"I agree the poster above who warned that people with side effects such as rash might be allergic to the medication or the other person who suggested that she might have developed a reaction to taking it over a long period of time.
I had this happen with echinacea. I used to take echinacea to help with colds or throat infections in the large doses suggested by a herbalist. Now, a couple of doses of echinacea give me a blistering headache. Obviously I have developed a reaction to it. The same would certainly be true of a ginseng product.
I'd also like to comment that woman who had her husband take the maximum dose for no reason except to give him an "immune system boost" should accept some of the blame anything that happened. I think consumers need to realize that they must read the instructions carefully and not just chow down the maximum allowable amount of some medication they've never tried before.
At the same, I am concerned that Cold-FX no longer has the detailed instructions on when to begin taking the dose that it had in the original bottles. In those, if I recall correctly, it indicated that the maximum dose was to be taken at the first sign of a cold or flue.

I have taken Cold-FX for a couple of year and have noticed that it seems generally very effective in warding off colds, if taken early enough. Of those friends of mine who have taken it, some found it efficacious and some did not get as much result as they were expecting. However, the general consensus has been good."

"I'm a 43 year old female, in good physical condition. I take no medications. I was an avid user and promoter of Cold Fx until recently. I had been taking it for the past 2 years with great success. Last year I had only 1 mild cold that lasted 3 days. Recently I have developed a sensitivity to it. During a moderate workout on the eliptical or bike at the gym of 30 to 45 mins. duration, I experienced hypertension in my body. I have been an avid exerciser all my life but have been feeling dizzy, lightheaded, increased heart rate and tingling in my jaw, hands and feet. All these symptoms happened after my workout, during my cooldown. The last time it was so bad, I had to sit down on a mat and the tingling in my hands wouldn't go away and became so bad my hands started to shake and then stiffen. I did some relaxation breathing and stretching to try and calm my body down, but it was buzzing. I tried to take my pulse which was double the speed of normal for me. It took me 20-30 mins. to finally return to normal. I have been off the cold fx for a week now and have no symptoms of hypertension after my workouts. My husband also takes cold fx but so far has no adverse effects. I think it is a matter of time. Beware of side effects from long term use."

"Who the heck in their right mind would take 9 pills of anything over the counter? Seriously."

"The main ingredient in Cold-FX is North American Ginseng root. Sounds to me like most of you people posting on here are having an allergic reaction to the Ginseng. Ive never taken this product daily, Echinacea and Vitamin C is much better for that. I have taken it in the 3 pill dose, 2 pill dose, 1pill dose sequence though, over three days, and have only noticed a shorter duration of my cold/flu symptoms. I still get sick, sometimes very sick, but I think this product does one thing only and that's shorten the duration of the flu. Ginseng is known for causing asthma attacks in several asthmatics, and elevating blood pressure in some. There are a number of prescription and over-the-counter drugs which may be rendered ineffective or combine dangerously with ginseng. These include aspirin and other anti-inflammatories such as ibuprofin, anticoagulants such as warfarin, drugs that treat diabetes by lower blood sugar
and a variety of anti-depressants. HMM I wonder how many of you took aspirin, or ibuprofin while you had the flu and were taking Cold-FX. Do some research and use your brains before you bash this product."

"The Cold FX I purchased recommended taking two capsules daily as an immune system booster. I did this and over a period of five months had, at best count, six colds. The exact number is hard to determine as it seemed like one very long cold. I eat well and exercise regularly, get flu shots, and very seldom get a cold. Progressively through this past winter I got more and more weak and lethargic, then I began to develope lower bowel discomfort for which I sought medical advice. As part of the resulting tests (all of which were negative) I was required to stop taking vitamins and over the counter remedies. Suddenly I began to feel better, more energetic and the bowel discomfort has by and large dissipated. I blame the Cold FX for want of any other likely scape goat. Did I just take too much of it? I did take it as directed."

