There's an extra level of misdirection here - those zinc lozenges say "homeopathic" on them, but are not homeopathic in any traditional sense. Homeopathic gener

There's an extra level of misdirection here - those zinc lozenges say "homeopathic" on them, but are not homeopathic in any traditional sense. Homeopathic generally means that whatever 'active' ingredient has been diluted to the point that not a single molecule remains and the supposed therapeutic value comes from some sort of BS 'resonance' or whatever that the molecules have supposedly left on the remaining water. However, if you look at the fine print, it's something like a '1x' homeopathic dilution, and it in fact contains the correct amount of zinc gluconate, which is the active ingredient that has been tested and found to probably reduce the duration of the common cold. Edit: That said, zinc acetate has been found to probably be the more effective substance for reducing the duration of the common cold, and the main brand of those don't pretend to be homeopathic so are probably a better bet.