Know Your Herbs: Echinacea

Echinacea plant with spiny spindle top resembling a hedgehog

Medicinal Uses: Echinacea is a genus of different species of plants that is a drought tolerant perrenial plant that can grow up to four and a half feet tall. They are commonly called purple cornflowers because the receptacles are hemispheric to conical in shape. The genus name is from the Greek word echino meaning "spiny" due to its central spiny disc. They are native to eastern and central North America where they are found growing in moist to dry climates.

Today, echinacea is used to treat the common cold, the flu and to reduce symptoms such as cough (pharyngitis) and fever. Many herbalists recommend it as a way to boost the immune system and help fight infection.

Folklore: Archaeological digs indicate that native Americans may have used it for more than 400 years to treat infections, wounds and a general 'cure-all.' During history, echinacea has been used to treat scarlet fever, syphilis, malaria, blood poisoning and diptheria. Usage reached a peak in the 18th and 19th centuries. However with the introduction of antibiotics in the 1930's and 1940's in the US, it has fallen in popularity.

Plains Indian tribes would eat the dried root as an antidote for snakebites, toothaches and joint pains. It has also been used as aromatic in sweat lodges.

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A Warning: Please consult your physician before taking this herb.

Know your Herbs and fruits: Pomegranate

Medicinal Uses: Pomegranate is a fruit that is native from Iran to the Himalayas in North India. It is widely cultivated throughout India and the drier climates of Southeast Asia, Malaysia, the East Indies and tropical Africa. The Spanish sailors introduced it to California in 1769 and it is now grown in the drier parts of California and Arizona.

Its juice yields citric acid and sodium citrate for pharmaceutical purposes. The juice is used for preparations that treat dyspepsia and leprosy.

The bark of the stem and root has several alkaloids active against tapeworms. Extracts have been helpful in halting diarrhea, dysentery and hemorrhages as well as useful as a remedy for bronchitis and for relief of oral and throat inflammation.

Folklore: The ancient Chinese believed that pomegranate juice contained a 'soul concentrate'

which could confer immortality. Babylonians held that chewing pomegranate seeds before battle made soldiers invincible.

In Greek myth, Persephone, daughter of Demeter, the Greek goddess of Spring, was once frolicking at the entrance to the underworld. Hades, the lord of the underworld, enticed her to come closer. He offered her 3 pomegranate seeds. According to the myth, after eating the seeds, she became permanently betrothed to him.

In Kabala, the "wife" of God is envisioned as a pomegranate. In the talmudic teachings, each pomegranate has 613 seeds, which is the exact number of mitzvos or good deeds a Jew should perform in a lifetime. The pillars of Solomon's temple were decorated with pomegranates and the handles of Torah scrolls are still adorned with them.

Many Christian scholars consider this fruit as a symbol of fertility, resurrection and immortality.

In Islamic legend, each person has one aril (seed) coming directly from heaven. The heavenly gardens have pomegranates and the prophet Muhammad believed the fruit brings both physical and mental contentment.

Buddhists believe it's a blessed fruit. In one legend, Buddha gave a pomegranate to Hariti- a demon who ate her children- to cure her of her evil ways.

The garnet stone-- named after the latin word 'granaton' (meaning pomegranate)-- dates back to 3100 BCE in Egypt and comes in deep reds to purple reds. It's the stone of fidelity, passion, faith, strength and determination. It is the universal symbol for overall renewal.

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