Echinacea, The Immune Herb (tumor-inhibiting capabilities)

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Echinacea, The Immune Herb

http://www.herbsfirst.com/NewsLetters/1002Echinacea.html

 

Although Echinacea is now very well-known, it is essentially a new

remedy. Many herbs with as powerful effects as Echinacea have been

known throughout the world for centuries, but this wonderful remedy

came into prominence during the last century with the Eclectic

school and cannot be found in the ancient herbals.

 

Except where noted, the information in this newsletter comes from an

excellent little book, Echinacea Exalted... See bibliography,

 

There are several species in the genus Echinacea, and many of them

are used medicinally, although the pallida is also used, sometimes

being considered a sub-species of the angustifolia.

The purpurea has

also been frequently used medicinally. We will mention other species

in the section on Related Plants; the above are the commonest

medicinal species.

 

The American Indians of the Great Plains and adjacent areas used

Echinacea as a plant for many ailments.

Medicinally, Echinacea seems to have been one of the foremost

medicinal plants for the American Indians, although our history of

it is fragmented, because information has only been collected since

the Indians were driven onto reservations. However, Gilmore in his

Uses of Plants by the Indians of the Missouri River Region

said, " Echinacea seems to have been used as a remedy for more

ailments than any other plant. "

 

The Cheyenne used the leaves and

roots as a tea for sore throats, gums, and mouth, also chewing the

roots for the same ailments. An infusion of the root was rubbed on

sore necks. The Crows used the fresh root for toothache pain. The

Comanches used the root for toothache and sore throats. A juice from

the root was used for colds and colic. The Meskwaki used the root

tea for stomach cramps. They also used the root tea for " fits " in

combination with other herbs. Montana Indians chewed the flower--

fresh or dry--to increase saliva flow. They also used the herb

externally as a snake bite remedy, as did the Sioux, who used the

fresh root to treat hydrophobia and septic conditions.

 

The Omaha Poncas used Echinacea as a basic herb for a variety of

ailments. The fresh root was placed on toothaches until the pain

subsided. It was used on enlarged glands--like mumps. A smoke

fumigant of Echinacea was used to treat headaches, snakebite,

stings, poisonous conditions and distemper in horses. Externally the

juice of the root was used to bathe burns and to make the intense

heat of the sweat house more bearable. Jugglers were said to have

bathed their arms and hands in the juice of the plant so that they

could take a piece of meat from a boiling pot with their bare hands

without experiencing pain. A Winnebago Indian told Gilmore that he

used the plant to make his mouth insensible to heat so that he could

take a live coal in his mouth for show. The Omaha-Ponca used the

plant as an eye wash. The Kiowa chewed the ground root and slowly

swallowed the juice for coughs and sore throats.

 

It has been reported that the Indians used Echinacea for more than

one hundred types of cancer.

 

The Oglaga Dakota used the root internally for

toothache and bad colds. It was also used for mumps, measles,

rheumatism, arthritis and smallpox. It was used by the Delaware for

advanced venereal disease. The Choctaw chewed the root for bad colds

accompanied by dyspepsia.

 

Considering its widespread use by the Indians, we will not be

surprised to learn the Echinacea became a popular herb among the

early settlers. Echinacea species were known by the common names

Indian head, scurvy root, Black Sampson, niggerhead, comb flower,

hedgehog, red sunflower, and purple coneflower. It was used in folk

medicine as an aid in nearly all kinds of sickness and fed to ailing

stock.

 

However, it was not until Gray's Synoptical Flora of North America

(1870) that the plant was mentioned medicinally as a " popular

medicine. " There is no mention of it in the medical literature prior

to Drs. Meyers and King. Their story is an interesting one. Dr. H.

F. C. Meyers of Pawnee City, Nebraska had for many years been using

the plant without knowing its botanical position. In a letter to

Professor King of the Eclectic School, he explained his uses for the

drug, as he had employed it for sixteen years. He claimed that it

was an antispasmodic and antidote for blood-poisoning. He had been

using it in a secret mixture with wormwood and hops--naming this

mixture " Meyer's Blood Purifier. " He claimed that this mixture was

an antidote for the bites of various insects and especially of the

rattlesnake.

Meyer stated that he had even allowed a rattler to bite

him, after which he bathed the part with some of the tincture, took

a dram of it internally and laid down and slept; when he awoke, the

swelling had entirely disappeared (Felk:672). Professor King

recorded that Dr. Meyer kindly offered to send him a rattler eight

feet long to test the tincture on dogs, rabbits, etc., but " having

no friendship for the reptile and being unaccustomed to handling

this poisonous ophidian, the generous offer was courteously

declined " (Ibid).

