Does oscillococcinum work against the flu?

       Does Oscillococcinum work against the flu?

1 / Is Oscillococcinum effective against influenza?

At Boiron, the laboratory that produces the little Whitens pills, there is no question of being accused of surfing the new epidemic. "Whether it is about the prevention or the treatment of this influenza A / H1N1 precisely, no large-scale clinical study could be carried out again to demonstrate the effectiveness" of this product, explains the laboratory carefully. . Not sure, therefore, that the trademark "Immediately, Oscillo!" resonates as much this winter as in ordinary weather.

The French pharmaceutical group nevertheless recalls that its small granules sold in tubes can be "very useful in minimizing the symptoms associated with flu-like conditions". One standard serving per week during the flu exposure period (October to February) would prevent the disease, two standard dosages per day would cure it.

This is thanks to a structure with a barbaric name, inscribed on the box with the yellow-orange border: "Anas barbarian liver and heart autolysate filtered". "Anas barbarian" is the Muscovy duck, a domestic species native to South America, very present in French farms. Although his liver is mostly used in culinary blades, it turns out that in infinitesimal portions, it is believed to have the power to cure influenza. A discovery attributed to a certain doctor Joseph Roy, in the 1930s.

2 / Unproven efficacy

Boiron, who bought the patent thirty years later, does not give a scientific explanation for the formula, which evokes a marabout recipe. "Dr. Roy made what is called a personal discovery. So far we have not scientifically proven its effectiveness but we have observed it. There is empiricism in science," insists- do we at the correspondence department. In support, two clinical studies funded by Boiron standard, which show better cure when taking Oscillococcinum than when taking a fake treatment.

Distributed in 60 countries around the world, Oscillococcinum is said to have attracted 10 million French people in 2007-2008. Duck liver extract has become Boiron's goose that lays golden eggs. In a study by the French Association of the Pharmaceutical Industry for Responsible Self-medication (Afipa) published in 2009 damages, Oscillococcinum was the fourth non-reimbursable drug most sold on the self-medication market, which represents 1.9 billion euros.

3 / An elective for `` addicts '' to antibiotics

A market that is resisting the crisis (+ 2.7% in 2008) and which, with two to eight million people with influenza each year in France, offers good viewpoints. But then again "a single liver is enough for the creation of an Oscillococcinum a", guarantees a pharmacist from the focus of France, who visited the laboratory creation plant in Sainte-Foy-lès-Lyon (Rhône).

He notices each year, in his dispensary, how much the anti-flu granules are acclaimed: "Their effectiveness is not proven, so we have to believe it. But if there is so much demanded every year, it is because it is efficient! " And the apothecary concludes: "Beyond the question of the fake treatment effect, Oscillococcinum has at least one merit: it allows doctors to offer an innocuous choice to patients 'addicted' to antibiotics. " Because, like all infections, the flu is oblivious to antibiotics.