Echinacea
Echinacea purpurea
A purple coneflower traditionally used to support the immune system, especially for colds.
Safety at a glance
- Pregnancy1 note →
- BreastfeedingNothing recorded
- Medicines1 note →
- Who should avoid itNothing recorded
- Allergies1 note →
- ToxicityNothing recorded
Tap a box to read the safety notes below. “Nothing recorded” means our sources don't cover it, not that it's safe.
Echinacea may interact with some medicines. If you take any medicine, read Interactions with medicines below and talk to your doctor or pharmacist before using it.
What is Echinacea?
- Plant family
- Asteraceae, the daisy family
- Parts used
- The root and the above-ground parts (leaves, flowers and stems)
- Where it grows
- Central and eastern United States
- Genus
- Echinacea
- Species
- purpurea
Also called
Purple Coneflower, Eastern Purple Coneflower
Older scientific names
Rudbeckia purpurea L., Brauneria purpurea (L.) Britton
Traditionally used for
- Colds and flu
- Tinctures
- Teas
Traditionally described as
- May stimulate the immune system
- May help reduce inflammation
Health topics
Where Echinacea appears in symptom search, and why. Being listed doesn't mean it's a proven treatment.
- Colds and Nasal Congestion
It may slightly lower the chance of catching a cold, but a Cochrane review found no meaningful benefit for treating colds.
Traditions that use it
- Native American Ethnobotany
Native American peoples used echinacea to relieve toothache, calm coughs and increase saliva, using preparations rich in natural compounds called alkamides. This use carried over into Eclectic medicine, a branch of American medicine in the early 1900s that relied heavily on plants.
Technical detail: antitussive, sialagogue.
Natural compounds
How it's prepared
Common ways Echinacea is prepared or sold. This isn't advice on how to take it; see Safety below.
- Extract
Juice pressed from the fresh flowering plant, or the dried juice, is taken by mouth in liquids or tablets.[1]Health agency
- Tea / Infusion
Herbalists use an infusion in small, frequent amounts at the first sign of illness, rather than as a long-term daily supplement.[2]General reference
- Tincture
Herbalists also use it as a tincture, taken often at the start of symptoms.[2]General reference
Safety
Interactions with medicines
It's unclear whether echinacea affects some medicines that are broken down by the liver; studies disagree. There are also theoretical reasons it might interact with medicines that suppress the immune system (immunosuppressants) or with caffeine.[3]Health agency
Allergies
Echinacea is closely related to sunflowers, daisies and ragweed. Some people are allergic to echinacea, and reactions can be severe.[3]Health agency
Side effects
The most common side effects are digestive, such as stomach pain, nausea and an upset stomach. Studies have reported few side effects overall, but one study in children linked echinacea to more rashes.[3]Health agency
Pregnancy
Some solid or liquid extracts of Echinacea purpurea, and some mixtures of E. purpurea and E. angustifolia, are possibly safe for up to 7 days during the first 3 months of pregnancy, but there is little data. Talk to a health care provider before using it while pregnant.[3]Health agency
How much to use
Products with extracts of Echinacea purpurea, and some mixtures of E. purpurea and E. angustifolia, are likely safe for most adults for short periods. Whether long-term use is safe is unknown.[3]Health agency
What does the research say?
Traditional use
These are traditional uses, not proven treatments.
Historically, Native American peoples used echinacea to relieve toothache, calm coughs and increase saliva. These uses were later taken up by Eclectic doctors in early-1900s America, who relied heavily on plant medicines.[4]Study
Technical detail: antitussive, sialagogue.
Laboratory & animal research
Lab and animal results show what might be worth studying in people. They don't show that the herb has these effects in humans.
In lab and animal studies, natural compounds in echinacea (Echinacea purpurea) made several types of immune cells more active, including cells that swallow germs and "natural killer" cells, and increased the chemical signals immune cells use to communicate. Some of these compounds also act on the same receptors (CB2) that respond to cannabis compounds.[4]Study
Technical detail: constituents: alkylamides, caffeic acid derivatives such as chicoric acid, polysaccharides and glycoproteins. Effects: activated phagocytosis and fibroblast stimulation; increased leukocyte motility; enhanced neutrophil, macrophage and natural killer cell activity; increased TNF-alpha, IL-1 and IFN-beta; alkylamides interact with cannabinoid CB2 receptors.
Research in people
A 2014 Cochrane review pooled 24 high-quality trials with 4,631 people. It found that echinacea products have not been shown to help treat colds in a meaningful way. Trials on preventing colds pointed toward a small benefit, but the results weren't statistically significant; one extra analysis suggested it might lower the risk of a cold by 10–20%, which may not matter much in practice. Side effects were no more common than with placebo (a dummy pill).[5]Review or trial
Technical detail: 24 double-blind randomized controlled trials, 33 comparisons; the 10–20% relative risk reduction came from a post hoc analysis.
Taking echinacea may slightly lower your chances of catching a cold, but it's unclear whether it makes a cold go away faster. Research on whether some types of echinacea boost the immune system is inconclusive.[3]Health agency
In short
Not recommended for people with autoimmune conditions without medical advice.
Sources
- [1] European Union herbal monograph on Echinacea purpurea (L.) Moench, herba recens — European Medicines Agency, Committee on Herbal Medicinal Products (HMPC)Government health agency
- [2] Echinacea — Herban Herbalist materia medica — Herban Herbalist (herb shop)General reference
- [3] Echinacea — National Center for Complementary and Integrative Health (NIH)Government health agency
- [4] Echinacea purpurea (L.) Moench: Biological and Pharmacological Properties. A Review — Plants (Basel) · DOI: 10.3390/plants11091244Peer-reviewed study
- [5] Echinacea for preventing and treating the common cold — Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews · DOI: 10.1002/14651858.CD000530.pub3Review or clinical trial
This information is educational and traditional in nature, and is not a substitute for professional medical advice. Unfamiliar word? See what these words mean.