Echinacea

Over the last 20 years, herbal remedies have surged in popularity. People everywhere 
are looking for alternatives to the traditional western medicines that have become 
extremely common with varying degrees of effectiveness. For some, it’s strictly a matter 
of principle, while for others it might be because they have allergies to specific 
medicines that they may need in order to treat an infection or cold. A percentage of 
people are unable to take many of these man-made options for cold relief as well, so 
one herb has stood above the rest as a common cold and flu remedy, and that herb is 
called Echinacea. 

1. What Is Echinacea?

Echinacea comes from a flowering plant called the Coneflower that closely resembles 
the common daisy, and is a member of the same family. This perennial plant can live for 
as many as 5 or 6 years, and can grow to be as tall as 4 feet. The flowers are usually 
pink or purple flowers with a larger multicolored center cone that holds the seeds. There 
are about 9 different types of wild coneflower on several different continents. 

One of the interesting things about the wild coneflower, is that it doesn’t have any type 
of distinct smell until after it has been pollinated. After pollination has been completed, 
people say they have a smell that is somewhat similar to vanilla. Some types of 
echinacea have slightly different attributes than others. 

2. History of This Powerful Herb  
 
Echinacea was discovered by native American people when they noticed that animals’ 
wounds healed more quickly after they were observed feeding on the coneflowers. Over 
time, native American people experimented with Echinacea by extracting juices from the 
flower to try to use it to treat various other illness like coughs, infections, and open 
wounds like snake bites. This knowledge was passed to Europeans when they came to 
the continent, and as time moved forward, the settlers began using the herb in trade 
and for medicinal purposes. Eventually, the herbs began to make their way to other 
areas, as they became a medical staple for several years. 

Today, Echinacea is now mostly used as an immune support supplement. Scientists 
have put an enormous amount of work into cross breeding the plant, and creating all 
kinds of new varieties with an array of colors to suit the purposes of interested 
consumers. Some have even created varieties that can have a fragrance before 
pollination. 

3. How It Works 

Studies of Echinacea have revealed that they contain an impressive multitude of natural 
chemicals that can aid the healing processes of animal life. These chemicals include 
alkamides, polysaccharides, and glycoproteins. These tiny nutrients can help provide 
you with an easy source of accessible nutrition that your body can quickly use to 
incorporate into healing. Efficiency of absorption means faster healing times on a 
physical level. 

Another factor helps this process are phenols, which are antioxidant in nature. When 
the anti-inflammatory parts of the plant interact with wounded areas, the arrested 
swelling makes it easier for the body to repair itself, because the purpose of 
inflammation of to protect the wound until healing is safe to take place. By taking a 
healing herb like Echinacea, the herb can kill many of the harmful agents surrounding 
the injury, bring down the inflammation, and use its tiny bits of nutrients to rebuild to the 
damaged area. 

4. Benefits of Echinacea

Echinacea has had a rich history of contributing to the lives of the people who cultivate 
it. With hundreds of years of use and experimentation, the benefits of echinacea have 
become firmly established by both science and history. The next few paragraphs will be 
a discussion of some of the benefits. 

Reduces Pain 

Perhaps one of the most overlooked of the attributes of echinacea is its ability to arrest 
the body's natural pain reception. The two best ways to use echinacea for pain relief 
would be to either make a tea from the plant, or to apply it topically directly to the area 
affected. Native people learned that the plant could be chewed or drank in a tea to 
reduce toothaches, and this use for pain relief began to extend beyond dental 
application. 

In ancient times, echinacea was used to treat all sorts of injuries, but it is believed that 
the practice came from using it to tend snake bite, and was extended to use for the 
purpose of treating pain associated with venereal diseases. 

Immune Support 

The most common way that echinacea is currently used is simply for immune support. 
Usually found in pill form, these supplements can be bought over the counter, but it's 
debatable as to what percentages are in each supplement. Many of these will be in gel 
caps, and companies have been known to cut their purity by adding fillers. It would 
probably be preferable to ingest the plant in a tea or chewed form to get the maximum 
benefits that come from echinacea. 

It has been noted that those who regularly consume echinacea generally experience 
colds and flus for about half of the length of most people. It also reduces the severity 
and chances of getting colds. 