 

In the autumn of 1885, Meyer sent it to Professor J. U. Lloyd of

Cincinnati, who was the president of the American Pharmaceutical

Association in 1887-8 and the founder of Lloyd Brothers

Pharmaceutical Firm, which specialized in preparations from American

plants. He was also a prolific author who left quite a literary

legacy on American medicinal plants. Meyer wished to identify the

plant so that he could sell it to Dr. King. Professor Lloyd,

somewhat skeptical of Meyer's claims, wrote to him that he couldn't

name the plant from the root only, so Meyer sent him, after another

shipment of the root, a specimen plant, which his brother identified

as Echinacea angustifolia.

 

Dr. King proposed to investigate the plant, although Meyer's claims

somewhat prejudiced Lloyd against it. Meyer's label on his Blood

Purifier read:

 

(front label) " Take one ounce three times every day in the following

cases: Rheumatism, sick headache, erysipelas, dyspepsia, old sores,

and piles, open wounds, dizziness, scrofula, and sore eyes.

 

In cases of poisoning by herbs and c., take the double dose, and

bites of rattlesnakes take three ounces three times a day till the

swelling is gone. This is an absolute cure within 24 hours. "

 

(back label) " This is a powerful drug as an alterative and

antiseptic in all tumorous and syphilitic indications; old chronic

wounds, such as fever sores, old ulcers, carbuncles, plies, eczema,

wet or dry, can be cured quick and active; also Erysipelas. It will

not fall in gangrene. In fever it is a specific; typhoid can be

adverted in two or three days; also in Malaria, malignant, remittent

and mountain fever it is a specific. It relieves pain, swelling and

inflammation, by local use, internal and external. It has not and

will not fall to cure diphtheria quick. It cures bites from the bee

to the rattlesnake, it is a specific. Has been tested in more than

fifty cases of mad dog bites in human and in every case prevented

hydrophobia. It is perfectly harmless, internal and external. "

 

Such extravagant claims classed it with other nostrums of the day

which were not cure-alls at all. However, Dr. King was willing to

experiment with the herb. Two years after beginning his

investigation, he wrote an article on its therapeutic qualities

which appeared in the 1887 Eclectic Medical Journal. He found that

many of Meyer's claims were true, from this initial investigation,

and indicated that if even half of them were true, that this would

be an herb of significant value. Lloyd continued his skepticism

until Dr. King's researches began to prove indisputably the

excellence of the herb.

 

Perhaps the most convincing test for the

herb came in King's own home. His wife had been suffering from

cancer for many years, for which King had attempted to treat her

with various remedies but with little success.

 

Finally he tried

Echinacea, which both he and Mrs. King claimed produced her only

relief. Mrs. King told Lloyd that whenever she stopped using

Echinacea, her symptoms intensified, and she kept it by her till her

dying day.

 

After King's vindication of Echinacea, it grew popular among

Eclectic physicians. Such extravagant claims were made for it--

although most of them were verified and will be discussed below-that

the medical establishment undertook to prove it valueless and

published several articles to discredit it. However, despite their

denunciations, Echinacea became an extremely popular plant, for many

years one of the most widely sold medicines made out of an American

plant.

It was listed in the National Formulary, though in a very

limited way; as Felter notes, " The first notices concerning

Echinacea are from Eclectic physicians, and the drug is, from start

to finish, an Eclectic medicine " (Felk:671).

 

 

HERB OF MANY USES

 

There have been so many reputed uses of Echinacea that it is

difficult to include them all here. Felter termed it " a corrector of

the depravation of the body fluids, " feeling even this to be

inadequate, and it corrects the disturbed balance of the body's

fluids, which results in such problems as boils, carbuncles,

abscesses, cellular glandular inflammations.

 

This imbalance, he

claimed, might also result in malignant diphtheria, cerebrospinal

meningitis, or puerperal and other forms of septicaemia. Such

changes, whether they be internal or external, are helped by

Echinacea, which removes " bad blood " or a tendency to malignancy

(Felk:674). This is a prime discussion of the functions of

alterative and antiseptic herbs, of which Echinacea seems to be a

king.

 

One of the first uses for Echinacea was therefore as a remedy for

septic conditions of the body, particularly blood poisoning. A

crushed hand, thought to be beyond aid, with the intolerable stench

of putrid flesh, was saved by the application of Echinacea. It has

also helped in poisonous bites of rattlesnake, tarantula, and other

spiders, and from the stings of scorpions, bees, wasps, etc. (Ibid).

It was used in cases of cerebrospinal meningitis because of its pain-

relief and because this malady is caused by general sepsis.

