Common cold: clinical overview
National Center for Complementary and Integrative Health · 2024
Reviewed guidance
Pelargonium Sidoides for common cold
Clinical trials of a standardized Pelargonium sidoides root extract (EPs 7630) suggest it can improve common-cold symptoms. A 2023 systematic review found moderate-certainty evidence for symptom improvement, although the evidence applies primarily to this specific extract rather than all Pelargonium products.
What this means
May reduce common-cold symptoms, particularly cough, and help symptoms improve sooner.
How to use it: One common-cold study used a liquid preparation of Pelargonium sidoides root extract (EPs 7630) at 30 drops/1.5 mL three times daily for up to 10 days, while another used 40-mg tablets three times daily.
Safety & cautions
Pelargonium sidoides is generally well tolerated during short-term use, but digestive upset or allergic reactions can occur. Avoid it if you have liver disease or an allergy to plants in the geranium family, and check with a clinician before use if you take blood-thinning medicines.
Get medical care for symptoms that are severe, last longer than expected, get worse, or otherwise concern you.
Household preparations
Practical ways to use the ingredient may not provide the same form or amount discussed in the evidence.
Evidence transparency