According to this study by Turner & Pals, Echinacea is not effective against the common cold.
-Bummer.
If you believe that study.
There may be light at the end of the tunnel, though…
This post by UVA Med + Turner himself reveals something interesting about Echinacea versus other herbal supplements; especially tricky ones like Kava.
DUN, DUNN DUUUNNNNNN!!!! -There is No Standardization for Echinacea.
Yups, you read that right.
No standardization.
… A-HAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!!!!!!!!!11!!!!
-Like saying a Hamburger could be made out of ANY part of a cow, and that there was No minimum protein, fat, +whatever, content recipe for that burger.
(OK, you win; -entirely possible at McDonald’s. -Not very possible at an actual restaurant or supermarket)
((-or: Believe the Results of a Drug Study if the active concentration of every pill dispensed was all over the place.))
SO:
–How do you know what you’re getting? -If the particular compounds have been identified at all? -Which of the 9 species were used? -What time of the year were they harvested? -What was the plant’s condition? -If there’s a difference between: Roots, Stems, Flower, Seeds, or Ill-Tempered Dalmatian Gremlins loitering in the neighborhood?
*Ask anyone who doesn’t want Liver Damage from taking Kava, like the islanders who discovered it, and they’ll tell you there’s One Hell of a difference between the Root vs. the Leaves & Stems; (which they discard).
==>If you take Echinacea, there is no guarantee if you’re getting something that’s effective + in a proper preparation, or just a bunch of Plant Matter in a capsule. (save the small bit the ‘SF’ label tells you)
A Little History:
The Big E is a Native American folk remedy that’s been used for thousands of years.
The people back then, whose Lives may have depended on its effectiveness, may have had a Particular way of prepping the stuff to use. -Ie: Fresh, dried, stems only, roots only, flowers but no seeds, etc. And their way of doing it probably had the highest success rate given the tools & techniques available.
{-cue Light in Tunnel:*BLING!*}
SO: I think that’s one of the reasons why a Recent Meta-Analysis that reviewed 14 other previous studies on Echinacea, found that it was -on average- 58% effective in Butt-Whomping the common cold. (yes, Butt-Whomping is a Highly Scientific term).
They also found it was Even More effective if taken as a Preventative; -or with Vitamin C.
And as a few smart Digg commenters have opined: Herbal Tinctures (ie: alcohol solution) of the stuff may have a better guarantee at potency than just any old Capsule with green stuff in it.
So the next time, the SECOND I feel like I’m getting even a minor sniffle, I’ll run the experiment on myself, using the Tincture forms of each plant part, by the most reputable herbal company I can find reviews on.
((((that is, Instead of Listening to Studies Conducted by People Affiliated With, or Once and Future Employees of, Big Pharma Companies (who as yet, have not cured the common cold). ))))
Note: Some of the Side-Effects of Echinacea are Allergic Reactions and Bad Interactions with Immune Disorders and Immune-oriented Drugs.
Note 2: Right now, it looks like one of the surest ways to tell is something like this that says right on the can what the concentration is.
Photo Credits:
“Icy”, by Linda6
“Ice Flower”, by Sabine Simon, saflora.de.vu
Links:
Turner+Pals @ NEJM Digg-Echinacea-Colds
UVA-No Standards Foxnews-Echinacea Review
Meta-Analysis @ The Lancet Echinacea at e-herbal
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