Heard the one about the raw onion?

    With concerns over the H1N1 flu rising and supplies of vaccine running scarce, it's no surprise that alternative remedies are circulating on the Web.

    During the flu epidemic of 1918 that killed 40 million people, one widely circulated email relates, a doctor visiting a farmhouse where everyone stayed healthy observed that the family kept an unpeeled onion in each room. He examined one under a microscope and saw that the onion had indeed absorbed flu virus.

    The same email mentions a modern-day hairdresser whose employees stopped getting the flu after she placed onions around the shop, and a pneumonia sufferer who put a raw onion in a jar by the bed and woke up feeling much better, though the onion was a rotting mess.

    This and other folk remedies are sparking a volley of discussion on blogs and bulletin boards. Some posters are adding their own twists, such as chopping or boiling the onion and inhaling it with a towel over the head. 'You sir are a saviour,' wrote one on the Web site abovetopsecret.com. 'Me and my 13 month old daughter have been sick for a week. Boiled some onions and left them on the coffee table for an hour, she is now walking around and I feel so much better. Thanks.'

    According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the officially sanctioned vaccine is the only proven way to prevent the H1N1 virus, and the antiviral drugs oseltamivir （trade name Tamiflu） and zanamivir （Relenza） are among the few proven ways to shorten its duration. 'There is no scientific evidence that any herbal, homeopathic or other folk remedies have any benefit against influenza,' the CDC says.

    Even coalitions of herbal and dietary supplement manufacturers and homeopathic pharmacists have issued statements saying there is no scientific data supporting the use of their products to treat swine flu, and urging marketers to refrain from making such claims.

    But old folk remedies die hard, and some marketers have simply dropped the references to 'swine' or 'H1N1' and are continuing to peddle products for 'flu-like symptoms,' which often overlap with those of the common cold. A look at some of the newest, and oldest, flu remedies:

    -- Onions. Biologists say it's highly implausible that onions could attract flu virus as a bug zapper traps flies. Viruses require a living host to replicate and can't propel themselves out of a body and across a room.

    The idea that onions have medicinal properties goes back millennia and spans many cultures. Egyptians thought onions were fertility symbols. Ancient Greeks rubbed them on sore muscles, and Native Americans used them to treat coughs and colds. Herbalists note that the World Health Organization recognizes onion extracts for providing relief in the treatment of coughs, colds, asthma and bronchitis. As with most home remedies, there have been few scientific studies with humans -- and none on record involving raw onions placed across a room.

    -- Garlic. Folklore has it that, like onions, raw garlic can attract viruses from the air, which is why some Russian and Central European parents put cloves of garlic in children's pockets or draped garlic necklaces around their necks. （Garlic hung in windows or chimneys was believed to ward off vampires and werewolves, too.）

    Garlic proponents say it has a long list of health benefits, from lowering cholesterol to preventing cancer to countering colds and flu. Studies have shown that garlic can kill viruses, bacteria and fungi in test tubes, but here, too, there have been few clinical trials involving humans.

    Odor may play a role with both garlic and onions. 'Maybe they just kept people distant from each other, making it harder to transmit the virus,' says William Schaffner, chairman of preventative medicine at Vanderbilt University School of Medicine. He offers his own classic flu remedy from his Swiss-German heritage: 'You go to bed in a four-poster bed. You put a hat on one of the posts and drink Schnapps, and when you see two hats, you are no longer bothered by symptoms of influenza.'

    -- Hydrogen peroxide. According to a theory developed in the 1920s, colds and flu germs enter in the body via the ear canal. That dovetailed with an old European practice of cleaning ears with hydrogen peroxide, or H2O2, to kill off invading germs. A few drops in each ear at the first sign of infection supposedly shortens the illness.

    It's unclear if there have been scientific studies of this practice. But H2O2 is known to be antibacterial and antimicrobial; some physicians injected it directly into patients during the 1918 flu outbreak, with mixed results. If nothing else, H2O2 does effectively break up ear wax.

