Dr. Michael Murray The IMMUNE FA CTOR - Natural MediFAQS

may contribute significantly to the faster healing of
acute lesions, reduction of relapses, and prevention of
initial infections.
Some companies claim echinacea angustifolia is better than
E. purpurea. Is this claim true?
Not likely. E. purpurea, especially that used for
Echinamide products, contains higher levels of three
key ingredients: cichoric acid, alkylamides, and polysaccharides
with immune enhancing properties. 2,38
Based upon currently available information, it appears
that the best choice of echinacea is the above ground
portion of E. purpurea.
Many companies claim their products are standardized for “total
phenolic compounds” or echinacoside. Is this valid?
Q and A
No. In fact, although these sort of echinacea extracts
were found to have some antioxidant properties, recent
studies have found them to have no effect on enhancing
immune function in experimental animal studies. 1
Standardizing an echinacea preparation for these
compounds alone does not mean it is an active product.
It just highlights the importance of standardizing
preparations for the three classes of active compounds
responsible for the main immune enhancing effects—
polysaccharides, cichoric acid, and alkylamides. Again,
Echinamide is the only commercially available product
that accomplishes this goal.
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