Respiratory diseases, herbal

Before Europeans arrived in America, echinacea was a popular herbal drug among Native Americans, who used it to treat respiratory infections, inflammation of the eyes, toothache, and snakebite. European colonists quickly adopted the herb. In the nineteenth century, European Americans used echinacea as a blood purifier, believing that it cleared the blood of disease-causing toxins. Europeans used echinacea to treat diseases such as eczema, veneral diseases, lymphangitis (swelling of the lymph vessels), and sepsis (infection of the blood with microorganisms). 

Popular herbals throughout the twentieth century have generally echoed the earlier uses of this herb. Jethro Kloss, in his classic hook Back to Eden, says the berries are useful for respiratory problems and reproductive diseases, and he mentions an unusual use as a remedy for diabetes and Brighf s disease. Maude Grieve, in her impressive and influential text A Modern Herbal, states that saw palmetto acts on the urinary and respiratory tissue but is milder and less stimulant than cubeb or copaiba or even oil of sandalwood. Alma Hutchens, in her peculiar but popular Indian Herbology of North America, boldly states that saw palmetto is one of the "most beneficial agents of the Materia Medica." The uses in her book closely follow the suggestions found in Jethro Kloss s earlier book. 

Fintelmann V, Albrecht U, Schmitz G, Schnitker J (2012) Efficacy and safety of a combination herbal medicinal product containing Tropaeoli majoris herba and Armoraciae rusticanae radix for the prophylactic treatment of patients with respiratory tract diseases a randomised, prospective, double-blind, placebo-controlled phase III trial. Curr Med Res Opin 28 1799-1807... 

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