"My boyfriend and I have been "taking" (i wouldnt so much call it religiously every time we get a cold as its more of a ..whenever we find it in the cupboard and feel stuffy) for about a year and a half...
Ive never had any results with it, to be completely honest, even now as we speak i did the 9 pills one day, 6 the next, 3 the third, regimine, and i feel sick still, no doubt about that.
My boyfriend however has tried to take it many times, and each time ends up 10's of times sicker than he was the day before...
He has always complained about it, but honestly im a very stupid consumer (like most people) and just shrugged off his claims and said: "well maybe you just need to keep taking it, or it dulled it down a bit"
I've never actually purchased any cold FX... normally i just take it when i find it at a friends house, and ask if i can take the 18 pills i need to survive for three days...
All of these people's side-effects and adverse reactions are terrifying tho and i am never going to take cold-fx again...
Thank you to everyone who has come forward with your adverse effects... its eye opening."

"Took Cold fx, two pills the first day and four pills the second day. Gave me a terrible blistering rash all over my body by early the second day and purple eyes that have not fully subsided by a week later. Wheres the public watchdogs on this company???"

"my husband was not sick at all but i thought with flu season he needed an immune system boost so i purchased cold fx.... he took the 9 pills the first day and that night is was bad bad sick, all flu symtoms, throat closing up, muscles hurting and all... he started out to work and had to come home, keep in mind he never ever misses a day of work and this pill made it impossible for him to work, will never ever try this stuff again!!"

"Just recently, Feb 2009, my wife started taking cold-fx. She had never taken it before but was starting a cold so she thought she would try it. Shortly afterwards, she started a red rash on both lower limbs around the ankle and half way up the shin. Also she experienced swollen legs. She went immediately to the family doc who ordered a bunch of blood tests which showed her d-dimers very high. Worried about DVT she then had a doppler US which showed negative. At this point we don't know for sure what has caused the rash but after stopping taking cold-fx it is getting better and the leg swelling is receding. Of course we have no proof that cold-fx was the cause but circumstansual evidence seems to point to it. Also, reading the label, we note the warning that if blood thinners are being used or are required, do not take cold-fx."

"Cold Fx has always been a Godsend over the years until recently. This is the second time I have had an adverse effect so I am not going to take it anymore. I took the recommended 3 pills when I felt a cold coming on and about half an hour later I started seeing white spots and dots in front of my eyes. I literally couldn't see properly and couldn't do my work ( I work at a computer all day and all I saw were patches of white in front of my eyes. Then I started seeing squiggly bright lines. I was very scared the first time. I called my optometrist and they got me in right away. He thought it was perhaps a precursor to a migraine. It settled after about half an hour. Then it happened a second time a few months later after taking the 3 pills and I know now it is related to Cold FX unfortunately. I wish I had a blood pressure monitor at the time as I wonder if my BP shot up during these episodes but I don't know for sure."

"Hi,

I just started taking cold fx after my friend told me how it helped her beat the cold as she was a long time suffere too. It does really work but I think I had a few side effects which I am not sure were because of that or not but I never experienced them before so I guess they were a result of Cold Fx. I never had an Asthma attack in my life and I recently had very bad one. Also one day I was coming to work and I felt imbalance..I went to get myself checked and was told my Blood Pressure was too high ( which is something I never had uptil now) Also I have not been able to sleep very well.

I have stopped taking it now and am waiting to see the difference!"

"My Husband and I have been using Cold FX for 2 yrs now, and I have to say that Cold FX does work for us. We both are in Sales, and during the last 2 flu seasons we avoided getting sick. Getting a cold for me is a scary Idea because it can trigger my Asthma.
Just a side note:
everything has side effects, such as the polluted air we breathe.
everyone seems to be so paranoid these days,
I work in Cosmetics and if I have to hear one more person ask if a product I sell is free of parabens, I think I might go crazy."

"My parents both use Cold Fx and I have noticed that every time they get a cold or flu it seems to get worse. My mom had the flu back in April which she developed pneumonia from. She ended up in the hospital and spend 6 days in ICU. Six weeks after she returned home she suddenly developed Rhumoid Arthritis (RA). Although RA can suddenly attack your immune system, I wonder if Cold Fx is the reasoning behind it. Slow poisioning of the immune system until it stops working. (My mom although aging has been healthy and never spent time in a hospital since us kids were born)"

"I also had great results with coldfx at first. But now I've been fighting a cold for the past 2 months. It's as if the coldfx has weakened my immune system or something. Everytime I think that I'm getting better, I start feeling cold symptoms again. I've decided to stop taking the coldfx as I think my system has become dependent on it."

