The purple coneflower, Echinacea purpurea, is a drought-tolerant perennial of the flowering plant Family Asteraceae and native to North America. It has daisy-like purple flowers arranged in a large cone-shaped head.

Herbal remedy

As an herbal remedy, Echinacea is attributed with the ability to boost the body's immune system and fight off infections. It is used in the treatment of:

• Colds, coughs and flu and other upper respiratory conditions
• Enlarged lymph glands , sore throat
• Urinary tract infections
• Other minor infections
• Herpes and candida
• Wounds, skin regeneration and skin infections (external use)
• Psoriasis, eczema and inflammatory skin conditions (external use)

There are three species of echinacea — E. purpurea, E. angustifolia, and E. pallida. Depending on which species is used, herbal medications are made from the above-ground herb (aerial) and/or root portions. It is not clearly known which of echinacea's many chemical components are responsible for its effects, although all species possess a certain marker compounds of the chemical class called "phenols" (cichoric and caftaric acids are phenols that are present in the aerial and root portions of E. purpurea, and echinacoside is a phenol found in higher levels specifically within E. angustifolia and E. pallida roots). When making herbal remedies, these phenols serve as markers to evaluate the quality of echinacea in the product. Other constituents that may be important include alkamides and polysaccharides.

History

Echinacea has been used extensively North American Plains Indians who used it medicinally more than any other plant. Since the 1930s it became prominent in both European and American medicine.

Controversy behind echinacea

In the United States there is no government agency that routinely tests echinacea or other dietary supplements for their contents or quality. Some organizations, like ConsumerLab.com have found that some echinacea products do not contain the proper ingredients or may be contaminated.

A recent medical study by Taylor et al. (2003)¹ demonstrated that the herb provided no beneficial effect for children in treating the severity or duration of symptoms caused by the common cold.

However, many scientific studies have documented the chemistry, pharmacology, and clinical applications of echinacea. It has consistently shown that it stimulates phagocytosis (encouraging white blood cells and lymphocytes to attack invading organisms).

Echinacea should not be used in progressive systemic and auto-immune disorders such as tuberculosis, leicosis , connective tissue disorders, collagenosis and related diseases such as lupus erythematosus, according to the German Kommission E. Its use in AIDS or opportunistic infections in AIDS patients is controversial.

If used for more than 8 weeks, echinacea may cause liver damage.² It should not be used with other known hepatotoxic drugs such as anabolic steroids, amiodarone (Pacerone^® or Cordarone^®), methotrexate or ketoconazole (Nizoral^®).

References

• Taylor, J. A., et al. 2003. Journal of the American Medical Association. December 3, 2003
• Arch Intern Med. 1998;158:2200-2211

External link

• Monograph Echinacea purpurea herba
• ConsumerLab.com - Echinacea review
• The Herb Research Foundation: Herb Information Greenpaper - Echinacea