" ... Two recent medical studies have cast doubt on the effectiveness of pharmaceutical drugs for treating coughs and sinus infections and instead recommended home remedies.
In so doing, the research undermines the idea of a conspiracy by big drug companies to hide information about alternative cures.
Research done at the University of Southampton in England examined 240 patients with sinus infections and found that those taking antibiotics and steroid sprays fared no better than those given no treatment at all. The study's lead author said that "the current view that antibiotics are effective [for acute sinusitis] can now be challenged."
The study's authors recommended home remedies such as inhaling steam and flushing the nose with salt water for relief. The research was detailed in the Dec. 5 issue of the Journal of the American Medical Association.
Another study, published in the December issue of the journal Archives of Pediatrics and Adolescent Medicine, concluded that honey works better than cough medicines or no treatment at all in soothing children's coughs.
Researchers led by Dr. Ian Paul of Pennsylvania State University's College of Medicine used 105 children with upper respiratory infections. Some of their parents were given honey to administer to the children, others were given cough medicine, and still others were left untreated. Parents were then asked to rate the severity of their children's symptoms, and across the board, those treated with honey did the best. Though the sample size was small and parent's judgments were subjective, Dr. Paul noted that this was the first study to actually demonstrate honey's effectiveness as a treatment.
To many people, this was non-news: Of course honey helps coughs; any grandmother could tell you that. But controlled, scientific testing is important, because while some home remedies are valid, many are not. ... "
http://www.livescience.com/health/080102-bad-conspiracy.html
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