Evaluation of the antiviral and immunomodulatory activity of nutritional supplement formula in a randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled clinical trial

Introduction: Sea buckthorn and bee products have a millennial tradition in oriental medicine, being used by Mongols, Tibetans, or Chinese both for the prevention and treatment of colds and increase the body immunity. Objective: To evaluate the antiviral effect of a nutritional supplement formula based on sea buckthorn, honey, and propolis to reduce the incidence of respiratory viruses and the severity of their symptoms. Simultaneously, the aim was to evaluate this supplement formula’s immunomodulatory activity on blood cell count (CBC) and on immunoglobulin A (IgA) level. Subjects: A total of 50 volunteers, of whom 25 received a nutritional supplement formula based on sea buckthorn, honey, and propolis product at random, and 25 received a placebo product. The duration of the product administration was 30 days. Results: The number of viral infections decreased statistically significantly (p < 0.05) in the group receiving the nutritional supplement formula based on sea buckthorn, honey, and propolis product SBHPG compared to the placebo group PG, reducing the relative risk of infection by 71.42%. The immunomodulatory effect in SBHPG consisted of a statistically significant reduction in the number of neutrophils and basophils and an increase in the number of lymphocytes than PG (p < 0.05). Conclusion: The nutritional supplement formula decreased respiratory viruses infections incidence and reduced the severity of the symptoms.