 

Prof.Webster, an early practitioner who used it in these cases,

asserted

that as a stimulant to the capillary circulation, no remedy is

comparable with it, and it endows the vessels with a recuperative

power or formative force, so as to enable them to successfully

resist local inflammatory processes due to debility and blood

depravation (Ibid), which we think is extremely interesting in view

of the toxic conditions caused by pollution and low-quality food in

today's world.

 

Echinacea is the remedy for auto-infection, where the bloodstream

becomes slowly infected either from within or without. Elimination

is imperfect, the body tissues become altered, and various internal

or external problems may result. Echinacea is especially useful in

gangrene and sloughing of the soft tissues, as well as in glandular

ulcerations and ulcers of the skin. Foul-smelling discharges are

deodorized by it and the odor removed from cancers and ulcers; it

has been proven to have helped in mammary cancer (Ell:359). A

concentrated preparation of the root, excluding its sugar,

called " echafolta, " was used in these cancer cases.

 

The herb is markedly anesthetic in its local influence. Applied to

open wounds and painful swellings, the tincture effects an immediate

relief of pain. It relieves the terrible swelling pain of erysipelas

and relieves the pain of cancerous growths.

 

It is an intestinal antiseptic, although it may not have a direct

chemical effect on bacteria, but destroys germs by building the

resistance and cleansing the system so that the body itself can

resist the germs.

It therefore is excellent in the treatment of the

serious fevers-typhoid, malaria, and the eruptive fevers, such as

measles, chickenpox, and scarlet fever. It is similarly useful in

influenza and la grippe.

 

It has been used in inflammation of the intestinal tract, especially

satisfactory in the case of appendicitis (Ibid.), as it quickly

overcomes local blood stasis, prevents or cures ulceration and

retards pus formation.

 

It has been used in infants cholera, preventing the extreme

nervousness sometimes associated with it. It has been proven to

destroy the virus for cerebrospinal meningitis and curing the

disease (Ibid.).

 

It has been used in severe ulcerations of the throat and mouth,

often so bad as to be termed diphtheria, with good results. It is

also useful in tonsillitis.

 

It is used in catarrhal conditions of the nasal and bronchial

tracts, and in leucorrhea, in all of which there is a run-down

condition of the system with fetid discharge, often associated with

skin eruptions, especially of an eczema type. Chronic catarrhal

bronchitis and fetid bronchitis have been cured by it, and it is

said to ameliorate some of the unpleasant catarrhal complications of

pulmonary tuberculosis and enhance expectoration. Especially when

general debility accompanies the bronchial disorders, Echinacea

should help clear it (Ell:350).

 

Echinacea is a good remedy for fermentative dyspepsia. It will

remove the gastric pains and allay the offensive breath due to this

condition. It is also good for offensive gas.

 

Many people have observed its good effects in cases of syphilis. The

longest time, reported Ellington, to effect the cure was nine months

(Ell:363). The patient begins to feel a general improved condition

after taking the remedy a few days. It removes the pain and

discomfort, removes the fever, and abates the evidences of the

disease without after-effects.

 

Probably the most remarkable case reported was a gentleman of about

forty-five who became weak, lost his hair, and began to show

symptoms which were called psoriasis but seemed to be like leprosy.

He lost his fingernails, and his eye began to ulcerate. He was given

Echinacea and began to gain back his weight and good appearance and

within six weeks was as good as ever again. This must have resulted

from serious sepsis in the system.

 

Echinacea has long been employed for insect, snake and other

poisonous bites, even of the deadly tarantula, and of the scorpion.

It has been used in cases of hydrophobia, which are cases most

difficult to credit. There have been many reports of good results,

however. In five or six cases reported to Ellington, animals bitten

at the same time as the patient had developed rabies and had even

conveyed it to other animals, and yet the patient showed no evidence

of poisoning, if the remedy was used at once.

 

One case exhibited the

developing symptoms of hydrophobia before Echinacea was taken. The

symptoms disappeared shortly after treatment. In no case has the

remedy been applied after the symptoms were fully developed,

however. A rabid animal had once bitten a litter of six pups, all of

which showed signs of hydrophobia and were killed. Some people were

bitten by these pups; two died of hydrophobia, three were treated at

the Pasteur Institute and cured, and one was treated with Echinacea

and cured. The concentrated extract was taken internally and applied

externally.

 

It is also used in cases of tetanus. The remedy was injected into

the wound after the tetanic symptoms had appeared. All the tissues

surrounding the wound were filled with the remedy by hypodermic

injection and gauze saturated with a full-strength tincture. It was

also administered internally every two or three hours. The tetanus

was cured; however, it should be taken with a powerful antispasmodic

to be an effectual cure (Ell:364-5).

