Major studies on echinacea for the common cold flawed

Most of the major studies on the effectiveness of echinacea for treatment of the common cold contain major flaws, suggesting that research has not yet established that this herbal medicine is effective, according to a new report.

Of nine studies evaluated, only two were well designed, and both showed that echinacea was not effective, study author Dr. Jack M. Gwaltney, Jr., told Reuters Health.

For Gwaltney, this suggests that researchers should consider spending their research dollars investigating other treatments that hold more promise. "If you ask me if I would study some more, I would say no," he said.

Americans currently spend more than $300 million per year on echinacea.

Gwaltney explained that of the nine studies they looked at, only two did not contain serious flaws. And the results of those two studies suggested that echinacea doesn't treat colds, he said.

Gwaltney added that nothing is ever 100-percent certain in science, and more well-conducted studies are needed before people can be confident that echinacea doesn't work.

In an accompanying editorial, Dr. Vernon Knight, of the Baylor College of Medicine in Houston, notes that these findings suggest that people who buy echinacea are simply wasting their money. Echinacea appears to be a "major unjustifiable cost of health care at a time when legitimate health care costs are escalating," he writes.

SOURCE: Clinical Infectious Diseases, March 15, 2005.

Steve - What we have seen in our practice is that Echinacea works for some, but not others. The properties of the herb work differently depending on ones genetic makeup. I agree they should stop putting a bunch of money into researching. It is not "the miracle cure" for the common cold. Although, it is effective in some.