid, began stocking Airborne. It has been ranked the #1 cold and flu remedy at Drugstore.com, and is considered one of the fastest selling health products in retail history.[#endnote_B]

Testing, Research, and Controversy

Although it is recommended that Airborne be taken "at the first sign of a cold symptom, or before entering crowded environments, like airplanes and offices," the package explicitly states that Airborne is "not intended to diagnose, treat, cure or prevent any disease." Airborne has not undergone any testing by the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA), and Knight-McDowell Labs would be violating FDA regulations on Structure/Function claims were they to state on the packaging that it cured or prevented any disease.

In fact, the supplement's effectiveness has been in question. The study often referenced in favor of Airborne was sponsored by the manufacturer, Knight-McDowell Labs.[#endnote_tcnj] "GNG Pharmaceutical Services Inc." claims to have conducted this study with 120 adults, and reported that 47% of Airborne recipients showed little or no cold or flu symptoms, whereas only 23% of the recipients of a placebo pill showed equal results.[#endnote_A] However, in February of 2006, ABC News discovered that GNG Pharmaceutical Services has no official clinic, scientists, or even doctors. In fact the company comprises only two men, who started the company just to perform this study. Because of the bad publicity that this controversy has brought forth, Knight-McDowell Labs has removed all references to the study from their packaging and web site. [#endnote_controversy]

Furthermore, a medical letter on Drugs and Therapeutics on Airborne has emphasized that the evidence of cold prevention or treatment is inconclusive, and even gives reason to believe that the supplement is unsafe as directed, specifically regarding its excess of Vitamin C:

There are some concerns. First, there is no conclusive evidence that this product or any of its ingredients prevents colds or shortens their duration. Second, the adult tablet contains 1 g of vitamin C, and the directions for use advise taking 1 tablet at the first sign of a cold and repeating the dose every 3 hours as necessary. Vitamin C in doses higher than 1 g increases oxalate and urate excretion and may cause kidney stones (EN Taylor et al, J Am Soc Nephrol 2004; 15:3225). Third, the safety of this herbal extraction combination has not been established. And with herbs and dietary supplements in general, we only have the manufacturers’ word on the label for what’s in them.[#endnote_C]

Nutrition Facts and Ingredients

Following are the supplement facts of the original Airborne tablet. Though the ingredients of other versions of Airborne vary slightly to produce different flavors and functions, all of what would be considered the active ingredients of the formula are included below.

References

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External links

 

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