Scientists verify that this plant beats flu, prevents cold and strengthens immunity

Greens are one of the healthiest among all food. They are loaded with antioxidants, high in fiber, improve blood sugar, lower cholesterol among many others. However, apart from the showers of health-blessings, this particular plant also comes with many medicinal properties which scientists have now proven to beat common cold, flu and strengthen immunity.

Elderberry, which has a very long history of medicinal use in many cultures around the world, is the fruit-medicine your daily diet plan needs including. Known to have cultivated since prehistoric man dating back to Ancient Egypt and Greek philosophers like Hippocrates, the father of medicine who called the fruit his medicine chest.

Science has now verified that Black Elderberry ‘Laciniata’ is a potent antiviral medicine and works against some strains of bacteria as well. A study published in Bio Med Central (BMC) demonstrated that Black Elderberry inhibits the replication of both influenza A and B viruses, as well as three Gram-positive bacteria and one Gram-negative bacteria, which cause upper respiratory infections.

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Researchers at the Department of Virology at Hebrew University-Hadassah Medical School, also concluded that the berries are very efficacious as a flu treatment:

“Symptoms were relieved on average 4 days earlier and use of rescue medication was significantly less in those receiving elderberry extract compared with placebo. Elderberry extract seems to offer an efficient, safe and cost-effective treatment for influenza.”

The group of researchers discovered that the berries confer protection at the cellular level by inhibiting damaging inflammation and enhancing immune system response. They also confirmed that Elderberry is a safe and effective general health tonic.

Dr. Madeleine Mumcuoglu, first tested her research on patients in the Southern Israel flu epidemic of 1992/3. The results were extremely encouraging.

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“Within 24 hours, 20% of those patients taking Sambucol had dramatic improvements in symptoms like fever, muscle aches and pains and coughing. By the second day, 73% were improved and by day three, 90%. In the untreated group, only 16% felt better after two days. The majority of that group took almost a week to begin feeling better.”

The researchers concluded that Sambucol Elderberry products activate immune response by stimulating and enhancing inflammatory cytokines. They also concluded that given its immunostimulatory effect, Elderberry could not only be effective for influenza but may prove useful in the treatment of cancer and various immunosuppressive diseases like AIDS.