Airborne Loses Class-Action Lawsuit

It’s common knowledge that airplanes recycle air – and that’s a big reason so many people get sick a couple days after flying. Such a bummer, that: We travel for vacation and come home with a runny nose. Those germs that someone coughed up in first class make their way to business and coach in no time, and with the air being recycled, those perky germs have more opportunities than ever to find a nice new host. That’s why, for years, I’ve taken Airborne before I fly – and upon returning home as well. The cute, friendly packaging was enough to convince me that this was a good, preventive measure against the common cold. After all, it was invented by a teacher, and teachers are smart (was my line of thinking).

But get this – the makers of Airborne just lost a major class-action lawsuit, and have to pay consumers 23.3 million dollars for false advertising. That’s a lot of dollars. Why? There were no clinical trials, as purported by the company – instead, “tests” were carried out by only two laypeople. The Center for Science in the Public Interest (a non-profit advocacy group) said this money goes towards refunding people who bought Airborne. Turns out, Airborne’s no better than a plain old daily multivitamin, and may be worse in the way of being wasteful. Supersizing your daily dose of vitamin C, for example (Airborne has over a thousand percent of our recommended daily allowance!) only taxes our kidneys and then the other 900 percent is turned into…you know, bodily waste. We just can’t use more than 100% of what we need, right?

Airborne has already changed its ad campaign, though the company spokesperson admits no wrongdoing. To me, 23 mil sounds like quite a bit of wrongdoing – in this case, cold-curing claims that are unfounded. Here’s a tip: Colds go away on their own, even if untreated, after a couple of days anyway. If you take a daily multivitamin, adding an Airborne can actually give your body (your poor, sick body) too high a dose of some vitamins. Levels of vitamins A, C, and B12 are pretty high in an Airborne tablet. I’d say, just stick with the cheaper daily multivitamin, and relax over a cup of hot tea. It’s just a cold; you’ll feel better soon.

That Airborne was created by an elementary school teacher supposedly gave it some credence. Now that I think about it, though, I want my medicine created by knowledgeable people in the medical field, and so should you. Would you think it’s a plus to find that the shunt about to be placed in your heart was invented by your mailman? Me neither.

Since Airborne just lost this class-action lawsuit, here are some tips to stay healthy during air travel:

• Stay well hydrated by drinking water. Being well lubricated gives germs less sticky “landing points.”
• Take a daily multiple vitamin, cheaper generic brands are fine.
• Get a good night’s sleep before flying. A well-rested body is less stressed, and better able to fight off germs.
• Travel with a topical antibiotic (like Purell) if you’re especially sensitive to germs. If not, washing hands with soap and warm water should be fine – and we don’t need to add to the growing problems of Purell-resistant Superbugs!

I’m feeling a little let down by Airborne. Its efficacy is no greater than my vitamin pill, and the tablets are really expensive. Now, 30% of people have positive responses (i.e. get better) from placebos, so there might also have been the placebo effect here. Next time, I’ll just plop a Sweet Tart in my water; it should work just as well.