    -- Homeopathy. Homeopathy, which dates to the 18th century, rests on the notion that substances that cause the same symptoms as an illness can prompt the body's defenses to overpower that illness. These remedies are so heavily diluted that often none of the original substance remains, just 'a memory in the water' -- a claim that makes some scientists dismiss homeopathy as quackery.

    There are hundreds of homeopathic remedies, which practitioners prescribe in various combinations based on a patient's mental, emotional and physical symptoms. One of the most commonly used for flu is Oscillococcinum, originally derived from duck livers. Small studies in France and Germany in the late 1980s showed that Oscillococcinum helped flu sufferers recover faster than placebos.

    -- Herbal remedies. Despite the American Herbal Products Association's stance against marketing herbs as flu remedies, some herbalists continue to enthusiastically tout their flu-fighting properties. After all, they point out, Tamiflu itself is derived from the Chinese star anise plant -- although its cousin, the Japanese star anise, has toxic effects in some concentrations.

    Elderberry holds promise as both an anti-inflammatory and an immune booster. Small randomized trials in Jerusalem and Norway found that patients treated with elderberry extract recovered from influenza A and influenza B faster than those who received placebos.

    Evidence has been mixed on echinacea, a purple flowering plant long thought to help shorten the duration of colds. A Nccam-funded study published in the New England Journal of Medicine in 2005 that tested three preparations of echinacea found none had significant effects on preventing colds or shortening their duration. Critics contend that the doses used were too small.

    -- Chicken soup. While warning consumers to be wary of unsupported flu-treatment claims last month, Nccam Director Josephine P. Briggs did have this advice for those who came down with it: 'Stay home, get plenty of rest, drink lots of fluids, and take comfort in home remedies like mom's chicken soup.'

    Belief in its medicinal properties dates back to the Egyptian Jewish healer Moshe ben Maimonides, who used 'fowl brew' to treat not just respiratory illnesses, but also hemorrhoids, constipation and leprosy. Modern scientists have theorized that an amino acid in chicken called cysteine may help thin mucus, and in a study published in the journal Chest in 2000, researchers at the University of Nebraska demonstrated in test tubes that the ingredients in a traditional chicken soup inhibited inflammation.

    To date, though, there have been no clinical trials specifically pitting chicken soup against a placebo （say, beef barley?） involving human flu sufferers.

    -- Hot liquids. Perhaps it's simply the hot liquid in chicken soup that makes cold and flu sufferers feel better. A wide variety of home remedies involve drinking （or gargling with） hot water with some other substance -- from tea and lemon to garlic and vinegar. Some make more sense than others. Honey helps coat sore throats so that swallowing isn't so painful. A teaspoon of cayenne pepper is said to spur blood flow and add warmth to the body.

    Drinking extra liquids is thought to help thin mucous secretions and speed the elimination of infection from the body. Some flu experts think that perhaps breathing the warm vapors helps open nasal passages, which provides a medicinal benefit.

    It pays to remember that, no matter what they do, the vast majority of people who get either H1N1 or seasonal flu will get well on their own without any treatment in three to seven days.

    The CDC does advise people who come down with the flu to see a health-care provider if they are over age 65 or under age five, are pregnant or have an underlying condition such as diabetes, AIDS or lung, liver, heart or kidney diseases. Also be on the lookout for signs of trouble breathing, chest pain, dizziness, confusion or vomiting in adults with the flu.

    Otherwise, stay home, rest, drink fluids -- and wash your hands thoroughly, something that practitioners of holistic, herbal, homeopathic and conventional medicine all recommend.