 

Cases of goiter, impetigo contagiosa, local infection, urethral

infection, diabetic ulcers, alopecia (baldness), and so on, are

reported to have been " effectively treated " with Echinacea.

 

Felter reported that the physiological action of the herb has never

been satisfactorily explained. It has been held to increase

phagocytosis and to improve both leukopenia and hyperleucocytosis.

That it stimulates and hastens the elimination of waste is certain,

and it possesses antibacterial power.

 

In the view that many toxic substances are introduced into the

system of modern man, and that poisonings and infections are

increasingly likely, especially if some economic disturbances occur

and people are no longer able to procure the services of physicians,

it would be wise to grow one's own Echinacea and to store it for

medicinal use.

 

Modern herbalists recommended it for blockage in the lymphatic

system and for blood cleansing. Tierra says that the only times he

has known it to fail have been when not enough has been taken, and

that it is completely nontoxic (Tie:92).

--

 

More findings on Echinacea

 

Most of the recent research has been done by Germans and published

in their language, so interested Americans have little access to it.

 

In 1950, Stoll et. al. isolated two glycosides from Echinacea which

exhibited mild antibiotic activity against Strep and Staph

infections. O. Kuhn in 1953 found that a purified extract made from

the root inhibited the enzyme hyaluronidase which is associated with

the infection process, while activating the white blood cells, and

hystocytes, and stimulating the regeneration of the cellular

connective tissue and epidermal cells.

 

In the same year Koch and

Uebel in Cologne found that guinea pigs pretreated with subcutaneous

injections of Echinacea and then subjected to Strep infections

exhibited a marked inhibition of bacterial cell growth compared with

control animals.

 

Research conducted in Italy by Bonadea, Bottazzi and Lavassa in 1971

isolated a polysaccharide, " echinacin B, " which helped neutralize

the hyaluronidase, which increases the infection process.

 

In 1978, Wacker and Hilbig at Frankfort found that alcohol and water

extracts of Echinacea possess an interferon-like activity in

protecting cells against viral induced canker sores, influenza and

herpes. In Germany, the extract is used as an influenza preventative-

-much better than the flu injections employed here in the United

States!

 

In 1978, German researcher Reith, showed that capsules and tablets

containing whole plants or plant parts of Echinacea, plus lactic

acid, were effective in the treatment of numerous allergies.

 

In 1981, Wagner and Proksch of the Institute of Pharmaceutical

Biology, Munich, discovered two polysaccharides in Echinacea that

possess immuno-stimulating properties. They stimulated F-cell

activity 20 to 30 percent more than a highly potent T-cell

stimulator.

 

The immune system stimulating effects of Echinacea is

one of the most important scientific findings for this genus. These

could become alternatives to chemotherapy and prevent infections by

activating the immune system, especially in persons whose immune

response has become impaired.

 

This is potentially useful in

infection but especially in cases of cancer, wherein the immune

system is often broken down.

 

In 1972, Voakin, Denys and-Jacobsen identified an oncolytic

hydrocarbon from Echinacea's essential oils, which possess tumor-

inhibiting capabilities.

 

These inhibited both Walker carcinosarcoma

and lymphocytic leukemia, although it was found to be inactive in

lymphoid leukemia.

 

Martin Jacobsen also isolated echinacein in 1967. This is an

insecticidal competent effective against house flies. In 1975 he

isolated echinolone, an insect growth regulator mimicking juvenile

hormones in the yellow meal worm. In 1947 Hartzell found that

acetone extracts of Echinacea killed 50% of the larvae of a mosquito

at concentrations of 1000 ppm or less.

 

Studies over the last thirty years have revealed that Echinacea has

a potent and diverse pharmacological activity, working in cases as

varied as the ones the early researchers uncovered.

 

 

CULTIVATION, COLLECTION, PREPARATION

 

Echinacea is relatively easy to propagate and cultivate. Foster

recommends that more Echinacea be cultivated to alleviate the strain

on the wild species. Echinacea can be started from seeds, by

dividing the offshoots of the crowns or by planting four to five

inch sections of root, as you would comfrey.

