Echinacea (Echinacea spp.)

LET THIS "FAIRY GODMOTHER "GODMOTHER" OF HERBS CARRY YOU THROUGH THE REST OF THE WINTER

the snow is falling outside and cold winds are blowing. But inside, co,workers are coughing while schools and day-care centers look like holiday hotels for every cold and flu bug in the neighborhood. It's mid-winter, and getting through the rest of the season without getting sick is on everyone's mind. To do that, your immune system has to be strong. You probably already know the basics:

EAT a diet rich in fresh veggies, whole grains, legumes and fruit

DRINK lots of water, preferably filtered

Herbal medicines made from Echinacea purpurea (L.) Moench, E. angustifolia DC., E. pallida (Nutt.) Nutt., Asteraceae, are used widely for a number of health concerns.

When the cold winds of winter are barely a memory for the Native Americans who live in Poplar, Montana, a flourish of the Yah'pehu, or Echinacea angustifolia, plant emerges from the new prairie grass. The arrival of this long-cherished herb should be a welcome sight, but Curley Youpee, a Sioux tribal leader at the nearby Fort Peck Reservation, knows that once the flower blooms, this lonely corner of the state will be overrun by herbal company employees and root diggers hoarding Montana's purple gold.

The article focuses on the need to do more research work on Echinacea for medicinal purposes. The users of echinacea are in a dilemma because of the increasing confusion between the researchers o...

An interview with scientists including Drs.Jürg Gertsch, Anita Matthias, and Reg Lehmann is presented. When asked about the things discovered while studying the alkylamide components of Echinacea...