Purple Coneflower

Echinacea purpurea

I first learned about purple coneflower while reading about immunity. I wanted to know how plants support the body against infection and this one kept coming up. At first, it was the petals that I noticed. A blaze of pink or purple around an orange cone, you’ve probably seen one somewhere in a field or garden. It’s native to the North American prairies and flowers feed bees during the hottest months of the year.

The history runs deeper still. Well before it became a staple on supplement store shelves, Plains tribes used Echinacea medicinally. They chewed the roots to relieve sore throats and toothaches and used poultices to heal snakebites and wounds. By the late 1800s, American doctors in the Eclectic medical movement were among the frequent users. Echinacea angustifolia was one of the most widely prescribed herbal medicines in the country at the end of the nineteenth century [1].

Scientists went on to discover several active compounds, including alkamides, caffeic acid derivatives, and polysaccharides [2][3]. Laboratory and clinical studies suggest that echinacea preparations can affect immune responses, such as the activation of certain white blood cells, but human trial results are mixed [4]. Other research on the plant’s immune effects have also produced mixed results. The plant is still a point of division between traditional healers and clinical researchers.

People still drink echinacea tea or take tinctures at the first signs of a cold [2]. Scientists continue to study its chemistry and pharmacological actions [3]. The plant straddles old medicine and modern science. It shows us that healing always began in the soil before the lab.

[1] Big Chemical Encyclopedia. “Eclectic Physicians.” 2024. https://chempedia.info/info/eclectic_physicians/

[2] National Center for Complementary and Integrative Health (NCCIH). “Echinacea.” Plain-language review of Echinacea research and immune function. https://www.nccih.nih.gov/health/echinacea

[3] MDPI Antibiotics. “Phytochemical and Pharmacological Review of Echinacea spp.” 2023. Open-access academic review of active compounds and immune activity. https://www.mdpi.com/2079-6382/13/10/947

[4] Turner, R. B., R. Bauer, K. Woelkart, et al. “Echinacea purpurea Therapy for the Treatment of the Common Cold.” JAMA Internal Medicine 165, no. 8 (2005): 104–112. https://jamanetwork.com/journals/jamainternalmedicine/fullarticle/217079