I couldn’t find a page in English, but the German page that came up when I search for “berberechos” (titled “Essen und Trinken in Spanien”) leads me to believe that you are thinking of mussels. Auf Deutsch, they’re called Herzmuscheln, but I’m not certain what specifically Americans would call them.
Generally, eating well and exercising, while effectively managing stess are effective ways to maintain and bolster one’s immune system.
Miracle cures? Nope. Vitamin C? Nope. I believe there is more evidence of good chicken soup working than of vitamin C. Chicken soup is comforting, and when it comes at the hand of a caring person, this can bolster your mood and improve your outlook, which either reduces the duration or makes you report the duration and seriousness of the cold is lower.
The scientific method clearly discovered that placebos have a better effect than taking nothing, that the placebo effect is measurable. So I don’t think it can be argued that the taking advantage of the placebo effect is unscientific.
Also the following cite or this cite gives evidence that Vitamin C does not have no effect on influenza sufferers, but leads to a slight reduction in flu symptoms.
The early work by Linus Pauling which suggested high doses of vitamin C might prevent viral infection have been dissproved, but there are still signs that Vitamin C might be benifitial in lessening a cold’s symptoms.
September 30, 2004. A new study published in the Lancet has found that vitamin supplements do no good in protecting against cancer or other diseases. In fact, the study has found that some supplements may even increase one’s cancer risk.
January 15, 2001. The Institute of Medicine has issued the latest of four reports on recommended dietary allowances (RDA) of vitamins and minerals. The report is based on a four-year review of the scientific research into vitamins and minerals. The bottom line? “Nutritionists say a healthy daily diet, with at least five fruits and vegetables, can provide plenty of most vitamins.” Nevertheless, 40% of Americans take supplements. Some need them. Some are probably being harmed by them. E.g. Vitamin A: “more than 3,000 micrograms daily can risk birth defects in pregnant women and liver damage for others.” Vitamin E: more than 1,000 milligrams (1,500 international units) a day “could cause uncontrolled bleeding.” Vitamin C: “more than 2,000 milligrams a day can cause diarrhea.”
On the other hand, “many people over age 50 have trouble absorbing vitamin B12 from natural food sources and thus should eat fortified foods, like breakfast cereals, or a daily supplement to ensure they get 2.4 micrograms a day…[and] the amount of vitamin D older people need for strong bones has doubled, to 400 international units.”
While the RDA has changed for many vitamins and minerals, the labels used on consumer goods generally follow the guidelines set down in 1968. To confuse matters even more, some products list the amounts of vitamins and minerals by milligrams or micrograms, while others use international units (a microgram equals 3.33 international units).
The USDA has set up a nutrient database online, so you can do a search for a product like milk and get a list of dozens of dairy products which you can then click on to find out what nutrients are contained in various sized servings.
April 13, 2000. WebMD reports that we’re more likely to find vitamins conducive to good health in our kitchen than in our bathroom…if you have foods such as fresh fruits, vegetables and nuts in the kitchen. According to a recent report by the Institute of Medicine (IOM) pill supplements for vitamins C and E, selenium, and carotenoids have no proven role in preventing disease. IOM recommends a ceiling on daily consumption of selenium and vitamins C and E to reduce the risk of adverse side effects from overuse. The full report is available from IOM
http://www.iom.edu/
http://www.nap.edu/books/0309072794/html/
I agree vitamins are better coming from your food than from tablets, but I doubt then you would feel the placebo effect unless you could convince yourself that the food will do you good.
I have looked up as far as I can, and there seems to be no bacterial breakdown of Cellulose within the Human Digestive system, I was mistaken in thinking that there was a small amount of Cellulose breakdown going on.