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Cough-Cold and Flu

  • Researchers determine zinc acetate successfully reduces duration of common cold

    HELSINKI, Finland — According to the latest meta-analysis of three randomized controlled trials, zinc acetate lozenges may increase the rate of recovery from the common cold by three-fold, researchers from the University of Helsinki reported Thursday. On the fifth day of a cold, as many as 70% of the zinc lozenge patients had recovered from that cold as compared to 27% of the placebo patients.

  • Northeastern researchers track flu in real-time in 140 characters or less

    BOSTON — An international team led by Alessandro Vespignani of Northeastern University has developed a unique computational model to project the spread of the seasonal flu in real time using Twitter.

    According to the researchers, posts on Twitter in combination with key parameters of each season's epidemic, including the incubation period of the disease, the immunization rate, how many people an individual with the virus can infect and the viral strains present, nets a real-time tracking of flu progression.

  • Lip Smacker turns to consumers for next flavor extension

    CITY OF INDUSTRY, Calif. — Lip Smacker­­­­ on Monday announced a product collaboration contest wherein fans have a say in what flavor gets made next. Dubbed the "Official Tastemaker 2017 Search", the brand is highlighting their appreciation to its loyal followers as well as newer Lip Smacker enthusiasts.

  • 2017 considered one of longest- and latest-running flu seasons

    ATLANTA — The 2016/2017 influenza season is still ongoing. According to the latest statistics from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, flu incidence is still tracking above the national baseline, making this year both the longest-running season and the latest-running season in recent memory.

  • CDC: Flu shots for children significantly reduces death from influenza

    ATLANTA — A new study published by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention earlier this month in Pediatrics is the first of its kind to show that flu vaccination significantly reduced a child’s risk of dying from influenza. The study, which looked at data from four flu seasons between 2010 and 2014, found that flu vaccination reduced the risk of flu-associated death by half (51%) among children with underlying high-risk medical conditions and by nearly two-thirds (65%) among healthy children.

  • Healthy OTC growth: Consumers seek allergy switches, probiotics and protein

    There is no question that one of the top nonprescription categories contributing to both sales and foot traffic right now is allergy. According to IRI data, sales of nasal sprays — the category that captures all of the latest nasal corticosteroid Rx-to-OTC switches, such as Flonase and Nasacort — are up 10.2% to $1.2 billion across total U.S. multi-outlets for the 52 weeks ended Feb. 19.

  • Heading into April, flu still prevalent in Carolinas

    DEERFIELD, Ill. — Last week’s Walgreens Flu Index found that a number of states, including the Carolinas, Tennessee and Louisiana, continue to see widespread flu activity in the final week of March.

    For the week of March 26, the top 10 markets by flu activity according to the Walgreens Flu Index were:

  • Mylan closes deal on Cold-Eeze acquisition

    PITTSBURGH — Mylan on Wednesday announced the successful acquisition of the global rights to the Cold-Eeze brand cold remedy line from ProPhase Labs.

    "The completion of this transaction is an important step as we continue to expand our consumer healthcare offerings," stated Heather Bresch, CEO Mylan. "Cold-Eeze is now Mylan's largest U.S. consumer healthcare brand and is part of a growing portfolio of over-the-counter products in the U.S."

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