The following is an hour-by-hour recommendation of how to go on the nutritional offensive and stop your cold before it settles in for a lengthy stay. This supplement plan has the best chance of being effective the earlier you start. So pay attention to your body (and it helps if you keep your home stocked with these crucial supplements year-round for the fastest response time) and start this cold attack plan at the first moment your suspect a cold is coming on. Often, the earliest symptoms include a scratchy throat, twitching in the nose, runny nose or congestion, or sneezing. But remember, cold symptoms usually develop about two or three days after you are exposed to the virus. If you suspect that you were exposed, start this plan immediately, before waiting for the full blown symptoms to emerge. Chicken soup could be helpful and can be taken about the same time as the supplements.

Discuss with your doctor before undertaking any of the common cold treatments listed below.

At the earliest onset of symptoms: (discuss with your health care provider first)
Take 3 to 5 grams of vitamin C followed by 500 mg every 3 hours.

Allow a zinc lozenge containing 10 to 20 mg of zinc in the form of zinc gluconate, zinc gluconate/glycine, or zinc acetate to dissolve in the back of your mouth. Keep the lozenge in the mouth for at least 5 to 10 minutes or as long as you can. Swallowing the lozenge early reduces its effectiveness. After the Zinc Lozenge has melted, wait a few minutes and place another lozenge in your mouth. Repeat the zinc lozenge every hour for four hours and then reduce the frequency to every two to three hours while awake. If you wake up in the middle of the night, take the zinc lozenge again.

Several times a day breathe steam or lie in your bathroom tub and allow hot water to shower on you while you breathe in the steam. This helps to loosen the mucus in your nose and lungs and you can cough out and blow out all the junk in your nasal passages and lung tissue.

The second and third days
Take 1,000 mg of vitamin C three times a day and continue the zinc lozenges every three to four hours.

Pelargonium herb

Common cold questions
Q. I've been learning a lot from your incredibly informative website on supplements. This week I had a sore throat and tried your hour-by-hour recommendation for taking vitamin c and zinc. As I took 3 grams of Ester-C and several zinc lozenges after having breakfast, I had a diarrhea within a few hours, which seemed to be a side effect of mega dose of vitamin C. So I stopped taking Ester-C for the day and continued to take only zinc lozenges. Overall it worked. My rather annoying sore throat (that I felt spreading toward my ear) was gone within 24 hours. I regularly take Ester-C for 0.5g to 1g after having supper (and have taken up to 2g at a time when I felt sick) and have never had a problem, but from this experience I've learned that my body cannot tolerate 3g of vitamin C at one time. I'm not sure how common this knowledge on the link between mega dose of vitamin C and diarrhea as a possible side effect, I thought this anecdote might be of some help for other people. Thank you for sharing your knowledge.
   A. Usually diarrhea occurs after 5 grams of vitamin C, but some people may be more susceptible. We are not sure whether your daily intake of high doses of Ester C made it more likely to have the diarrhea. Also, the zinc may cause gastrointestinal problems in some people.