Or, at the first sign of cold or flu symptoms, try COLD-FX Extra Strength a new three day dosage.

The Discovery
In 1992, Dr. Jacqueline J. Shan assembled a team of 25 international scientists from the University of Alberta whose vision was the discovery and development of natural health products for disease prevention and health maintenance. This team of experts primarily focused on ways to apply the rigor and standardization of Western science to natural medicines of the East.

In doing so, they developed an internationally recognized technology called Chemical and Biological FingerPrinting. This proprietary process was used to screen thousands of natural candidates with potential immune boosting effects and discovered that particular components (polysaccharides) of North American ginseng produced the strongest effect. We now know this discovery as COLD-FX, a ChemBioPrint^® product.

ChemBioPrint - A Mark of Quality
Chemical and Biological FingerPrinting was developed to discover and standardize natural health products for disease prevention and health maintenance. It is a proprietary technology that:

1) Identifies the active components in a natural source;
2) Fingerprints the active components for chemical composition and biological activity;
3) Provides a standardized, quality manufacturing process

With the ability to confirm the consistency of each product batch, consumers can be confident that all ChemBioPrint products including COLD-FX and COLD-FX Extra Strength are safe, effective, and standardized.

Clinical Trials
Years of innovative research and clinical trials have shown that 200 mg of COLD-FX twice daily:

• Enhanced the body’s first line of defense: the Natural Killer (NK) and Macrophage immune cells
• Enhanced production of cytokines which are critical to activate the body’s second line of defense, the T-lymphocytes
• Reduced the incidence of colds and flu
• Reduced the severity and duration of cold and flu symptoms
• Was safe and well-tolerated

Pivotal COLD-FX Trial in Healthy Adults (18-65yrs)
A randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled trial was conducted on 323 healthy adults from the general population (18-65 years of age) with a history of at least two upper respiratory infections in the previous year. COLD-FX taken at 2 x 200 mg daily for 4 months was found to reduce the relative risk of recurrent colds (56%), the severity of cold symptoms (31%) and the duration of symptoms (35%). In this study, COLD-FX was shown to be safe and well-tolerated.

Predy, G.N. et al. 2005. Efficacy of an extract of North American ginseng containing poly-furanosyl-pyranosyl-saccharides for preventing upper respiratory tract infections: a randomized controlled trial. CMAJ. 173(9): 1043-1048.

From 42 of the 323 subjects recruited, 2 blood samples were collected before and after treatment. These samples were used for the determination of white blood cell differential counts, enumeration of lymphocyte subsets and measurement of plasma levels of immunoglobulin A (IgA). COLD-FX treatment at 2 x 200 mg daily for 4 months was shown to increase the number of T-helper and Natural Killer (NK) cells and decrease the level of immunoglobulin A in the plasma.

Predy, G.N. et al. 2006. Immune modulating effects of daily supplementation of COLD-FX (a proprietary extract of North American ginseng) in healthy adults. J. Clin. Biochem. Nutr. 39: 162-167.

Pivotal COLD-FX Trial in Healthy Seniors
A randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled study of CVT-E002 (COLD-FX) [400 mg (standard dose) or 800 mg (high-dose) daily] in 780 immunocompetent community dwelling adults aged 65 years or older who received annual flu immunization, showed that ingestion of COLD-FX over six months reduced the number of Jackson-confirmed upper respiratory infections per person by 36% in the standard dose and 33% in the high dose groups compared to placebo. The difference between the two COLD-FX groups and the placebo group were statistically significant, and the difference between the two COLD-FX groups was not statistically different. COLD-FX was shown to be safe and well-tolerated.

Manuscript in preparation

Pivotal COLD-FX Trial in Nursing Home Seniors
A randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled trial in institutionalized older adults at a dose of 400 mg daily (2 x 200 mg) for 8-12 weeks demonstrated that COLD-FX significantly reduced the relative risk of developing laboratory confirmed influenza (flu) or respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) illness by 89%. In this study, COLD-FX was shown to be safe and well-tolerated.

McElhaney, J.E. et al. 2004. A placebo-controlled trial of a proprietary extract of North American ginseng (CVT-E002) to prevent acute respiratory illness in institutionalized older adults. JAGS. 52: 13-19.

COLD-FX Trial in Community-Dwelling Seniors
A randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled study of COLD-FX in 43 immunocompetent community-dwelling adults aged 65 years or older, showed that COLD-FX at 2 x 200 mg daily for 4 months reduced the relative risk and duration of respiratory symptoms by 48% and 55%, respectively. During the last 2 months of the trial, significantly fewer subjects in the COLD-FX group (32%) reported respiratory symptoms compared to the placebo group (62%). The duration of symptoms during the last 2 months was significantly shorter in the COLD-FX treatment group at 5.6 days as compared to the placebo group at 12.6 days. COLD-FX was shown to be safe and well-tolerated.

McElhaney, J.E. et al. 2006. Efficacy of COLD-FX in the prevention of respiratory symptoms in community-dwelling adults: a randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled trial. J. Altern. Complement. Med. 12(2): 153-157.

Pilot COLD-FX Trial in High Performance Athletes
In an open study on 14 high performance athletes taking 2 x 200 mg of COLD-FX daily for 8 months, 50% (7 of 14) reported that COLD-FX allowed them to recover faster from a cold and 57% (8 of 14) reported that they felt less "run down" while travelling compared to the previous season. The treatment schedule was safe and well-tolerated.

Manuscript in preparation.

Pilot COLD-FX Trial in High Performance Athletes
The specific immune response to reported cold or flu infections was evaluated before and after 1 month of using COLD-FX (2 x 200 mg daily) versus a control group in 37 high performance athletes. The levels of TNF-y and IL-2, important immunologic mediators, were reduced in the control group (-50% and -25% respectively), however there were statistically significant differences in the COLD-FX with TNF-y and IL-2 increasing by 40% and 5% respectively. COLD-FX was shown to be safe and well-tolerated.

Manuscript in preparation.

COLD-FX Doping Control Urinalysis Trial in Athletes
A doping urinalysis trial was conducted under strict ethical and doping control guidelines in 40 athletes taking 400 mg of COLD-FX daily (2 x 200 mg) for 28 days. The results demonstrated that COLD-FX did not contain or generate banned substances within the body that might create a positive doping control test. COLD-FX was also shown to be safe and well-tolerated.

Goel, D.P. et al. 2004. Doping-control urinalysis of a ginseng extract, Cold-fX, in athletes. Int. J. Sport Nutr. Excer. Metab. 14: 1-8.

Pilot Trial in High Performance Athletes – acute three day dosage
In an open study on 8 high performance athletes, an acute dosing regimen of COLD-FX was followed at the onset of cold or flu-like symptoms: 3 x 200 mg capsules TID on day 1 (total 9 capsules = 1800 mg), 2 x 200 mg capsules TID on day 2 (6 capsules = 1200 mg), and 1 x 200 mg capsules TID on day 3 (3 capsules = 600 mg). 71% (5 of 7) reported that study product prevented the cold from developing and that it made them feel better. It was also shown to be safe and well-tolerated.

Manuscript in preparation.