Does Zicam cause any health risk?

Question

I received an email at work from a friend with a link indicating that using Zicam can cause death! I'm trying to find out if this is fact or fiction.

Answer 1

yeah you can overdose on it if you take too much. its just a simple overpriced zinc supplement (zinc gluconate) and its possible to take too much zinc.

there are tons of people suing zicam who have used the nasal routes for long periods of time and claimed they have lost thier sense of smell, i dont know if that has been substantiated or not. google "lawsuit, zicam" and youll see a lot about it. and to the first poster, it is considered a vitamin/supplement so the FDA has 0 oversight on it.

but i think generally if you use it as directed it is very safe

Answer 2

it is most likely a lie. most email forward junk is a lie. check it out on http://www.snopes.com i use zicam and so does my husband and neither of us have ever died. also, if people were dying from it don't you think the fda would have pulled it?