Echinacea is a native herb of North America and was one of the most important herbs in the traditional medicine of the North American Indians. In the 19th century its use spread to the Western World, and is now one of the most popular herbal remedies used in Europe.
There are two main types of Echinacea, Echinacea angustifolia (coneflower) and Echinacea purpurea (purple coneflower), they are members of the aster/daisy family. It is a very popular garden plant due to its beautiful flower, but it is mainly the roots that are used in herbal medicine although the whole plant is used in some preparations.
The most important active principle is echinacoside, in addition the plant contains phenolics, volatile oil and a range of other principles. It’s the combination of all of these active principles that make Echinacea such a wonderful herb to use. This herb is thought to promote healing through its antiviral, antibiotic, anti-inflammatory, and detoxifying effects.
The traditional use of Echinacea was as a blood purifier and therefore it was classed as a cleansing herb. It was commonly used for skin complaints such as boils, eczema, acne, psoriasis and any eruptions of the skin, thereby utilizing it’s cleansing properties.
Recent research indicates that the herb has much greater effects than just as a cleanser, and that through maintaining the body’s natural barriers it helps prevent the spread of infection.
When taking Echinacea the white cells (leukocytes) in the body are stimulated into action, these white cells are a vital part of the body’s defence mechanism, and when stimulated help to destroy any infections. When taken internally it has proved to be a useful herb for improving the body’s own resistance to infectious conditions, especially the common cold and influenza. Unfortunately this use has been misunderstood by the vast majority of people and it has been found that some will take this herb for months, sometimes years, to try to stop catching colds or flu.
What should be remembered is that Echinacea stimulates the white blood cells and prolonged use can lead to over stimulation, and then when infection does strike the white cells can be ineffective. If Echinacea is to be used in the fight against colds and flu then it should be taken only after exposure to the the virus, and then taken for two to three weeks until the danger of contamination has gone.
If a cold or flu develops unexpectedly then a small amount of Echinacea taken every couple of hours until it has gone, can be quite effective.
It must be noted that the use of Echinacea is far greater than just a ‘cure’ for the common cold, scientists working with a variety of viral diseases found a protein in the body that had marked anti-viral properties (interferon). Interferon is non-specific in it’s action and is produced to overcome viral, bacterial or protozoa infections of the body.
Plants like Echinacea can be used to stimulate the body into producing more interferon, which in turn, will help the body fight these infections.
Most low-grade, minor infections are caused by viruses and this means that antibiotics are of no value in such cases, it should also be remembered that antibiotics should always be used sparingly, and for severe bacterial infections only.
This very useful remedy can be used in conjunction with other herbs for infections anywhere in the body. If combined with Bearbery (Arctostaphylos uva-ursi) and Yarrow (Achillea millefolium) it can be effective in stopping cystitis.
For upper respiratory tract infections it works well if combined with the Chinese herb Astragalus (Astragalus membranaceus) which also increases the production of white blood cells.
Even though Echinacea is one of the most widely studied plants in herbal medicine a lot more research is required to get the complete picture of the healing properties of this wonderful herb.
Please note this report is for information only and should not be used in place of seeing a healthcare practitioner.
