Zinc lozenges don't help reduce how long colds last or how bad they feel, whether you catch a cold naturally or in a study where they give you a cold virus.

Taking zinc lozenges doesn't make cold symptoms less severe, according to a study with 273 people who were given cold viruses.

When adults with cold symptoms take zinc gluconate lozenges, their colds might get better faster, but this only worked in a special test setting and not with real-world colds or different zinc types.

Zinc lozenges might help with cold symptoms, but lab tests show zinc doesn't really fight cold viruses directly, so there's probably another reason they work.

Zinc lozenges might help with colds, but it depends on how much zinc you take and what type of zinc it is. Taking more than 75 mg a day works, while less doesn't, and acetate zinc works better than other kinds.

Zinc lozenges help with cold symptoms not just in your throat where the zinc is strongest, but also in your nose just as much.