Echinacea and Side Effects Examined

Echinacea and Side Effects - What are They?

Like any medicine, echinacea can cause an allergic reaction in some people.

Symptoms of an allergic reaction include hives, facial swelling, a skin rash, and respiratory problems. If you suffer any of these, you should see a doctor as soon as possible.

People more likely to suffer an allergic reaction to echinacea are those who are allergic to other plants in the daisy family, such as ragweed, chrysanthemums, marigolds and daisies. Also, if you have a genetic tendency to allergies, or you have asthma, you may be more susceptible to having an allergic reaction when taking echinacea. (Source: nih.gov)

Some people have experienced gastrointestinal side effects taking echinacea. And if you take too much of a good quality product undiluted, it can cause excess salivation. Poor quality products (which aren't very effective) don't cause this, and the effect is more pronounced with echinacea augustifolia.

One government site on echinacea notes that: "Echinacea, chamomile and milk thistle can act upon liver enzymes and reduce the efficacy of pharmaceutical medicines or increase the risk of side effects."

Echinacea and Side Effects - How Safe Is it?

Echinacea is actually quite safe if you are not allergic to members of the daisy family, although as noted, people with asthma and genetic tendency to allergies should be more cautious. But echinacea should not be taken for longer than 6 to 8 weeks at a time as it loses its effectiveness then. Ideally, shorter periods of use are preferred.

Echinacea and side Effects - Living with HIV

Echinacea is generally not recommended for people with HIV. Whilst echinacea stimulates the immune system, there is concern that "increasing the activation of t-cells could give HIV more 'target' cells to infect" (www.aids.org). Also an animal study showed that echinacea increased the levels of a tumor necrosis factor that has been linked to the progression of HIV. This is only an animal study however. Aids.org conclude:

"Unfortunately, as with most herbal products, there is no careful research in people with HIV. There is no published research to document any dangerous results from the use of echinacea by people with HIV. Some researchers believe that short-term use of echinacea (up to two weeks) to treat colds or flu does not present any serious risks to people with HIV."

For more information on echinacea, see this article.

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