"I have been sick for almost 5 weeks. I am a frequent sufferer of colds and I have been taking Cold FX for about 4 months (off and on) whenever I feel the cold coming on... following the instructions diligently. At first it seemed to work and I praised the results. However, each new cold I caught seemed to hit me harder and harder until the Cold FX seemed to have no effect. The last 5 weeks my cold turned into pneumonia. I ended up on antibiotics (quit the Cold FX for the week iwas on the medication). and after 7 days started to feel a lot better. On the 8th day I started to come down with a cold again (swollen glands, sore throat, earache) so I took the Cold FX (9 pills) and then next day I was so sick I could barely breath. I continued to take the Cold FX (2 pills 3x day, then 1 x 3day) but it did not work. I forgot to take the Cold FX for two days then and continued to have mild cold symptoms. When I took the Cold FX two days ago in the morning (to prevent further colds and help reduce my current cold) I ended up having great difficulty breathing again, my head was spinning and I ended up going home exhausted and sweating profusely. I had only taken 1 pill. I then thought that perhaps I was having adverse effects from the Cold FX so decided to discontinue the use. I suffered throughout the night then in the morning felt a little better. I decided not take anymore Cold FX and made it through the day with my cold still having breathing difficulties which faded as ther day progressed. Today I feel much better and my breathing has dramatically improved. My theory on this experience (as it is not as easy to put on paper what I was going through) is that I had an adverse reaction to the Cold FX. I believe that it caused me more harm by taking it. Being a frequent cold sufferer I think my immune system became dependent on it and made me more susceptible to catching colds. It was a horrible experience. Am I the only one?"
(this comment has been moderated)

"I can't seem to take Cold Fx. I get bloating and upset stomach from it."

"Speaking of "tortured statistics," I think the article is guilty of the same crime: listing the price of the largest container of Cold-FX to inflate the products expense, and downplaying the positive study results to the point of misrepresentation. Also, there is little fair treatment of those who conducted the most recent study. Here's some background on the doctors who conducted the last study:
Dr. Tapan Basu studied in the Department of Nutritional Biochemistry at the University of London and received his doctorate from the University of Surrey in 1971. He has written extensively on nutrition and pharmacology including 6 books and 158 papers and abstracts. He is or has been a member of advisory boards for professional publications like the British Journal of Nutrition and has played a key role in international conferences on clinical nutrition in six different countries. He holds 9 awards or honors for his work and has received research grants from five countries. He holds memberships in 12 professional societies including the British Society of Surgical Oncology and is a fellow of the American College of Nutrition.

Dr. Gerry Predy received his doctorate in medicine from the University of Alberta in 1976 and holds a Fellowship in the Royal College of Physicians and Surgeons (Canada) in Community Medicine. Since 1996 he's been the Medical Officer of Health for the Capital Health Region in Alberta - the largest integrated academic health region in Canada. He supervises 170 public health nurses, inspectors and health care workers involved in public health programs. He's the Director of the Northern Alberta Vaccine Trials and Evaluation Centre and has conducted research in a number of public health areas. He's also the former chair of the Council of Medical Officers of Health. Capital Health operates medical facilities including 10 hospitals and employs more than 18,000 health care workers."

"It is not helpful to be "even handed" in reportage when the evidence is so damning. Here we have a product - Cold-FX - whose claims of efficacy - let alone cost-effectiveness - are not supported by robust evidence. Yet the original article, and now the Media Doctor analysis of the article, fails to educate the public about the weakness of the evidence. According to Media Doctor, the article is "Satisfactory" along several measures. I disagree. The article stopped well short of calling Cold-FX promotors to account for irresponsible endorsement. Media Doctor states that the article's "... sole problem with this story might be that it lacks any mention of harm or side effects." I disagree again. The article in fact has many flaws - investigative timidity among them - and including a failure to ask why the pharmacists and pharmacologists and government in Alberta have declined to speak up about the product's unconvincing research results. One may ask the same question of Media Doctor reviewers."