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Ease a Cold with Echinacea and Zinc

Echinacea 800mg (100 caps)

Echinacea is popular as an immune stimulant and to boost the immune system

Echinacea is effectice against, and used to treat common colds, flu, & sore throat. A natural antibiotic, echinacea is used to treat infections, to combat low resistance to sickness & to enhance the immune system.

Echinacea was highly valued in Native American medicine, with more uses than any other plant including the healing wounds & treatment of snakebites. Today, research shows clear scientific reasons for its effectiveness.

Echinacea Safety

Echinacea is one of the safest of herbal remedies and is one of the most popular; it is prescribed in continental Europe millions of times a year! Long term use seems to be well tolerated & is not thought to be harmful. Echinacea should not be used during pregnancy or breast-feeding. It has been suggested Echinacea may interfere with immuno suppressive therapy & should not be used long-term by persons with severe systemic illnesses such as tuberculosis, collagen (autoimmune) diseases, AIDS or multiple sclerosis, although this is a theoretical concern & there is no evidence to support it. Allergic reactions to Echinacea are infrequent.

What's in Echinacea and how does it work?

The ability of Echinacea to stimulate the immune system is extremely well documented. The primary constituent responsible for its activity are large sugar molecules called polysaccharides. Two in particular have been identified as beneficial: inulin and arabinogalactin. These polysaccharides activate the immune system in many ways. Echinacea has been shown to increase production of T cells, increase levels of circulating neutrophils, improve leukocyte phagocytosis, assist antibody binding and natural killer cell activity. Echinacea also has direct antibacterial properties. In general, Echinacea has been thoroughly demonstrated to reduce the duration and severity of common cold and flu symptoms. Echinacea is a herb that deserves its place in our medicine cabinet.

How should I use Echinacea?

One recent study showed that a daily intake of 450 mg had no value over that of a placebo, but 900mg daily was quite effective in staving off cold and flu symptoms. This being the case, it is recommended that 1g (1000mg) be taken 3 times daily at the onset of cold or flu symptoms. It works wonders in combination with Zinc, particularly at the onset of symptoms.

Zinc 50mg (250 tabs)

How does zinc exert its therapeutic effect?

At concentrations of 0.1 mmol/L, zinc is able to inhibit in vitro replication of several viruses known to cause the common cold. However, zinc’s exact mode of action in vivo is unknown. Several mechanisms have been postulated and are reviewed elsewhere. Proposed mechanisms by which zinc may exert its therapeutic effect include inhibiting viral capsid protein production, inducing the production of gamma interferon, and stabilizing and protecting plasma membranes against lysis by cytotoxic agents. Another suggested mechanism involves zinc inhibiting rhinoviral interaction with intercellular adhesion molecules, the site where the virus initially binds to epithelial cells. Some have also proposed that zinc may interfere with the release of histamine and other inflammatory mediators from mast cell granules. Still others have noted that zinc does have some immune-enhancing properties, at least at the deficiency end of the nutritional spectrum. Individuals who are zinc-deficient, such as children from economically disadvantaged populations, adolescents with low dietary intake of zinc, and adults with subclinical zinc deficiency, may benefit from zinc supplementation through an enhancement of cellular immunity. While this hypothesis seems plausible, serum zinc levels were not measured in previous studies examining the role of zinc in the common cold. One expert in this field recently advocated that future studies measure serum zinc levels before and after treatment.

Generally, it is believed that for zinc to work, it must be taken at the first sign of cold symptoms. Therefore, one should begin treatment within 24 hours of onset of cold symptoms.