The wonderful elderberry

September 21st, 2006

I am fascinated about how certain foods can improve our health and was interested to read how elderberries can be used to combat bird flu.

It seems that an extract from the elderberry, Sambucol, can reduce the number of bird flu viruses that can enter cells of an infected patient, by blocking the viral entry through the cell membranes.

The elderberry extract isn’t actually curing bird flu, by killing the viruses, and eliminating them from the patient, but it can stop bird flu viruses from spreading through the cells of the body. Apparently the extract can also be used to control seasonal influenza too.

The work is still experimental at the moment and much more research is required before we all start growing elderberry bushes in our gardens, however this shows how natural plant extracts can exert powerful pharmaceutical effects, and may even be our saviour should the worst happen and the world succumbs to another flu pandemic.

Entry Filed under: Healthy Foods