Echinacea - Beauty Wild-Flower Antiviral Herb

echinacea purpurea

Echinacea is a beauty wildflower that mostly uses as antiviral herb. Echinacea works well to help eliminate colds or flu, or help fight minor infections. Mostly, ones who suffer cold or flu symptoms usually use a liquid Echinacea product, often the expressed-fresh juice of Echinacea purpurea.

Echinacea is a genus in the aster family. There are nine species of Echinacea. The three species most commonly found in herb products are Echinacea angustifolia, E. purpurea and E. pallida.


Other species include two Federally-listed endangered species - E. tennesseensis (obviously from Tennessee), and the rare Appalachian species, E. laevigata. The yellow-flowered E. paradoxa (the paradox of this "purple coneflower" is that it is yellow) and E. simulata (simulating E. pallida), are both native to the Ozarks of Arkansas and Missouri. Other unusual species include E. atrorubens, and E. sanguinea.

Most of the time they are looking for E. purpurea or E. angustifolia, the most commonly used species in the American herb trade. While E. purpurea, E. angustifolia, and E. pallida are used for the same purposes, there are distinct differences in their chemistry, even in different plant parts, which can affect how (or if) a preparation works.

Therefore, when talking or writing about Echinacea, it has become important to ask the question "which species?" This is a significant point in herbal medicine in general. If we do not know exactly what plant material we are working with, than questions can arise about if a product will work. Plant identification is one of the most significant and often ignored aspects of herbal medicine. It is a very important aspect of understanding Echinacea.

Echinacea is valued as a short-term stimulant to the immune system, especially as a preventative at the onset of colds and flu, or to reduce the symptoms and duration of cold and flu infections. Various species of Echinacea, including the roots of E. angustifolia, E. pallida, and E. purpurea, have been found to stimulate the immune system. Also components soluble only in alcohol, as well as different compounds soluble only in water from different Echinacea species have been found to stimulate the immune system to help fight infections.

One of the main mechanisms of action for Echinacea is that it simulates phagocytosis in the blood stream. Phagocytosis is the first defense component of the cellular immune system, a process that helps to prevent the invasion of foreign substances in the body. One important factor in immunostimulation is an increase in phagocytosis (by macrophages and granulocytes). Macrophages and granulocytes are cells in the blood that "ingest" invading pathogens or particles acting like janitors or guardians of the blood stream.

Other components in Echinacea have been shown to have a mild antibacterial and fungicidal activity. These compounds have been found to slow down the spread of bacteria, rather than kill them outright like an antibiotic. Other components have been shown to increase fibroblasts (cells involved in the development of connective tissue) helping to stimulate new tissue development.

Properdin, a serum protein complex, which helps to activate different immune system mechanisms, has also been shown to be increased by Echinacea extracts. Rather than relying on one chemical compound, or "magic bullet," or one mechanism of action, Echinacea works on a multifaceted level to help the body help itself.