Echinacea
Latin names:
Echinacea angustifolia,
Echinacea pallida, Echinacea purpurea
Common names:
Echinacea, Purple Echinacea, Red Rudbeckia, American Rudbeckia
Family:
Asteraceae
Origin:
North America
Part of the plant used:
Root
Description
Native to North America, Echinacea grows in the prairies and woodlands of the eastern United States. It was one of the most widely used medicinal plants by the Indians. Many tribes used it as a remedy for snakebite, which earned it the name "snakeroot". Its complex composition contains active ingredients capable of stimulating the immune system by acting at different levels.
The benefits
- Activation of macrophages (phagocytic cells of the immune system with the ability to absorb and destroy large foreign particles);
- Increased secretion of interleukins(natural proteins produced by the immune system that mediate between white blood cells);
- Anti-inflammatory activity;
- Anti-viral activity.
