TREATMENT DATABASE

The roots of the purple coneflower (Echinacea angustifolia, E. purpura) were used by Plains Indians as a cure for all kinds of infections. Although it has been relied on as a topical wound healer since Colonial times, echinacea's antibiotic properties have largely been unexplored until recently. Research conducted in Germany in the 1950s through the 1980s revealed that echinacea has broad antibiotic properties, much like penicillin, due to a substance (echinacein) that counteracts cell-penetrating enzymes. In this manner, echinacea works to strengthen individual cell defenses.

Echinacea also acts as an immune system stimulant. Echinacea boosts the macrophage's ability to destroy germs. It possesses antifungal as well as antibacterial properties. As an antiviral agent, echinacea has been used effectively to treat influenza and the common cold as well as to check herpesvirus infections.

Treatment rating for Echinacea