What is Echinacea?
TheEchinacea is a genus of perennial herbaceous plants comprising nine species, but only three of them are used for commercial purposes: the use of flower extract of, Echinacea pallida and Echinacea angustifolia.
These are plants native to North America, belonging to the largest family of Asteraceae and of particular interest mainly from an ornamental and herbal perspective.
TheEchinacea, thanks to its immunostimulant properties, is one of the most sought-after medicinal plants in Italian herbal medicine.
The term Echinacea commonly refers to the roots, the rhizome and the aerial parts of some plants native to the temperate regions of North America.
Echinacea Angustifolia: why is it the most widely used?
Echinacea Angustifolia is one of the known medicinal plants and belongs to the Asteraceae family, also known as Compositae, which includes several other well-known plants. It is the same family as daisies, for example, as well as Arnica montana.
The “composites,” as botanists call them, all have a similarly structured flower, shaped like a cup and surrounded by petals 2. The daisy is a typical example, and Echinacea Angustifolia also has this shape.
Echinacea was first used centuries ago by Native Americans of the Sioux tribe, who used it to treat various ailments or injuries, such as rattlesnake bites or toothache. During archaeological excavations at sites frequented by the Lakota Sioux, Echinacea seeds dating back to the 17th century were found.
What is the difference between Echinacea Purpurea and Angustifolia?
In fact, there are as many as 9 species belonging to this genus, but the most studied are three: Echinacea Angustifolia, Echinacea purpurea and Echinacea pallida, all different from one another botanically, in composition and pharmacological activity, although similar in their clinical use. In fact, the latter is why Echinacea has been widely known to Europeans since the 18th century, while Native Americans had used it for much longer, for example, to heal wounds.
What types of Echinacea are used in herbal medicine?
The three most commonly used echinacea species include E. angustifolia, E. pallida, and E. purpurea. Although all these species have been studied in clinical trials, E. Angustifolia is the most studied and has the strongest evidence of its effectiveness in treating cold and flu symptoms.
Several studies have shown that Echinacea pallida (also known as white echinacea) contains higher levels of polysaccharides than pallida or purpurea, but still lower levels than Angustifolia
Echinacea Mother Tincture: what is it and how is it obtained?
The mother tincture (TM) is a liquid preparation obtained by extracting the fresh drug through percolation o maceration with a suitable solvent. The solvent most commonly used in mother tinctures is a hydroalcoholic solution (water + alcohol) with a variable alcohol content (most often between 60° and 80°), depending on the solubility of the active compounds to be extracted.
Echinacea mother tincture is an herbal preparation extracted from the fresh plant of Echinacea angustifolia o the use of flower extract of. Very useful for its protective properties, it is used to prevent infections and speed up healing.
The “drug” (the part used) ofEchinacea Angustifolia corresponds to root; harvest in winter; while for the Purpurea the aerial parts collected in late spring. The plant used is fresh, since when dried it loses much of its properties. Echinacea mother tincture is prepared with a weight ratio drug-to-solvent ratio of 1:10 and alcohol content of 55% vol.
Alcohol-Free Echinacea Mother Tincture: what is it and who is it suitable for?
The Echinacea Mother Tincture alcohol-free, or Echinacea Glyceric Macerate, is obtained by hydro-glyceric maceration of the solvent, always with the ratio 1:10.
As water is less suitable for extraction than alcohol, extraction techniques such as Ultrasound are used.
Echinacea Glyceric Macerate: what is it?
In recent years, Mother Tinctures extracted with Vegetable Glycerin instead of Alcohol, making them better from several points of view.
Furthermore, since Glycerin is a less powerful and therefore less extractive type of solvent than Alcohol, innovative extraction techniques are used, such asUltrasound Extraction.
Ultrasound Extraction is an innovative, clean, easy, and quick extraction technique that makes it possible to extract active ingredients from vegetables and medicinal plants in particular and to produce quality phytoextracts, using exclusively the mechanical action exerted by the cavitation effect produced by sound waves.
The Alcohol-free Echinacea Mother Tincture is obtained by the hydroglyceric maceration of the roots of Echinacea, always with a 1:10 ratio, and is an innovative type of Mother Tinctures, which, having been obtained through the ultrasound process, makes it better from several points of view.
At Vonderweid, thanks to our twenty years of experience in the field of Food Supplements and after a lengthy research and development process in our laboratories for the production of Alcohol-free Mother Tinctures, we managed to obtain a product with the desired characteristics.
Our alcohol-free Mother Tinctures are classified as Food Supplements and are regularly notified to the Ministry of Health.
Echinacea: how should it be taken and for how long?
The recommended dosage of echinacea depends on a person’s age, health, and other factors.
The recommended daily dose is generally between 300 and 500 mg in the case of capsules, or 20-30 drops 2 times a day in the case of Mother Tinctures.
It is recommended to start taking Echinacea supplements preventively 2 or 3 months before the cold seasons arrive. The dosage of Echinacea varies depending on whether it is used for prevention or treatment, and also on the purity and quality of the product.
Per curare tosse o raffreddore assumere 2 o 3 volte al giorno lontano dai pasti 30-40 gocce di tintura madre, diminuendo la frequenza via via che i sintomi spariscono.
alcohol-free mother tincture
Echinacea: what is it used for and what are its benefits? The Echinacea, whose roots and aerial parts are used primarily, has immunostimulant, anti-inflammatory, and vulnerary properties. It is therefore used toprevent colds , alleviating flu symptoms, combating recurrent infections and, for topical use, treating wounds, ulcers,, burns canker sores
and dermatitis.The medicinal use of this plant dates back to ancient times, and modern pharmacopoeia has expanded traditional knowledge by assigning these plants a leading role in strengthening immune defenses. In addition to external medicinal or phytocosmetic uses, echinacea can also be used to treat influenza and common cold conditions. The European Medicines Agency[1] (EMEA) approved the use of flower extract of Echinacea purpurea
for the short-term prevention and treatment of the common cold
- The main function of echinacea is to strengthen the immune system, enabling it to fight infections and viruses. The berries and roots of this plant contain chemical substances that may help with the following: Combat and influenza and respiratory tract infections (sinusitis, bronchitis)
- It also helps reduce inflammation thanks to its anti-inflammatory action
- It can also be used to treat skin rashes, skin infections, eczema, psoriasis, and acne.
What does Echinacea contain?:
Echinacea contains several bioactive compounds, including
- POLYSACCHARIDES
- FLAVONOIDS
- DERIVATIVES OF CAFFEIC ACID AND CHICORIC ACID, WHICH APPEARS TO BE THE MOST ACTIVE COMPOUND.
The active ingredients are found in the root and are: ketoalkenes and ketoalkynes with hydroxylated derivatives differentiated among the extracts of Echinacea pallida and Echinacea angustifolia, essential oil from 0.2 to 2%, derivatives polyacetylenic, derivatives ofcaffeic acid includingechinacoside (up to 11% while cynarin is absent), glycoproteins, polysaccharides (the root ofE. pallida does not contain alkamides unlike E. angustifolia
