Cold Comfort: Zicam Cures Colds but Damages Sense of Smell

According to the Food and Drug Administration (FDA), cold products manufactured by Matrixx Iniatives like Zicam Cold Remedy Nasal Gel, Cold Remedy Nasal Swabs and Cold Remedy Swabs, Kids Size can damage the consumer’s sense of smell.

The over the counter cold products will be removed from store shelves and the FDA has advised consumers to immediately stop taking the zinc-based cold products, to discard them or return them to the store/ Matrixx was also ordered to stop marketing the products.

Matrixx, in a statement, said that it would cooperate with the FDA, suspend shipments of the products as well as reimburse any consumer desiring a refund.

The FDA reportedly received more than 130 reports of anosmia or the loss of the sense of smell. An additional 800 reports have been allegedly made directly to the company and since 2007, FDA has required Matrixx to forward these reports but the company has yet to comply.

A number of lawsuits have likewise been filed against the company about nasal damage but many have been settled out of court. Despite Matrixx’s insistence that Zicam is safe, it has paid out a class-action settlement of $12 million to more than 300 people who said they had lost their sense of taste or smell or both.

However, Dr. Charles E. Lee, a medical officer in the FDA's office of compliance has found otherwise. He said that that animal studies have shown that zinc damages nerve receptors in the nose, which can cause anosmia.

Consumers who have unwittingly bought the product as a cure for their colds can now take (cold) comfort in the fact that their lawsuits would prosper and they’d be compensated for damages.

Under the Product liability law, manufacturers, wholesalers, distributors, and vendors are liable for damages caused by dangerous or defective products.

Consumers should be protected against dangerous products, and Matrixx, despite hundreds of reports, can be held civilly liable for putting into the marketplace products that they knew or should have known were dangerous or defective.

Matrixx said that the company still believes the cumulative body of independent scientific and medical evidence supports both the safety and efficacy of Zicam cold products despite the complaints filed and FDA’s order. Now that’s truly cold.