    聽說過一種生洋蔥的偏方嗎？

    隨著對甲型H1N1流感擔憂情緒的加劇和疫苗供應的短缺，各種替代療法在網絡上瘋狂傳播也就不足為奇了。

    一封流傳廣泛的電子郵件提到，在1918年那次導致四千萬人喪生的流感疫情中，訪問一個農戶的醫生發現，這家的所有人都沒有患病，而他們在每個房間都放置了沒有去皮的洋蔥。他在顯微鏡下檢查了一個洋蔥，發現這個洋蔥的確吸附了流感病毒。

    同一封電子郵件還提到，現代的一位理發師在她的店中放上洋蔥后，她的店員就不再患上流感了，還有一位肺炎患者將生洋蔥放在床邊的一個罐子中，第二天醒來就發現好多了，而這個洋蔥則幾乎都爛了。

    一個北京的小學生正在接受甲流疫苗接種諸如此類的偏方在博客和論壇中引起了熱烈的討論。一些人還加入了自己的做法，如切碎或水煮洋蔥，在頭上一個毛巾呼吸氣味。一個人在abovetopsecret.com網站上寫道，你簡直就是救世主。我和我13個月的女兒已經病了一周。水煮一些洋蔥，并把它們在咖啡桌上放上一小時，她現在已經能到處走了，我也感覺好多了。多謝。

    據美國疾病控制與預防中心（Centers for Disease Control and Prevention）說，官方批準的疫苗是唯一得到驗證的預防甲型H1N1流感的手段，而抗病毒藥達菲（Tamiflu）和樂感清（Relenza）是僅有的幾種得到驗證的縮短患病周期的手段。美國疾病控制與預防中心說，沒有科學證據顯示任何草藥、順勢療法或其它偏方對治療流感有任何好處。

    甚至草藥及膳食補充劑生產企業以及順勢療法藥劑師也發表聲明說，沒有科學數據支持使用他們的產品能治療甲型H1N1流感，他們還敦促銷售人員不要做此類宣傳。

    但過去的偏方根深蒂固，一些銷售人員不再提及"豬流感"或"甲型H1N1",而繼續向與普通感冒類似的"流感類"的癥狀推銷其產品。以下是一些最新和最古老的流感偏方：

    --洋蔥。生物學家說很難相信洋蔥能像捕蟲器那樣吸收流感病毒。病毒需要宿主進行繁殖，無法驅使自己離開人體或是在房屋中運動。

    洋蔥具有藥用價值的想法可以追溯到幾千年前，而且在許多文化中普遍存在。埃及人認為洋蔥是生育的象征。古希臘人會用它們擦拭肌肉酸痛的地方，印第安人用它們治療咳嗽和感冒。草藥醫生指出，世界衛生組織（WHO）確認，洋蔥提取物能在治療咳嗽、感冒、哮喘和支氣管炎時起到緩解作用。與大多數偏方一樣，在人體上進行的此類科學研究很少，而且沒有一起有關在房間放置洋蔥的研究記錄。

    --大蒜。有傳聞說，同洋蔥一樣，生蒜可從空氣中吸收病毒，這也是一些俄羅斯和中歐的父母在孩子的口袋里放上蒜瓣或在脖子上掛上大蒜項鏈的原因。（大蒜掛在窗戶或煙囪上據說也可以嚇跑吸血鬼和狼人。）

    大蒜的支持者說，大蒜對健康的好處很多，如降低膽固醇、預防癌癥以及對付感冒和流感。研究表明，大蒜在試管中可以殺死病毒、細菌和真菌，但同樣，也沒有多少有關人體的臨床試驗。

    大蒜和洋蔥的氣味可能發揮了作用。范德比爾特大學（Vanderbilt University）醫學院預防醫學主席沙夫納說，也許它們只是讓人們互相遠離，讓病毒的傳播更加困難了而已。他提供了來自自己的瑞士-德國祖先的傳統流感療法：躺到一張四個床柱的大床上，將帽子掛到一個床柱上，然后喝果酒，當你看到兩個帽子時，你就不再為流感癥狀所擾了。

    --雙氧水（過氧化氫）.根據上世紀20年代的一種理論，感冒和流感病毒通過耳道進入人體。與這一理論相應的是歐洲人以前用雙氧水清潔耳朵以殺死入侵病毒的做法。據說在感染癥狀出現之初在每邊耳朵各滴幾滴雙氧水會縮短患病時間。

    這種做法是否經過了科學研究，我們不得而知。但眾所周知雙氧水具有抗菌殺菌作用。1918年流感大爆發期間，一些醫師直接給病人注射雙氧水，效果有好有壞。就算沒什么別的效果，雙氧水在分解耳垢方面也很有效。

