The effectiveness of herbal remedies in warding off viral and bacterial infections remains a topic of debate. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention states that no scientific evidence supports the use of herbs in preventing the flu, while the University of Maryland Medical Center concedes that time-honored herbal methods of flu prevention merit closer scientific scrutiny. Consult your doctor before taking herbal remedies, and educate yourself as to what scientific evidence exists.
Garlic
Garlic contains compounds that bolster the activity at receptor sites in white blood cells, which are your body's first line of defense against infection. In a study published in the January 2000 issue of the Journal of the National Medical Association, Dr. Tariq Abdullah of the Timbuktu Research Consortium describes the use of garlic by health care providers seeking to avoid infection at the onset of flu season. Abdullah states that raw garlic was taken orally with honey, and that subjects would chew the cloves and retain them in their mouths for as long as possible in order to absorb volatile compounds through the mucus membranes of their mouths. Breathing in the garlic fumes was thought to introduce their beneficial properties to the sinuses, and swallowing the gloves followed, to allow the gastrointestinal tract to further absorb any flu fighting benefits this herb provides.
Echinacea
Echinacea is one of the most widely used medicinal herbs believed to enhance immunity. The University of Maryland Medical Center reports that the use of Echinacea as a cure-all goes back 400 years among the Native Americans. Echinacea use declined with the advent in of antibiotics, but German interest in the herb has prompted scientific inquiry into its effectiveness in that country. Dosages of this herb are weight dependent: a 150 lb adult is advised to take 300 mg of standardized Echinacea powdered extract with 4 percent phenolics, while a 50 lb child would take one third that amount.
Panax Ginseng
Panax ginseng is sometimes known Asian, or Korean ginseng. This herb has been used in Asian medicine since ancient times as an adaptogen, a substance that helps the body adapt and react to the stresses of life. Dr. David Kiefer of the University of Arizona School of Medicine acknowledges that a paucity of scientifically rigorous research on its uses taints claims about the effectiveness of Panax ginseng, but notes that a 12 week daily intake100 mg of the Panax ginseng extract Ginsana was associated with an increased flu vaccine effectiveness. Patients who took the extract had fewer cold and flu episodes, higher antibody levels and increased white blood cell activity.
References
- "Journal of the National Medical Association"; A Strategic Call to Utilize Echinacea- Garlic in Flu-Cold Seasons; Tariq Abdullah; January 2000
- University of Maryland Medical Center: Influenza
- American Family Physician: Panax Ginseng
- Centers for Disease Control and Prevention: Seasonal Influenza
- University of Maryland Medical Center: Echinacea
