I’m no MD. I have no clue if Airborne tablets or generic versions (much much cheaper by the way) are any good. I do know, I’ve tried it this week in dealing with my cold and they do seem to make me feel a little better every morning.

Hmm…probably because colds usually last 7-10 days and after the first few rough days, you’ll start to feel a little better anyways.

Lots of folks, to the tune of over 6million Google hits, offer cold remedies. Zinc, herbal extracts and a whole lotta other (…what to say and not get sued…) “stuff”.

Now, keep in mind FDA considers this stuff to be “supplements” along the lines of vitamins and other herbal extracts. FDA doesn’t test these things for efficacy like they test prescription drugs and things like Tylenol. They hardly regulate supplements like Airborne. It’s not supposed to be harmful, that’s all, but no one really knows if it works either.

A few of the other Editors here had colds this season. We each dealt with it differently. Some sucked down the Nyquil (or similar products) like it was juice. Others took so much vitamin C that you’d think it was borderline intravenous.

So, yeah, I tried Airborne this week. 1600% of your daily vitamin C and stuff. I found that generics at Target, Wal-Mart and others, had the exact same ingredients as Airborne and cost much cheaper too. The labels even said, “compare to Airborne”. Walgreens has “Walbourne” or something like that. Didn’t try that, but the generics were much cheaper and I found them to taste the same, have the same ingredients, and much cheaper alternatives.

Costco has industrial sized Airborne packages, but still, buy the generic elsewhere and it’s cheaper than Costco.

No shot at Airborne, I’m sure their proprietary blend is slightly different and maybe better. I just don’t know if it’s double the price better for me.

Did Airborne and my generics work? I have no idea. I’m feeling better, but I’m also 7 days into my cold and I better be feeling better or else I’m calling my doctor in the morning.

Personally? I found I felt much better after some chicken soup everyday. The fluids in the soup helped keep me hydrated and I drank lots of juice and water afterwards. It’s been explained to me by nutritionists that the salt in chicken soup, helps loosen up the phlegm and mucus that comes with a cold as well as keeping my electrolytes up.

Whatever, I like it and tastes good to me.

Oh yeah…not just any chicken soup. It’s gotta be canned Campbell’s Chicken Noodle Soup. I don’t know why, but that stuff works magic for me. Reminds me of being in second grade, I guess. But it works for me.

(Honorable mention for the few shots of vodka and Jameson that made me feel better too! No..not together.)

My advice for a cold? Go with what makes you feel better, within reason of course. Don’t mix those crazy pills, vitamins and drugs like you’re a pharmacist. Keep it simple: get some nice tissues, wash your hands, and relax. It’ll go away in a few days. Otherwise, call you doctor.

(Editor’s Note: I don’t see harm taking vitamins though, at least most people agree it’s safe. Just don’t over do it. Probably one mutli-vitamin a day is more than enough. You just pee out the rest anyways! Did I mention, I’m no MD and you shouldn’t take my advice as if I were some expert? It’s just my opinion.)

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