Description: Echinacea was used by American Indians for a variety of conditions, including venomous bites and other external wounds. It was introduced into US. medical practice in 1887 and was touted for use in conditions ranging from colds to syphilis. Modern research started in the 1930s in Germany.

Echinacea is a perennial herb, up to a metre in height, with simple rough stems, hollow near the base and thickening slightly close to the flowerhead. The leaves are elongated, slightly elliptical with entire margins and covered with coarse hairs and protuberances. The purple flower is in the form of a high cone surrounded by rough hairy bracts, downturned purple ray florets and greenish tubular florets. The tapering root is greyish-brown flecked with white. Echinacea is a native of the prairies of the Western USA and is cultivated in Europe.

The 18th century German botanist, Conrad Moench, named the genus Echinacea, which comes from the Greek echinos , meaning hedgehog, referring to the spiny, round seedhead which reminded him of a hedgehog or sea urchin. The species name, augustifolia , means "narrow-leaved". In some older literature, the names of Rudbeckia and Brauneria were used for this genus instead of Echinacea.

American Eclectics, a group of doctors prominent from 1830 to 1930 who used botanicals in their practices, were a major force in bringing echinacea to the forefront of herbal medicine. They promoted it as a blood purifier for venereal disease, as well as an agent for treating migraines, rheumatism, tumors, malaria, and hemorrhoids. After their decline in the 1930s, the herb also fell into disfavour, but regained its stature when interest in herbal medicine revived in the 1970s and 1980s.

Main constituents: Alkaloids: Isotussilagine, tussilagine, Amides: Echinacein, isobutylamides, Carbohydrates: Echinacin, polysaccharides (heteroxylan and arabinogalactan), inulin, fructose, glucose, pentose, Glycosides: Echinacoside, Terpenoids: Germacrane (sesquiterpene lactone ester), Others: Cichoric acid, betaine, methyl-para-hydroxycinnamate, vanillin, phytosterol, volatile oils.

Properties: Alterative, antiseptic, tonic, depurative, maturating, febrifuge

Uses: We do not know exactly how Echinacea works. Echinacea has been studied in the laboratory and with animal subjects. These studies show that different immune cells are stimulated when they are incubated with Echinacea extracts. It is not known whether this same effect occurs in humans. Some compounds found in Echinacea appear to reduce inflammation, relieve pain, and kill bacteria and viruses directly.

Safety Considerations:Echinacea is essentially nontoxic when taken orally. People should not take echinacea without consulting a physician if they have an autoimmune illness, such as lupus, or other progressive diseases, such as tuberculosis or multiple sclerosis. Those who are allergic to flowers of the daisy family should take echinacea with caution.

A recent analysis of 59 brand name echinacea products found that 48% did not contain the species of Echinacea printed on the label and 10% contained no measurable Echinacea. Less than half of the products met the labeled quality standards.

Common: Headache, dizziness, nausea, constipation, and mild epigastric pain rash.
Rare: Dermatitis, anaphylaxis

DRUG INTERACTIONS

Magical:

Folk Names: Black Sampson, Coneflower, Rudbeckia.

Gender: gender here

Planet: planet here

Powers: Strengthening Spells

Uses: Used by American Indians as an offering to spirits to ensure and strengthen spells.

*The Blackfoot chewed the root to help alleviate toothache, while several tribes used the juice from the plant to treat burns, wounds, ulcers, and other skin conditions.

*The Sioux applied the freshly scraped root as a poultice against hydrophobia caused by the bites of rabid animals.

*The Cheyenne used it for sore mouths, the Choctaws for coughs, the Comanche for sore throats, the Crow for colds, and the Delaware for venereal diseases.

*The Dakotas used the freshly scraped root as a remedy for hydrophobia and snakebite and applied it to wounds that had putrefied.

*The Lakotas ate the root and green fruit when they were thirsty or perspiring and as a painkiller for toothache, tonsillitis, stomachache, and pain in the bowels. Echinacea is still widely harvested for a variety of medicinal uses by the Lakotas on the Rosebud Reservation in South Dakota.

*The Omahas recognized two kinds of echinacea: the male (nuga), or the larger and more masculine plant and the smaller, "female" (miga) herb. They used some parts of the plant for sore eyes. Their medicine men applied the macerated root as a local anesthetic so that they could remove pieces of meat from a boiling pot without flinching.

*Winnebago medicine men used it to make their mouths insensitive to heat so that they could put a live coal into their mouths to demonstrate their power. These feats helped create confidence in the ability of the medicine men to heal.

*The Kiowa have long used the plant in a cough medicine. They, and the Cheyenne, treated colds and sore throats by chewing a piece of the root and letting the saliva run down the throat. In the 1930s, they were still using the dried seed head as a comb and brush.

*The Cheyenne made a tea from the leaves and roots as a remedy for a sore mouth and gums. The same liquid was rubbed on a sore neck to relieve pain. Toothache caused by a large cavity was relieved by letting a tea from the plant come in contact with it. They also drank the tea as a remedy for rheumatism, arthritis, mumps and measles, and made a salve for external treatments of these ailments. When the roots were mixed with blazing star ( Mentzelia laevicaulis ) and boiled, the resulting tea was drunk for smallpox.

*Hidatsas warriors were known to chew small pieces of the root as a stimulant when travelling all night

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