Dr. Michael Murray The IMMUNE FA CTOR - Natural MediFAQS

On the surface, these results do not seem to support
the effectiveness of echinacea preparations in the
prevention of upper respiratory infections. However, it
is important to examine the form and dosage of the
echinacea products used in this study. Both echinacea
preparations used were very weak ethanol based
tinctures. The herb to solvent ratio was 1:11 meaning
that for every gram of herbal material there was 11 ml
of the water and alcoholic (30% ethanol) solution. The
dosage administered was 50 drops twice daily for a total
of approximately 2 ml. Using the herb-to-solvent ratio,
that represent about 200 mg of echinacea—hardly a
therapeutic dose.
Furthermore, the starting material of both forms of
echinacea was dried root, and neither preparation was
analyzed for active compounds. If they had been
analyzed, it is unlikely that either would have contained
sufficient levels of actives to produce an effect.
So, take a low dosage of a poorly prepared, weak
solution and you won’t stop respiratory infections.
What did the researchers expect? Very little and that is
exactly what was demonstrated.
Quality Control for Immune Effectiveness
End of the common cold?
The problem of quality control with echinacea is possibly
greater than any other plant for several reasons.
Prior to Natural Factors’ development of Echinamide
there was not a product available that was standardized
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