Take Two Placebo's And Call Me Lame

It would figure that the time I get a runny nose and sneezing fits, news abounds about the pseudo-medicinal drug echinacea. Hilariously I have now sneezed twice between these sentances and must now dash off to the toilet for some tissue. Needless to say it's that awful kind that you can practically see through before even using it.

Of course this new evidence outrightly contradicts previous studies of the plant extract which actually showed that "cold sufferers taking echinacea were actually ill for longer than those who took dummy pills."
Even the new study proves inconclusive but will no doubt trigger a consumer spending increase like so many headline hitting news stories. I would expect a significant increase in people walking into walls if they were told it helped reduce stress.

In an editorial in the same journal dismissing echinacea, Professor Ronald Turner of the University of Virginia, said "Any expectation of benefit is based on faith rather than science." And we all know about the factual basis of faith - it doesn't exist.