Can vitamin C cure a cold? How a Nobel Prize winner convinced us it could
This article examines the origins of the belief that vitamin C can cure the common cold, tracing it back to claims made by Nobel laureate Linus Pauling. Scientific consensus now suggests that vitamin C has minimal impact on preventing or curing colds.
Why it matters
It corrects a long-standing health misconception that continues to drive consumer behavior in the supplement market.
Maroke/Getty Image, Canva, The Conversation Can vitamin C cure a cold? How a Nobel Prize winner convinced us it could Published: August 17, 2026 12:28am EDT https://theconversation.com/can-vitamin-c-cure-a-cold-how-a-nobel-prize-winner-convinced-us-it-could-286242 https://theconversation.com/can-vitamin-c-cure-a-cold-how-a-nobel-prize-winner-convinced-us-it-could-286242 Link copied Share article Share article
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From the first hint of cold winter mornings, supermarkets and pharmacies begin heavy marketing to coax us to stock up on vitamin C to get through the cold and flu season.
As we’ll see, it’s a story including a Nobel Prize winner, a book and some claims that don’t quite stack up.
Linus Pauling was a chemist from the United States who won two Nobel Prizes. One was in 1954 for chemistry , for his research into chemical bonds. The other was in 1962 for peace , for his activism against nuclear weapons testing.
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