Kills Infections

Another way that echinacea is a great ally to your immune system, is that it can directly 
fight off infections. When microorganisms get into the body, a weak immune system 
could expose you to the possibility of being overrun with illness. Echinacea helps the 
body by killing these agents, and some have even noted that it can kill serious viral 
infections. It can’t eliminate these viruses, but it can keep them low enough to reduce 
appearances of some of the more serious symptoms that are caused by these illnesses. 

It Can Reduce Inflammation

One of the most important parts of healing the body is the reduction of inflammation. 
This part of the process is meant to protect the wound while it heals slowly or until you 
take action to heal the area. Echinacea can take down the painful swelling that can work 
against you in the need to speed up the healing process. 

It Can Fight Cancer

A benchmark of a great healing plant is its ability to reduce oxidative stress and 
inflammation. Given that echinacea has all of both of these important factors, it should 
be no surprise that it can extend to protect you against some of the most serious 
illnesses. Cancer thrives on genetically damaged areas of the body. 

The stresses placed on your DNA can cause anomalies, tumors and cancers in the 
body because the damaged DNA is unable to construct organs properly. These 
destructive malformations can spread resulting in serious damages and death. Ingesting 
echinacea works to help your body protect itself from these genetic issues. 

Helps Your Skin

Few people think of the skin an organ, but it is one of the largest organs in the body. As 
you go through life, you are exposed to a massive array of pollutant, and irritants from 
every side. Skin is sensitive, and can easily become inflamed when you get to close to 
something that your skin doesn’t particularly like. Echinacea has the ability to reduce 
and protect against the agents that cause these responses. 

You can mash the plant into a paste that you apply directly to the site of disturbed skin. 
You can also make a poultice that you press against the area. 

Helps Your Breathing

Have you ever had issues with asthma, strep throat, or a crouping cough? Echinacea is 
especially good at dealing with upper respiratory issues. In recent years, studies have 
revealed that echinacea has performed comparably to traditional medicines for asthma, 
because it was quick to reduce inflammation of the bronchial tubes and lungs. Some of 
the other respiratory illnesses it has been used for having been diphtheria, tuberculosis, 
and whooping cough. 

In these cases however, much higher doses were needed, so you may want to try an 
essential oil, or supplement rather than drinking a tea, because the agents needed 
should be higher in dose than tea can provide. 

Fights Depression

New information made available by scientists who have been carrying out studies on 
echinacea have discovered another interesting effect that it can dole out. Apparently, 
echinacea angustifolia can help fight depression.  It was observed that taking small 
doses of echinacea supplements around 15 - 25 milligrams can help alleviate some 
symptoms of anxiety and depression. 

This great news for future research in natural ways to deal with depression. This opens 
up a host of new possibilities for people who would like to be able to take a safe pill that 
can help them manage their emotions, but much more information is needed before a 
study can be set up to test drugs that are developed using this route. Typically, licensing 
obstacles prevent companies from wanting to do experimentation using natural 
products. 

It Can Be a Laxative 

Echinacea is truly a wonder herb. Studies have acknowledged that drinking 2 cups of 
echinacea tea a day can help make you more regular, but it should be noted that 
consuming more than the recommended amounts could lead to some relatively 
unpleasant illness. Echinacea is apparently very effective as a laxative, so being careful 
about what amounts are taken could change the outcome of your entre week. 

5. Understanding Safety Precautions

It is extremely important that you do your due diligence when researching this product 
for purchase. In recent years, curious consumers have made it a point to test and 
analyze what they have been sold, and in a few cases, it’s been four that the 
supplements contained either smaller amounts of the plant, or almost none at all. 
Depending on the conditions of the manufacturer, some of these false supplements can 
even cause harm to your body because they have been found to contain poisonous 
materials like heavy metals. It would be best to try and find a source that is certified for 
authenticity. 

Safety and Reactions

Even though you can consider the echinacea and its source, the coneflower a safe, and 
all-natural plant, there are a number of plants in nature that can be poisonous to you if 
you ingest them in high amounts. Some plants are poisonous in any amount, so the 
term natural only describes how the plant came about, not its level of safety. It would be 
advisable to consult a doctor when taking any sort of supplement, particularly one that is 
regulated so little in many places. 

Also, though somewhat uncommon, some people have been reported to have had 
allergic reactions to echinacea, so you may want to get an allergy test before launching 
fully into use of it to treat specific ailments. If you were to find yourself in the middle of a 
seriously adverse reaction, it might take fast intervention to prevent discomfort and 
danger. 

