Dr. Michael Murray The IMMUNE FA CTOR - Natural MediFAQS

T H E I M M U N E F A C T O R
other plant. Externally it was used for the healing of
wounds, burns, abscesses, and insect bites while
internally it was used for infections, toothache and joint
pain; and as an antidote for rattlesnake bite!
When did “Western Medicine” Discover Echinacea?
Echinacea became quite familiar to settlers during the
18th and 19th centuries. Its popularity soared when a
commercial product containing echinacea was
introduced to Americans in 1870 by H.C.F. Meyer, a
German lay healer, who recommended it as a wonder
cure called “Meyer’s blood purifier.” Just like the
natives, Meyer recommended it for almost every
conceivable malady. There were in fact numerous case
reports of echinacea successfully treating snake bite,
typhus, diphtheria and other infections. One of the most
interesting aspects of the history of echinacea is that
modern research helps us understand and validate this
herb’s historical use as a “blood purifier.” Although this
term is now antiquated, based on recent scientific
studies there is ample evidence that echinacea does, in
fact, help purify the blood. It stimulates the cells
responsible for clearing foreign material from the blood,
while it rids the body of viruses, bacteria, cancer cells
and other particulate matter.
Although many physicians in the late 1800s and
early 1900s began to investigate and use echinacea as a
serious medicine, in 1909 the Council on Pharmacy and
Chemistry of the American Medical Association refused
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