A new study by The Cleveland Clinic found that taking zinc and Vitamin C does not help fight COVID-19.
In the study, which was published Friday in JAMA Open Network, researchers found that the supplements did not help people with the coronavirus, even when taken at a higher dosage.
"When we began this trial, there was no research to support supplemental therapy for the prevention or treatment of patients with COVID-19," said Milind Desai, M.D., MBA, director, clinical operations in Cleveland Clinic's Heart Vascular & Thoracic Institute and co-principal investigator of the study in the news release. "As we watched the pandemic spread across the globe, infecting and killing millions, the medical community and consumers alike scrambled to try supplements that they believed could possibly prevent infection, or ease COVID-19 symptoms, but the research is just now catching up. While vitamin C and zinc proved ineffective as a treatment when clinically compared to standard care, the study of other therapeutics continues."
Researchers say 214 adult patients with COVID-19 were enrolled in the trial between April to October 2020.
The patients were split up into four groups: 50mg zinc, 8000mg of Vitamin C, received both zinc and vitamin c, and standard care.
Researchers found that 10% of those in the trial that received only Vitamin C suffered from nausea, diarrhea, and stomach cramps.