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Congratulations to PPC Pharmaceuticals for completing a clinical trial with Citruslabs
Natural Supplement to combat your next cold
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PPC trialled their all-natural EZC-Pak to assess its efficacy against common upper-respiratory infections such as the cold. This was a three-armed randomized controlled trial which received IRB approval and used self-reported participant outcome methods for data collection. This means that there were three study groups receiving either EZC-Pak, EZC-D-Pak, or a placebo product. Each group completed questions at baseline as well as throughout the intervention.
About PPC
Natural solution for upper respiratory infections
PPC offers a natural supplement that combines Zinc, Vitamin C, Vitamin D, and echinacea to address the duration and severity of upper respiratory infections. As these infections are usually caused by viruses, they cannot be treated with antiobiotics.
PPC highlights the worrying trend of URI patients being overpresrcibed antibiotics, the misuse of which can cause antiobiotic resistance and unfavorable patient outcomes. Other over-the-counter options can cause uncomfortable side effects, or contain excess medicinal ingredients that patients would rather avoid. Here, the natural option presented by PPC becomes an appealing herbal alternative to OTC medicines or antibiotics.
PPC tested out the efficacy of their EZC-Pak and EXC+D Pak through clinical research through Citruslabs. Their goal is to deliver scientifically informed formulas to their customer base and create claims based on the product's actual performance on real people.
The product
EZC-Pak contians Vitamin C, Echinacea, and Zinc, ingredients recognized for their potential to boost immune system action, but rarely studied together in the specific context of URI's. Their EZC+D Pak contains the same ingredients with added Vitamin D.
EZC Pak - all ingredients:
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Study design
The intervention period lasted six months, but active participation in the study only began whenever the participant reported a URI, such as the common cold. Once participants reported a URI, they began taking the product appropriate to their group assignment and completed the symptom survey daily until their symptoms completely disappeared. During this time, participants were also asked to report any adverse events while taking the test product.
Once a study participant reported the first symptoms of a URI, they were advised to take the EZC Pak (or EZC+D or placebo) as follows:
Day 1: 4 times a day (every 6 hours)
Day 2: 3 times a day (every 8 hours)
Day 3-5: 2 times a day (every 12 hours)
The participants
Of the 360 participants enrolled, the EZC condition enrolled 120 participants, EZC-D condition enrolled 60 participants, and the control condition enrolled 180 participants. Participants were male and female aged eighteen and over, without any pre-exisitng allergies, autoimmune diseases, or other conditions matching the exclusion criteria.
Abstract
Quantifying EZC-Pak
This randomized, controlled study conducted by PPC is a great foundation of evidence demonstrating the efficacy of their EZC-Pak product. Further research may include a wider body of participants.
Aims & Objectives: To evaluate the effects of PPC's EXC-Pak and EZC+D Pak on upper respiratory infections by assessing duration and severity of symptoms.
Study design: Interventional, randomized and controlled.
Methods: A total number of 360 male and female participants completed the study across six months, using their assigned test product (or placebo) only if they got sick during the observation period. The participants were surveyed using an extensive questionnaire at baseline as well as each day that they reported URI symptoms.
Results: Over 84% of the EZC condition and over 78% of the EZC+D condition that used the products were either satisfied or very satisfied with the test product. Both EZC and EZC+ did have fewer days of symptoms associated with their upper respiratory infections compared to the placebo condition. These numbers are substantial and indicate that participants rated the product as beneficial. The large majority of the participants believe that the product shortened their symptoms and eased the severity of their symptoms.
Conclusion: While there was not a statistically significant reduction in the duration or severity of symptoms for participants on EZC or EZC+D, there was a general improvement in reported URI symptoms as well as overall satisfaction with the product.
Results
PPC provides an alternative to antibiotics
To compare the differences between the groups, a one-way ANOVA was used. There was not a statistically significant effect, (p = .67), however the groups that took both the ECZ and ECZ+D both reported less severe symptoms than the placebo condition.
Simialrly, there was not a significant reduction in symptom duration, but this may have been impacted by the presence of several outliers who experienced URI lasting twelve days or longer -- much longer than the typical longevity of an URI.
Notable participant outcomes and qualitative feedback included:
84% of study participants reported satisfaction with EZC
78% of study participants reported satisfaction with EZC+D
91.3% would not prefer an antibiotic to EZC or EZC+D
"It is so much better than a lot of the meds I have taken in the past."
"The test product was very effective."
"Put it on the market, they work."
Other considerations for EZC and EZC+D
After removing the outliers from the dataset (those who were sick for more than 12 days), both EZC and EZC+D did have fewer days of symptoms associated with their URI compared to the placebo condition. While this difference was not statistically significant, future larger trials should be conducted with enough statistical power to detect the differences between these groups.
It should also be noted that some of the data gathered was liekly ocnofunded by the ongoing Covid-19 pandemic, as several of the participants reported using the test product during infections with Covid-19. This may explain some of the outliers experiencing longer symptom durations, and may affect the interpretation of some of the data as non-significant (i.e., the test product may prove to be significantly more effective in a population experiencing more common URI, without any Covid-19 cases.)
Conclusion
PPC's EZC-Pak and EZC+D Pak did not meet primary endpoints of shortened URI symptom duration or lessened severity in terms of statistical significance, however it did correlate with general improvements in symptoms and shortened duration. Additionally, the product was well-tolerated by participants and largely satisfactory according to self reports and qualittiave data collection.
360 participants were involved in this randomized controlled trial lasting six months. Participants were only actively invovled if they contracted an URI during the study timeline, in which case they would begin taking their assigned test product and complete a daily symptom survey.
Participant outcomes were measured through self-report data which was then assessed for trends in symptom duration and severity as well as participants' overall experiences with the product. Further data was collected trhough qualitative questionnares about overall satisfaction and preference for the EZC products over antibiotics. Participants were widely satisfied with the product's performance and results, and the outcome data points to the effectiveness of EZC and EZC+D despite a lack of statistical significance.
About Citruslabs
Clinical trials for consumer brands
Citruslabs’ mission is to provide robust, affordable clinical trials for brands. We are setting new standards for creating research-backed product claims for supplements, skincare products, devices, CBD products, health foods, and superfoods.
Citruslabs’ mission is to provide robust, affordable clinical trials for brands. We are setting new standards for creating research-backed product claims for supplements, skincare products, devices, CBD products, health foods and superfoods.
We can do it all
Study design
IRB process
Patient recruitment
Patient adherence
Data collection
Data analysis
Product claims