Dr Mukesh Haikerwal, President AMA Victoria, Channel 9 'Today'
COMPERE: A new study has found taking large doses of vitamin C to rid yourself of the common cold may be a complete waste of time. The research, conducted by a team from the Australian National University in Canberra, flies in the face of what many of us have always believed. But doctors still warn vitamin C plays an important role in our health. Joining us from Melbourne is Dr Mukesh Haikerwal of the Victorian AMA. Dr Haikerwal, good morning.
HAIKERWAL: Good morning.
COMPERE: What do these results mean to the legion of people who swear by vitamin C tablets and hot lemon drinks, when they've got the lurgy? Have they been dreaming?
HAIKERWAL: Well, we know that the common cold is something that really can't be cured. And what people who have been taking vitamin C and other supplements have been doing is trying to improve their general nutritional status so that they can actually improve their chances of recovering quickly. And that's something that still goes on.
COMPERE: So, exactly how was vitamin C considered to help before this study came and blew it all out of the water?
HAIKERWAL: Well, there are several theories as to how vitamin C might actually work. But the important thing is that the nutritional balance is what's important. And the free radicals or whatever that were thought to be mopped up by vitamin C or other parts of the diet are certainly proven not to be the case. And what Bob Douglas has done here is taken a theory and actually tested it. A lot of people talk about complimentary medicine and nutritional medicine. And there may well be good elements to all of that. But this is putting it to the science to make sure that there is a real benefit or there isn't a real benefit. And it would seem that …
COMPERE: …Can I interrupt you? What do we make of this survey then? Do we throw away the vitamin C tablets, or do we say that it's better to keep taking them consistently rather than try to take them as some sort of quick-hit cure when we get the cold?
HAIKERWAL: I think your last point's exactly right, that it's not a quick fix. The common cold takes its time, and it goes in three to five days. And what vitamin C does, is it supplements the normal diet. And what we have to do when we have colds is to do all the right things, which is to eat properly, to exercise, take your paracetamol, and keep yourself comfortable. And, of course, if you're really worried about your health in winter, the most important thing to do is to make sure you protect against the real lurgy that's the flu. Influenza vaccine is very important in that situation.
COMPERE: What then does work? In terms of a quick cure, if you like, for the cold, what does work echinacea? I mean, what about some of the other cures that we've all been using?
HAIKERWAL: Well, all these things that people use, whether it's the vitamin C, whether it's the echinacea, basically it's an indication that people are taking some control over their health care, which is fine. And the problem, of course, is that they probably don't actually work to stop the illness or to reduce the cause of it. But it makes you cope better. And that's the important thing. The decongestants that you spray up your nose, the paracetamol that brings down your temperature, taking a decent diet all those sorts of things make you feel better, and therefore cope better with the cold, which of course will be gone in three to five days, anyway.
COMPERE: So, just before we finish up on vitamin C, you're saying that it can be useful for prevention?
HAIKERWAL: A decent diet is what's useful for prevention. And part of that is vitamin C in the form of fresh fruits and also in the form of fruit juice, which we're very lucky to have great supplies of.
COMPERE: Okay. Thanks you for your time this morning.
HAIKERWAL: Thank you.
Ends