AHP Publishes Echinacea Monograph

AHP Publishes Echinacea Monograph

SCOTTS VALLEY, Calif.The American Herbal Pharmacopeia (AHP) released amonograph for echinacea purpurea root (Echinacea purpurea L.) thatincludes quality control standards and a therapeutic compendium with a review ofpharmacological and safety data.

There are numerous issues surrounding echinacea that make manufacturing,choosing or researching a quality product very complicated; confusion betweenspecies, the presence of adulterants, instability of potentially activecompounds and analytical difficulties create a great challenge for anyoneworking with echinacea, said Roy Upton, executive director of AHP (www.herbal-ahp.org). Regarding efficacy and safety issues, there are controversies regardingproper dosing, which species or type of product to use, its short-term orlong-term use, safety in pregnancy or autoimmune disease, and more.