 

He mentions a few tricks to growing Echinacea from seed. The seed

has some embryo dormancy and a short period of cold stratification

increases the speed and frequency of germination. Place seeds in a

moist but not wet sand in a plastic bag and refrigerate for one

month. Once a month has passed, wash the sand off the seeds in a

strainer, one that will let the sand through without letting the

seeds through. Planting the seeds on top of a soil mix rather than

tramping them down beneath the soil will result in quicker

germination. After dormancy, seeds sown on the surface of a soil mix

of 1/3 sand, 1/3 peat and 1/3 sterile potting soil will germinate

within five days after planting. Seeds that are covered with soil,

on the other hand, germinate within two weeks to a month. Seeds

stratified in the winter, allowed to dry out, then planted in the

spring take about six weeks to germinate. You can stratify your seed

in a cold frame over the winter. Water them in the spring and cover

with a light straw mulch, allowing light to reach the seed as well

as retaining moisture. Echinacea seed can also be sown directly in

the garden, although germination rates are usually substantially

lower than greenhouse or cold frame-sown seeds. Fall-sown seeds in a

jiffy pot in a greenhouse germinate well.

 

If the seedlings are started in a greenhouse, then planting at 1.5

foot intervals, with rows spaced at three feet, an acre should hold

about 9,800 plants. One pound of seed should be ample to plant an

acre. Seeds and seedlings of Echinacea are readily available from

nurseries and seed companies that deal in herb plants.

 

Echinacea can also be started by dividing offshoots from the crowns.

After you harvest the plant, leave a half inch or so, including the

crown. You should get two to seven buds or eyes from one crown. Each

bud will produce a new plant. If roots are harvested in the fall,

the buds can be heeled in sand in a root cellar for the winter

months, being sure to keep moist. You can also grow the crown

indoors for a pot plant.

 

Echinacea can withstand moderately droughty conditions. Foster

places a flat rock about six inches below the soil surface directly

under where he sets his seedlings. The roots grow along this rock

and then below, making it easier to harvest the roots than if you

had to dig the two-and-one-half foot root.

 

Seedlings may take three or four years to mature. Fall is the best

time to harvest roots. They should be cleaned after being dug, then

dried under low forced heat or in open air in the shade.

 

If the tops of Echinacea are wished, the plant takes about two years

to mature and may last for up to ten years. In the first year, the

plant does not produce enough foliage to harvest and rarely flowers.

 

As with Ephedra and other herbs, the variety and conditions of

growth greatly influence the medicinal content of the herb. Plants

growing in dry, low-nitrogen soils produce higher concentrations of

essential oils, while moist, nitrogen-rich soils produce higher

levels of alkaloids. Foster recommends only harvesting a few of the

wild Echinacea and growing the variety which seems to work best

medicinally, the angustifolia or pallida varieties usually

preferred.

 

Echinacea can be used as a tea, in capsules, compressed into

tablets, in oils, or in extracts or tinctures. The latter are

especially valuable during emergencies. It yields its medicine to

water or alcohol.

 

 

DESCRIPTION

 

Echinacea is represented by nine species and two varieties

indigenous to North America. They are perennial herbs with vertical

or horizontal roots. The stems stand erect, singly or branched, and

have rough coarse hairs, stiff bristly hairs, straight stiff hairs

appressed toward the surface, or are smooth and covered with a white

substance that rubs off. On the lower part of the stem the

alternately arranged leaves have long stalks. Towards the top of the

flower stalk the leaves become progressively smaller and sessile.

Leaves are entire, without teeth and pubescent or smooth. The

solitary flowerhead sits atop a long flower stalk. The involucre, a

set of leaf-like structures, encircles the stem directly below the

flowerhead. The bracts are lance shaped. In Echinacea the phyllaries

are imbricate in a series of two or more. Closely studying an

Echinacea flower will soon reveal that the phyllaries transform into

pales as they move from the involucre to the flowers themselves. The

pales are chaffy scales found just below the fruit. In Echinacea the

pales extend slightly beyond the corolla of each disk flower. They

appear to be folded together lengthwise and end in sharp, blunt, or

slightly curved points. Once the flowerhead is dry, the pales remain

intact, and form the chief feature of the dried flower. It is these

spiny pales that prompt the name Echinacea, which is derived from

the Greek, echinos, meaning sea urchin or hedgehog, referring to the

sharp pointed pales. The showy ray flowers surrounding each

flowerhead are sterile. The long strap-like ligules have two or

three slight teeth at the ends. The ligules are white, pink, rose,

purple or even yellow. The fertile disk flowers are red-brown in

color and inconspicuous compared to the ray flowers or even the

pales which are often bright orange in one variety. The corolla

tubes of the disk flowers are cylindrical and five-lobed. There are

five stamens. The pollen is yellow or white. The small one-seeded

fruit are four-sided and have slight teeth at each corner of the

crown.

 

The roots are taproots or fibrous. The root has a sweetish taste at

first, which upon prolonged chewing is acrid, tingling, and numbing.

