A popular herbal treatment for colds cuts the length of the illness by just half a day, according to a new analysis.
The overall effect of taking echinacea is to reduce the severity of a cold by ten per cent, according to a study involving some 700 people.
Researchers said the findings showed echinacea is not a "cure" for the cold – but it is still better than most other possible treatments.
The study, reported in the Annals of Internal Medicine, involved given people placebo treatment as well as echinacea.
Researcher Bruce Barrett, of the University of Wisconsin-Madison, USA, said people who received the true herb enjoyed a reduction in the length of their colds of between seven to ten hours. However the findings were not "statistically significant".
He said there were no obvious side-effects – and called for studies involving many more people to explore the benefits of the herb.
He said: "Trends were in the direction of benefit, amounting to an average half-day reduction in the duration of a weeklong cold or an approximate 10 percent reduction in overall severity.
"However, this dose regimen did not make a large impact on the course of the common cold, compared either to blinded placebo or to no pills."
He added: "Adults who have found echinacea to be beneficial should not discontinue use based on the results of this trial, as there are no proven effective treatments and no side effects were seen."
Annals of Internal Medicine December 20, 2010 vol. 153 no. 12 769-777
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