Here's what I've learned from experience. Echinacea is good for preempting an infection - this means you have to start taking the echinacea BEFORE you get ill. It doesn't do much good once you're infected.
I've found that the combination of echinacea and astragalus (another immune-system stimulating herb) works even better than echinacea alone. When I'm in "prevention" mode, I take 2 echinacea caplets and 1 astragalus capsule with every meal. While everyone I know seems to have come down with the "crud", I've remained blithely healthy.
Another thing that I started doing when I last had a nasty upper respiratory infection (pre-echinacea/astragalus) that I've continued, is to sleep with my head markedly elevated above my chest. I know there are people who would probably tell me there's something wrong or even unhealthy about sleeping almost sitting up (which I do), but as someone who has had CHRONIC problems with post-nasal drip, particularly in my sleep, and post-nasal drip that always seemed to exacerbate minor sore throats into major ones, I have not had a "drip" problem AT ALL since I stopped sleeping "flat", and started sleeping in a way that keeps things "draining" the way they do when I'm awake. Of course, I make sure I have plenty of lower back, neck, etc. support (if I could afford a "Craftmatic Adjustable Bed", I'd probably get one), but it's such a delight to wake every morning with my sinuses clear, and no residual "crud" in my throat from a night of "drip drip drip" from my sinuses, I thought I'd just mention this here for people who have similar problems.
KM ===== My NEIL SHICOFF Website: http://www.radix.net/~dalila/shicoff/shicoff.html
My Website: http://www.radix.net/~dalila/index.html
----- Es en balde, majo mio, que sigas hablando porque hay cosas que contesto yo siempre cantando: Tra la la... Por mas que preguntes tanto: tra la la... En mi no causas quebranto ni yo he de salir de mi canto: tra la la...
- Fernando Periquet
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