This numbing sensation has been likened to aconite and cocaine, as

well as the prickly sensation of prickly ash. The dried root is gray-

brown or red-brown in color, wrinkled, and twisted lengthwise, often

in a spiral. The root varies in size from that of a pencil to a

large finger. The Inner woody portion of the root, when cut

transversely, shows yellow medullary rays separated by greenish-gray

fibers.

 

E. angustifolia, the most well-known species, has simple or

sometimes branched stems and grows from six to twenty inches high.

The stems are sparsely to densely covered with rough pubescence

stiff bristly hairs, sometimes swollen at their bases. The leaves

are oblong-lance shaped, without teeth, dark green, with three to

five nerves running the length of the blade. The ray flowers are

spreading and are very short. The ray flowers are shorter than or as

wide as the width of the disk. This species is found on barrens and

dry prairies from Minnesota to Texas in the east, west to Montana

and Saskatchewan. It occurs in Texas, Oklahoma, Kansas, Nebraska,

Iowa, the Dakotas, Colorado, Wyoming, Montana, Saskatchewan and

Manitoba.

 

E. pallida is quite similar to angustifolia, though it is stouter

and taller, growing to a height of 39 inches. The narrow ray flowers

are strongly reflexed, drooping and incurving toward the stem, and

quite long. The pales of the flowerhead tend to be longer and

narrower than those of angustifolia. E. pallida has white pollen.

The flowers are pale white to deep purple. They tend to bc lighter

in color in the south. It flowers early June through July. It has a

more eastern and broader range than angustifolia, occurring in open

woods, glades, and rocky prairies from northeast Texas, eastern

Oklahoma, and Kansas, north to Iowa and Wisconsin and east to

Indiana. It is relatively unusual east of Illinois.

 

 

CHRISTOPHER FORMULAS CONTAINING ECHINACEA

 

Dr. Christopher's well known and time tested blood purifying and

immune stimulating formula Blood Stream Formula contains Echinacea.

 

It is also found in his weight loss formula Appetite Formula.

 

Other effective formulas containing Echinacea are Immune System

Formula, one of the best quality immune stimulants available and Kid-

e-Mune a children's immune stimulant.

 

Echinacea & Goldenseal are available in capsules, as well as

Echinacea in a glycerine extract.

 

 

RELATED PLANTS

 

There are other species in the Echinacea family, many of which share

medicinal properties with the commonly used ones described above.

They are E. purpurea, E. atrorubens, E. paradoxa, E. paradoxa var.

neglecta, E. sanguinea, E. simulate, E. laevigata, and E.

tennesseensis, the latter two being very rare and considered

endangered species.

 

 

BIBLIOGRAPHY

 

Barlow, Max G. From the Shepherd's Purse.

 

Felter, Harvey Wickes. The Eclectic Materia Medica, Pharmacology and

Therapeutics. Portland: Eclectic Medical Publications, 1983.

 

Felter, Harvey Wickes and John Uri Lloyd. King's American

Dispensary. 2 Vols. Portland: Eclectic Medical Publications, 1983.

 

Foster, Steven. Echinacea Exalted! Drury, MO: Ozark Beneficial Plant

Project (New Life Farm, Inc., Box 129, Drury, MO 65638), 1984. This

little book is must reading for anyone desiring to investigate

Echinacea more deeply. It contains a good bibliography for those who

will do in-depth research.

 

Grieve, M., Mrs. A Modern Herbal. Harmondsworth, Middlesex: Penguin

Books, 1980.

 

Hutchens, Alma R, Indian Herbology of North America. Kumbakonam, S.

India: Homeo House Press, 1970.

 

Christopher, John R. School of Natural Healing. Provo, Utah, 1975.

 

Tierra, Michael. The Way of Herbs, Santa Cruz: Unity Press, 1980.

 

Vogel, Virgil J. American Indian Medicine. New York: Ballantine

Books, 1970.

 

Used by permission - Dr. Christopher's Newsletters - Volume 6 Number

12

 

return to newsletters index

 

 

 

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that we created them to cure these disorders. We are merely

reporting that people have used the product to aid these conditions.

 

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Posted: Fri May 07, 2004 4:34 pm Post subject: The What, Where,

When, How and Why of Echinacea

 

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The What, Where, When, How and Why of Echinacea

By Stephanie Burgess

 

 

http://altnature.com/library/coneflower.htm

For educational information only. No parts of these documents, on

this site or connected to this site are to be taken as diagnosis or

prescription for any illness. See your Medical Healthcare for any

personal health concerns.

