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Ease Cold Symptoms with Echinacea

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Just a glance at the lavender-hued petals and deep crimson center of Echinacea flowers can brighten a gloomy day. That’s probably why this wildflower is a staple in many gardens. Plus, with many medicinal uses, echinacea is a wonderful addition to your home apothecary, especially during cold and flu season.

 

Echinacea, immunity, colds, flu, sore throat, herbs

 

TRADITIONAL USES FOR ECHINACEA

Historically, Native Americans used echinacea for more therapeutic purposes than any other herb. Fresh root was chewed to numb a toothache while juice made from the roots was used in baths and salves to treat skin irritations and even snakebites. By the mid-1800s, American herbalists were using it to treat cold, cough and other respiratory symptoms. Usage in America declined in the 1900s but picked up in Germany where much of the research on the herb has been done.

 

COMMON USES FOR ECHINACEA TODAY

Today, echinacea is one of the most well-studied herbs. Herbalists and physicians from many different countries use it for the treatment of the common cold, flu, cough, sore throat and fever. While many believe echinacea can be used to prevent illness, it’s more effective at reducing the intensity and length of a cold by about two days. Echinacea also helps boost immune function thereby enhancing the body’s ability to resist infection.

 

WAYS TO BENEFIT FROM ECHINACEA

Echinacea can be taken as a tea, tincture or in capsule form. Daily use of tea is a wonderful addition to your relaxation ritual. When taking echinacea to combat a cold, it’s best to take it at the first sign of illness. Ask your holistic physician which form and dose of echinacea are best for you.

 

Caution: Always check with your doctor before starting any herb/supplement or other health intervention. Echinacea should not be taken by individuals with autoimmune diseases.

 

 

HOW DO YOU EASE COLD SYMPTOMS WITH ECHINACEA? SHARE IN THE COMMENTS BELOW!

 

 

References
  • Johnson, R.L., S. Foster, Low Dog, T. and Kiefer, D. National Geographic Guide to Medicinal Herbs: The World’s Most Effective Healing Plants(2012) 65-67. Washington, D.C.: National Geographic.
  • Natural Medicines Comprehensive Database Online. Accessed 17 Dec 2018: http://naturaldatabase.therapeuticresearch.com/(X(1)S(umfwo0iqznos3t55f00s4155))/nd/Search.aspx?cs=&s=nd&pt=100&id=981&AspxAutoDetectCookieSupport=1
  • Pizzorno, J. E., & Murray, M. T. (2013). Textbook of natural medicine. St. Louis, Mo: Elsevier/Churchill Livingstone.
Photo Credit
  • bildlove/bigstockphoto.com

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Alexandria Z., M.S.

Christine is my wellness goddess. Her amazing support, extraordinary expertise, and undeniable compassion invited me to a world of freedom from digestive discomfort that I didn’t know was possible. The whirlwind of bloating, constipation, brain fog, and digestive upheaval was consuming my life. Exhaustion and frustration were becoming my very existence. And then I met my health goddess! Christine’s astute listening and meticulously tailored guidance, transformed my thinking and whirlwind of digestive discomfort. She helped me achieve a state of equilibrium. The balance I now experience is the center of my wellness existence—the core of my life with digestive happiness.

 

Christine instilled in me the power to embrace the grace and strength of my very own body! She has taught me to internalize the boundless evidence of my body’s functionality to heal digestively. While working with Christine, my exhaustion, pain, and bloating were overshadowed with energy, digestive comfort, glowing skin, and knowledge. Her coaching raised my awareness of food sensitivities, and promoted better food choices, which led to better sleep, a stronger link to overall wellness, clarity in my thinking, and ultimately, more joy in my life.  Christine’s remarkable spirit of wellness will forever echo in my digestive wellness journey. I bestow upon Christine the well-deserved exceptional title, “my wellness goddess.”
2015-07-27T17:47:59-04:00
Christine is my wellness goddess. Her amazing support, extraordinary expertise, and undeniable compassion invited me to a world of freedom from digestive discomfort that I didn’t know was possible. The whirlwind of bloating, constipation, brain fog, and digestive upheaval was consuming my life. Exhaustion and frustration were becoming my very existence. And then I met my health goddess! Christine’s astute listening and meticulously tailored guidance, transformed my thinking and whirlwind of digestive discomfort. She helped me achieve a state of equilibrium. The balance I now experience is the center of my wellness existence—the core of my life with digestive happiness.   Christine instilled in me the power to embrace the grace and strength of my very own body! She has taught me to internalize the boundless evidence of my body’s functionality to heal digestively. While working with Christine, my exhaustion, pain, and bloating were overshadowed with energy, digestive comfort, glowing skin, and knowledge. Her coaching raised my awareness of food sensitivities, and promoted better food choices, which led to better sleep, a stronger link to overall wellness, clarity in my thinking, and ultimately, more joy in my life.  Christine’s remarkable spirit of wellness will forever echo in my digestive wellness journey. I bestow upon Christine the well-deserved exceptional title, “my wellness goddess.”