Herbs for the Common Cold

Why plants are a viable choice to stave off the inevitable signs of the cough and cold season.

By
Joanna Cosgrove
Online Editor

A lot of folks don’t need to see a deciduous display of brilliant color to know when autumn is upon them. Fall’s crisp, cool temperatures usually give rise to another annual event: the beginning of cold and flu season. When saddled with a hearty cough, sneezing fits and a stuffy nose, some reach for a prescription while others look to herbal remedies as a more natural way to relieve their symptoms.

Echinacea used to be the go-to botanical used to stave off a pesky cold, but over the last few years its reputation for delivering real results has been skewered by a handful of studies disputing the plant’s effectiveness. While the resulting bad press has tarnished its reputation, Brien Quirk, director of R&D, Draco Natural Products, San Jose, CA, continues to question the disparaging studies and says the public shouldn’t be so quick to dismiss echinacea as a bona fide remedy for the common cold. “It all depends on if the study used an effective form of echinacea extract with an effective dosage,” he said. “With all of the negative, poorly designed studies there are enough positive studies to show that some forms of echinacea really do work.

“There was a study reported in the prestigious medical journal Lancet in 2007 featuring a meta-analysis of 14 randomized controlled clinical trials (RCTs) that covered the incidence and duration of upper respiratory tract infection (URTI) as the common cold, but also other infections as well,” he continued. “It covered the total number of individuals for rates of infection in 1356 people and looked at the duration in 1630 people. The conclusion of the meta-analysis stated that echinacea preparations used in the total sum of studies decreased the overall risk of developing the common cold by 58% and the duration of a cold by 1.4 days. The study investigators concluded that ‘The totality of current evidence supports echinacea’s benefit in decreasing the incidence and duration of the common cold.'”

Mr. Quirk added that one particular study that concluded negative results used Echinacea angustifolia root extract and an insufficient dosage. In addition, he said, “Most preparations on the market are from the purpurea species extract, which has a long standing tradition of use for the common cold by Native Americans. I have reviewed considerable published studies going back to the 1980s from Germany that show the polysaccharides of echinacea root extracted, which are typically extracted with water, have potent immune activating effects.”

Draco developed a water extract of echinacea in 1999 that was tested by a bioactives lab showing it to activate immune cells known as macrophages with TNF-alpha. “This activated immunity is what helps people quickly get over a cold with less overall nasty symptoms and malaise,” said Mr. Quirk.

Lakshmi Prakash, PhD, vice president of innovation and business development, Sabinsa Corporation, Payson, UT, concurred with Mr. Quirk and added, “The efficacy results [of echinacea] are controversial and the safety/toxicity profile needs to be better established—although a meta-analysis of published studies did show some positive findings. The extracts need to be well characterized and suitable markers need to be established to enable its long-term acceptance and use.”

Beyond Echinacea

Echinacea is just one of many naturally derived remedies that can have a positive effect on the common cold. Traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) reveres a wealth of immune stimulating herbs such as astragalus, cordyceps, reishi, maitake, coptis, isatis, garlic, andrographis, eleuthero, ginger and glossy privet, which are thought to be some of the most effective in terms of addressing immune weakness, which often leads to susceptibility in catching a cold, or resulting in a nasty, longer lasting cold. “Astragalus, reishi, licorice, maitake, cordyceps, coptis, andrographis, eleuthero and glossy privet stimulate the immune system mostly through polysaccharides that either increase levels of interferon, natural killer cells, macrophages and other immune factors,” pointed out Mr. Quirk. “Herbs like forsythia, lonicera, licorice, schizonepeta, isatis, and andrographis cool the heat and inflammation caused by the cold virus. Many of these herbs have general anti-viral activity against a host of viruses, but ginger, eleuthero and garlic have research showing antiviral activity specific to rhinovirus, one of the common cold viruses.”

According to Mr. Quirk, there was a study on astragalus with over 1000 people that showed it helped prevent cold infection in a significant number of people. He says Draco offers a form of one of the oldest standby formulas in Chinese herbal medicine called Yin Qiao San. It was created through the company’s TCM doctors using a full spectrum water extraction process to capture all of the polysaccharides having immune stimulating function and contains forsythia fruit, honeysuckle flower, lonicerae, platycodon, field mint, lophatherum herb, licorice root, schizonepeta, soya seed sprouted, arctium fruit and phragmites.

In a presentation titled “Phytonutrients & Nutritional Interventions for Natural Immune Support,” co-authored by Sabinsa chairman and CEO, Muhammed Majeed, PhD, Sabinsa’s Dr. Prakash acknowledged other herbs that impart a beneficial effect. Adathoda vasica has been traditionally included in preparations for the relief of cough, asthma and bronchitis. The plant has been recommended by Ayurvedic physicians for the management of various types of respiratory disorders (Dorsch, W et al.; 1991a). The leaves of the plant contain an essential oil and the quinazoline alkaloids vasicine, vasicinone and deoxyvasicine. Antitussive activity has been demonstrated in animal models.

The presentation additionally included an overview of Ocimum sanctum, or tulsi (holy basil), which belongs to the class of adaptogens that help to enhance adaptability to changing weather conditions. According to Dr. Prakash, the leaves have been used in traditional Eastern systems of medicine for centuries in formulations for the management of respiratory problems and to support healthy metabolic functions.

Glycyrrhiza glabra, licorice, also helps to soothe the respiratory system. Glycyrrhiza glabra contains biologically active constituents, including glycyrrhizin and glycyrrhetin, which possess anti-inflammatory activity. The presentation cited recent studies from Germany that suggested the potential utility of glycyrrhizin as an antiviral agent in respiratory infections as well.

The Herbal Advantage

Mr. Quirk pointed out that OTC cold remedies and herbs address illness in different ways. “OTC cold remedies only relieve superficial symptoms like runny nose, congestion and headache, and do nothing to address the active cold viral infection and the weakened immunity,” he said. “Doctors can’t offer any type of medication for colds that will really make a difference in feeling better other than those that relieve superficial symptoms. It’s well known that they over-prescribe antibiotics that are useless for viral infections and cause the well known problem of increased antibiotic resistance.”

Dietary supplements and herbs work to strengthen the immune system and detoxify the body to help the patient feel better faster. “One of the worst effects of a cold from the weakened immune system is the tired, run-down feeling,” said Mr. Quirk. “Herbs that boost the immune response like astragalus and licorice really do make a person feel more energetic when they are battling a cold. They are chi or vital energy tonics, which help overcome the feeling of malaise and tiredness. With these herbs the cold virus also does less to take over the whole body since some herbs can boost interferon, which helps protect cells from infection. The cooling herbs like forsythia and burdock (arctium) help to counteract the inflamed mucous membranes and detoxify the body so that you don’t feel so swollen and raw inside.”

Mr. Quirk also pointed out that herbs have been the “medicine” of choice for generations of practitioners who ascribe to Native American, Chinese, Ayurvedic and even European naturopathy, which has been based on the reported results of hundreds if not thousands of years of use by indigenous people who had no other choice but to use what nature offered. “Scientific investigations have confirmed there are real and well established physiological mechanisms to account for these effects,” he concluded.