 

Purchase Echinacea Remedies, Click here

 

 

Echinacea is an inhabitant of the plains regions of North America,

where it has been used for millennia by the Native Americans. It is

said that they used it for more purposes than any other plant group

available to them. The root, leaves and flowers were used for

everything from common flu and colds, insect and snake bites to

treating cancer.

 

The early settlers learned of it's use from them and is known to

have been utilized at least as early as the 1850's by doctors,

particularly in an Herbal-based Medical School known as

the " Eclectics " . This School of Medicine finally closed it's doors

in the 1930's, due to the growing power of the Allopathic School of

Medicine and the discovery of penicillin. Before it's discovery,

Echinacea was the most widely prescribed herb for all infections and

inflammatory conditions. It should be noted here that it has never

lost it's popularity in Europe.

 

There are three types of Echinacea used medicinally; Echinacea

purpurea (Purple Coneflower), Echinacea pallida (Pale Purple

Coneflower) and Echinacea augustifolia (Narrow-Leafed Purple

Coneflower).

 

All the Echinacea have basically the same medicinal properties.

There are many different chemical constituents within each variety,

some have more of some, some have less. Some have a one or more the

others don't. I am not going to go into an in-depth report on the

different chemical compounds, for time as well as clarity's sake, if

you are interested in a serious scientific analysis of these

elements, as well as their relationship to their healing properties,

please refer to the book list, Christopher Hobb's book goes into it

in depth. Because of both it's popularity and it's positive results

seen in the medical community, Echinacea has been placed under very

detailed analysis over the last one hundred years; in the last

seventy mostly in Germany. However, in the last decade in this

country it has been seriously studied and analyzed. This is good.

Not only do we get a full understanding of why this herb does what

it does and how we should use it; but it proves to the skeptics that

there is scientific proof of Herbal Healing. it protects the

consumer as we learn more about a plants properties; The mistake is

when this information is used to regulate and prevent the consumer

from obtaining an herb and the right to make their own decisions.

 

Still, with all the recent study the debate over which Echinacea is

the best still continues; many Herbal Healers prefer angustifolia,

claiming it is the strongest and most effective. Augustifolia and

pallida have the same constituents, but pallida being in weaker

concentrations, and due to it's capacity for bio-chemical breakdown,

has a much shorter shelf life. As far as I can tell in my research,

which herb to use is personal preference. However, over harvesting

has resulted in a marked decrease in the wild angustifolia and so,

it is recommended to purchase the more easily commercially grown

purpurea. Over the last 100 years,50,000 to 100,000 pounds of wild

crafted Echinacea has been exported to Europe. And now we are

beginning to use an equal amount of this Herb domestically. Also,

with wild crafted herbs, one is dependent on the hope that the

harvester has a conscience, and not just with conservation in mind;

many factors need to be met to insure that the herb you are

purchasing is of good quality; was it harvested at the right time of

year? the right time of day? the ideal growing conditions? was it

even the right herb harvested? The FDA and Department of Agriculture

allow a percentage for " adulterants " , this is an amount allowed for

misidentification and the intentional addition of similar species.

For example, much of the wild crafted angustifolia has large amounts

the less effective pallida in them (as well as other non-medicinally

used Echinaceas) and this is perfectly acceptable to the present

regulations. Couple this with over harvesting and a lot can be said

for purchasing organic commercially grown herbs. Organic is

emphasized, because then you can insure further the hope that your

herbs have been grown in the proper conditions by persons with a

little more awareness. Also, purpurea is generally less expensive

than angustifolia due to it's being easier to cultivate. Purpurea is

the one most commonly used in Europe and European preparations.

Whether this is due to it's superior herbal properties or it being

the most easiest cultivated is another debatable issue. One story is

that a Doctor doing studies on Echinacea in the late 1800's in

Germany order the seed of angustifolia for his studies. It wasn't

until the herbs were growing that he found out he had been sent

purpurea. He didn't let this stop him he continued his study and

found that purpurea substituted perfectly for the uses he had in

mind. That study is the basis for the European market and use of

purpurea.

 

Echinacea's, though native to the plains region of North America,

are easily grown in many areas. It's beautiful, almost magenta

flowers are enough reason to add to your garden, but if you choose

to grow it medicinally, and harvest the root, you should wait to

harvest it no earlier than it's third year of growth and no later

than it's fourth. This is when the chemical constituents are at

their peak. The best way to insure this is to start your own seeds.

 

Echinacea seeds need to be stratified: that is given a time at being

frozen. Either the seed packets, or the sown seed in growing medium

are placed in the freezer or place outside. Direct seeding in Fall

works well and is very easy.

