Strong immunity is the foundation of good health. Find out how easy it is to keep yourself in optimal shape using Echinacea preparations. This plant has long been used in folk medicine. The modern pharmacological industry produces tablets with extracts of this flower, which should be given a place in the home medicine cabinet.
Preparations for immunity
Echinacea is a curative herb whose immunostimulating properties have been known for a long time. Many people grow it on flowerbeds near their homes because of its beautiful purple flowers. They may not know what valuable healing ingredients contain Echinacea. The natural compounds that make up the plant are able to activate cells of immunity and help in the prevention of diseases. This distinguishes the effect of Echinacea preparations against antibiotics and antibacterial agents, which begin to fight the pathogens when a person is already sick.
In pharmacology, as raw materials for the production of medicines, flowers, seeds, terrestrial parts and roots of this medicinal plant are used. Because of the convenience of the reception, customers often purchase tablets with Echinacea extracts, and you will learn more about some of these preparations. Often in pharmacies there are other dosage forms containing this immunostimulant:
- alcohol tincture;
- liquid extract;
- syrup;
- Echinacea in capsules;
- compositum( solution for injection);
- dried herb.
Echinacea extract in tablets
Such a preparation is often used for the prevention of colds or as an anti-inflammatory drug in complex therapy. These tablets for immunity increase the resistance of the organism to pathogens of bacterial, viral and fungal diseases. They have a pronounced strengthening and protective effect on the body:
- from influenza viruses, herpes;
- for inflammation of the nasopharynx and oral cavity;
- for frequently recurring infections of the respiratory and urinary organs;
- show a pronounced prophylactic effect during seasonal outbreaks of acute respiratory viral infection.
Echinacea P
According to the instructions to the drug, this dietary supplement, in addition to the powder of Echinacea purpurea grass, contains vitamin C. This increases the anti-inflammatory effect of such tablets. Thanks to the cryoprocessing technology, with which Echinacea P is produced, each intake of the drug ensures the ingestion of the following substances into the human body in a concentration sufficient to exert powerful immunostimulating action:
- of B vitamins;
- minerals: iron, calcium, selenium, silicon;
- essential oils;
- glycosides;
- inulin;
- antibiotic polyacetylenes.
Immunal
This drug Echinacea in tablets contains in its composition the juice of the plant. Such a drug has a pronounced strengthening and immunostimulating effect on the body. Immunal is often prescribed when it is necessary to strengthen health before the upcoming seasonal colds. It is also used when the patient has a decrease in the defenses of the body after prolonged antibiotic treatment. With the use of this drug in the blood, the number of white blood cells increases, which stop the reproduction of microorganisms - pathogens of the infection and destroy them.
Medicinal properties of Echinacea
Drugs made on the basis of this plant, if you follow the rules for their intake, can bring great benefits to a person. So, echinacea for immunity is one of the proven tools that can effectively stimulate the body's natural defenses. For this reason, often the indications for its reception are increased mental and physical stress. Her expressed antiviral properties against herpes and influenza have been proven. Well-proven drugs based on this plant in the treatment of inflammatory infectious diseases of the respiratory system.
Echinacea in tablets often performs an auxiliary function in the treatment of skin lesions: purulent wounds, burns, rashes, eczema. The drug prevents the reproduction of coccal infections and Escherichia coli, protects the body from fungal damage. Echinacea preparations can be used as an addition to the main therapy in the treatment of liver diseases, kidneys, gynecological ailments of an inflammatory nature, in diseases of the male sexual sphere. Also, such medications are used as ancillary for recovery after exposure to chemotherapy and radiation.
Contraindications
What are the limitations for taking Echinacea preparations? It is necessary to stop the medication immediately if side effects appear in the form of a hypersensitivity reaction or if an allergy is observed after its application. Echinacea in tablets or in another dosage form is contraindicated in such cases:
- with progressive systemic diseases: leukemia, tuberculosis, multiple sclerosis;
- for AIDS and HIV infection;
- if a person is sick with an autoimmune disease;
- until the child reaches the age of 4 years( some drugs - up to the age of 12 years).
How to take Echinacea in
tablets Such medications are considered safe today, since there have been no reports that their administration in large quantities led to intoxication of the body. Still, before using them, you need to consult a doctor, especially if you take the drug with other medicines when you take it. The general procedure for the use of tablets is set by the instruction for each drug, but the specialist will determine their dosage for the day and the duration of the administration, based on the health status of the individual patient.
Some Echinacea tablets are intended for resorption, others are recommended to be swallowed and washed down with sufficient water. When asked how long it will take to take them, only the attending physician can competently answer. In most cases, adults are advised to take 3-4 tablets per day for at least a week, and the optimal course is one month. According to individual indications, taking Echinacea preparations can be prolonged for up to two months.
For immunity to children
With the observance of the rules and dosages of reception, such pills can become an excellent preventive measure to prevent cold-viral diseases in the child. Here is the general procedure, how can echinacea be dispensed to children( it should be specified by the doctor in each case):
- children from 4 to 6 years - 1 tablet twice a day;
- from 6 to 12 years - 1 tablet three times a day;
- for children over 12 years - 2 tablets 2 times a day.
The medicine is consumed for 5-7 days, then a two-day break is made, and the reception is continued again. The general rate is 1-1.5 months. If the child has already manifested symptoms of the disease, Echinacea can be prescribed 5 times throughout the day. For the youngest, you may need to grind the tablet and mix it with a small amount of liquid so that the baby can swallow it.
When pregnant
Echinacea in tablets is a drug that is not recommended for a woman when carrying a baby and during lactation. Such a warning is valid because medical research data that would confirm the safety of this drug have not been received. If, in isolated cases, doctors prescribe medications with Echinacea for treatment during pregnancy, they certainly take into account all the risks to the health of the future mother and baby. In this case, treatment with tea, infusion or a decoction of this plant is predominantly prescribed.
Video: why you need Echinacea
Review
Marina, 44 years : I know about the healing properties of this plant from the very childhood. Mum dried flowers, leaves and even the roots of Echinacea, and then she made medicinal teas with my brother when the children began to catch cold in the school. I in my family continue the tradition of using this tool as an aid to immunity and often choose the most convenient form for use - tablets.
Ivan, 54 years old : For several years in order to improve immunity in the autumn I drink a course of Echinacea tablets. In my opinion, it is much better to prevent a state of inoperability, so that a cold or flu does not knock me out of a normal life-track. I recommend this tool, because the results of his actions are satisfied: ORVI of two years was definitely not sick.
Katerina, 32 years old : I use the Echinacea tablets to control the manifestations of colds on the lips. Previously, herpes "pleased me" five times a year, it was very painful and also uncomfortable in public to appear. After seeing somehow positive feedback about Echinacea in one of the forums, I began to drink tablets or tincture 2-3 times a year. Now the virus is very rare.