    --順勢療法。順勢療法可追溯到18世紀，其依據的理念是，導致疾病癥狀的物質能夠促使人體防御機能抑制病癥。用于治療的藥物被嚴重稀釋，通常原來的物質已不復存在，只是"水里的回憶"──這樣的說法令一些科學家將順勢療法斥為庸醫騙術。

    順勢療法的藥方成百上千，醫生根據患者的精神狀況、情緒以及身體癥狀開出不同的藥物組合。流感最常用的一種藥是Oscillococcinum,最初來自鴨子的肝臟。上世紀80年代法國和德國的一些小規模研究表明，使用Oscillococcinum的流感患者比服用安慰劑的對照組康復更快。

    --草藥。雖然美國草藥產品協會（American Herbal Products Association）反對將草藥作為流感藥物銷售，但一些草藥醫生繼續熱情地稱許草藥的抗流感特性。他們指出，畢竟抗病毒藥達菲（Tamiflu）本身就提煉自中國的八角茴香──雖然其同種的日本大茴香在某些濃度下具有毒性。

    接骨木據說同時具備消炎和提高免疫力的功效。耶路撒冷和挪威的小規模隨機實驗發現，服用接骨木提取物的甲型流感（influenza A）和乙型流感（influenza B）患者比服用安慰劑的對照組更快康復。

    紫錐菊的療效參差不齊，這種植物長久以來被人認為有助于縮短感冒持續時間。2005年發表在《新英格蘭醫學雜志》（New England Journal of Medicine）上的一項研究對三種紫錐菊藥劑進行了檢測，發現無一對預防感冒或縮短病程具有明顯效果。這項研究由美國國家補充和替代醫學中心（NCCAM）資助。批評該項研究的人士認為，研究所用劑量太小。

    --雞湯。美國國家補充和替代醫學中心主任布里格斯（Josephine P. Briggs）上個月提醒消費者警惕未經證實的感冒療法，同時她也確實向患上感冒的人提出了這樣的建議：不要外出，多休息，多喝水，安心享用媽媽熬的雞湯這類家庭良方。

    認為雞湯具有藥效的想法可追溯至埃及的猶太治療師邁蒙尼德（Moshe ben Maimonides）,他不光用雞湯治療呼吸系統的疾病，還用于痔瘡、便秘和麻風病的治療。現代科學家已經從理論上證實，雞肉中的一種名為半胱氨酸的氨基酸可能有助于化痰。而在2000年的Chest雜志上發表的一篇研究論文中，內布拉斯加大學（University of Nebraska）的研究人員在試管中展示了傳統雞湯中的成份抑制了炎癥。

    不過，迄今尚無專門比較雞湯與安慰劑（比如說牛肉大麥粥？）對流感患者影響的醫學實驗。

    --熱飲。或許雞湯讓感冒和流感患者感覺好些的原因僅僅只是其中的熱湯。為數眾多的偏方都包括飲用（或含漱）含有一些其他物質的熱水──從茶、檸檬到大蒜和醋等等。其中一些相對更說得通。蜂蜜有助于緩解喉嚨痛，減輕吞咽的痛苦。在熱水中加一茶匙辣椒據說能促進血液循環、讓身體暖和起來。

    人們認為多喝水有助于化痰以及加快身體消除感染的過程。一些流感專家認為，或許用熱的水氣熏蒸有助于通鼻，從而形成療效。

    值得記住的是，無論如何，大多數感染甲流或季節性流感的患者在3-7天內無需任何治療也能自己康復。

    美國疾控中心的確建議，有以下情況的流感患者應當去看醫生：年齡在65歲以上或5歲以下，懷孕，有糖尿病、艾滋病或肺、肝、心臟及腎臟疾病等患者。成年流感患者如有呼吸困難、胸痛、暈眩、意識不清或嘔吐癥狀也應注意。

    如果沒有上述情況，那就在家休息、多喝水并徹底洗手，這是無論全科醫生、草藥醫生、順勢療法治療師還是常規醫師都一致推薦的。