Category:Immune herbs

An immune herb is a plant medicine used to support, modulate, or enhance the function of the immune system. The category covers the acute-phase immunostimulants used for upper-respiratory-tract infection prevention and treatment (echinacea, elderberry, andrographis, pelargonium), the longer-course immunomodulators and tonics used in chronic immune dysregulation (astragalus, reishi, cordyceps, the Ayurvedic guduchi), and the antiviral-specific herbs whose principal indication is viral illness.

The foundational immune herb in Western use is echinacea (Echinacea purpurea and Echinacea angustifolia), a Native American medicine adopted into American Eclectic practice in the late nineteenth century and now the most-prescribed Western herbal-medicine for acute upper-respiratory illness. The active alkamide and polysaccharide fractions modulate macrophage and dendritic-cell activity; the controlled-trial evidence is mixed, with Cochrane review supporting modest benefit for symptom-duration reduction in adults with early-stage common cold but not finding a clear preventive effect. Elderberry (Sambucus nigra), the European folk medicine for influenza and the common cold, has more focused antiviral evidence: the Sambucol standardised extract has shown reduction of influenza symptom duration in two small trials. Andrographis (Andrographis paniculata), the Ayurvedic and TCM "king of bitters", has substantial controlled-trial evidence for upper-respiratory-tract symptom duration; the Kan Jang preparation (andrographis + eleuthero) is widely used in Sweden and selected European jurisdictions. Pelargonium (Pelargonium sidoides), the South African medicine adopted by German phytotherapy, has Cochrane-supported benefit for acute bronchitis.

The longer-course immunomodulator class is dominated by astragalus (Astragalus propinquus, Huang Qi), the principal TCM immune-tonic with controlled-trial evidence in chemotherapy-associated immunosuppression and chronic fatigue states. Reishi (Ganoderma lucidum, a fungus) and cordyceps (Cordyceps sinensis, also fungal) extend the tonic spectrum; both are widely used as adjuncts in oncology. The Ayurvedic guduchi (Tinospora cordifolia) and amla (Phyllanthus emblica) round out the tradition. Cat's claw (Uncaria tomentosa; una de gato), an Amazonian medicine traditionally used by the Asháninka, has selected immunomodulator and anti-inflammatory evidence.

Echinacea (E. purpurea and E. angustifolia), elderberry (Sambucus nigra), andrographis (Andrographis paniculata), pelargonium (Pelargonium sidoides), astragalus (Astragalus propinquus), reishi (Ganoderma lucidum; fungus), cordyceps (Cordyceps sinensis; fungus), guduchi (Tinospora cordifolia), amla (Phyllanthus emblica), cat's claw (Uncaria tomentosa), olive leaf (cross-listed; antiviral), garlic (cross-listed; antimicrobial), oregano oil (cross-listed; antimicrobial), the immune-tonic ginseng species, and selected mushroom medicines (turkey tail Trametes versicolor, maitake Grifola frondosa, shiitake Lentinula edodes).

The boundary of this category is "herb prescribed primarily to support or modulate immune function." The pharmaceutical immunomodulators and immunosuppressants are listed under their primary umbrellas. The herbs whose principal indication is specifically antimicrobial rather than immune-modulating are listed under antimicrobial herbs. The mushroom medicines, although fungal rather than plant, are conventionally grouped with the immune herbs and are cross-listed.

This category page is an encyclopedia article about its subject. The actual index of herbs belonging to the category is generated automatically by the wiki engine, from category-membership declarations on the individual herb pages, and appears at the foot of the page below the references.