 

To harvest any root, you wait until between the first frost and when

you can no longer find the plant either due to total loss of foliage

or you can't find it under the snow. The energies, sugars, starch

and medicinal alkaloids are at their peak at this time as the plants

ready themselves for dormancy for the winter. Ideally, another time

to try and aim for when harvesting roots is in the waning moon,

between the full moon and the new moon. This is the time when the

moon is sending energies inward. This adds to the energy and so the

medicinal alkaloids in the root system. You can harvest roots in the

Spring but in my opinion not only is the plant " tired " out from

surviving the Winter, but it doesn't seem fair to dig it up after

surviving the long cold Winter.

 

When you are harvesting leaves and flowers you do so between the new

moon and the full, during the time of it's waxing and the moon is

pulling energy outward. The best time of day to harvest flowers and

leaves is in the mornings, on a clear sunny day right after the dew

has dried. On average through out the growing season, between before

10:00 am and 11:00 am.

 

Teas, salves, liniments, and tinctures can be made out of the root,

seeds and leaves and flowers. The root is the most widely used part.

Though I like to make a tincture from the leaves and flowers in the

summer months and after straining, use that tincture for the base of

the root tincture

 

It is used for both internal and external uses as an anti-bacterial.

It is said to be anti-viral, an alternative, lymphatic and as

stimulate for saliva production. It is an excellent immune system

tonic. It is said to be used for the treatment of blood poisoning,

boils, abscesses, bacterial and viral infections. It is reported to

be especially good for upper respiratory infections like

tonsillitis, bronchitis and laryngitis and the treatment of fevers,

colds and flu. It helps to rebuild damaged tissue, inhibits the

growth of tumors and recently has been used in the treatments of

candida. It is even reported to be insecticidal.

 

While large doses are noted to be not only safe but recommended in

crisis and chronic illnesses, dosage for small children should be

observed closely as it can cause them stomach irritation. For

further information check out the books listed in the Bibliography

below.

 

As with any herb the first time you start taking Echinacea in low

then increasing doses. (See the article on Herbs and Toxicity)

 

The most widely recommend manner in which to take Echinacea is to

start of with a low dose at the first sign of symptoms; about three

times a day, increasing as needed to upward of every two hours,

again decreasing as symptoms subside. The length of time depends on

various reports but a generalization would be to stop after 3 – 4

weeks; starting again after a week if needed. It is in my opinion

that if you are still that sick and haven't consulted a Healthcare

Practitioner of some type you should at that time.

 

With the new strains of virus developing due to the over use of anti-

biotics the use of herbal immune stimulants is becoming increasingly

important. This brings out the concept of the " cure all " or panacea.

Occasionally, an herb, vitamin or other substance catches the

attention of the population and is deemed the new " cure all " . Twenty

years ago it was Vitamin C. Now, this is an excellent vitamin and

one that should, in my opinion be taken as needed. If you feel

a " bug " coming on it helps to fight it off or alleviate the symptoms

by taking Vitamin C. But it will not always cure you and I have

found that when people take it and they still get sick or don't get

better immediately, they claim it doesn't work at all. In the last

few years Echinacea has taken the place of Vitamin C in this type of

observation. It is possible if you are taking Echinacea and you

still got sick that you possibly didn't take enough, or even that

you were taking too much, it is also possible that no matter what

you do you will still catch that bug. In that case Echinacea will

help you fight off the extreme symptoms, but still that doesn't mean

you won't feel miserable or that it is not working. Echinacea helps

you to build up the energy to fight off infections. Sometimes the

body just has to go through with the symptoms and get on with

things. So, the best thing for you to do is treat the symptoms and

get on with things too. There are no " Cure Alls " . The best way to

stay healthy, in my opinion is a healthy diet, moderate exercise and

drink plenty of fresh clean water; with the occasional use of herbs

when needed.

 

One last thing to consider in herbal healing is that what will cure

one person may not cure another, each of us is a unique individual

and though we may have the same symptoms as another, the solution

for it's alleviation will not necessarily be the same as someone

else's. When treating an individual, it must be remembered that that

persons problems are individual too. So if you have a friend where

an herb helped them and it has done nothing for you, it doesn't mean

herbal healing itself doesn't work, just that, that herb, for that

problem wasn't the one for you. You have to keep searching and

trying and eventually you will find your own unique solution.

 

Bibliography

 

Echinacea, The Immune Herb Christopher Hobbs, L.Ac. Botanica Press

 

The Way of Herbs Michael Tierra, C.A., N.D. Pocket Books

 

The Green Pharmacy James A. Duke, Ph.D. Rodale Press

 

School of Natural Healing Dr. John R. Christopher Christopher

Publications

 

Peterson Field Guides Eastern/Central Medicinal Plants Steven Foster

and James Duke