Elderberries could combat bird flu

http://www.itv.com/news/britain_783168.html

1.42PM, Wed Jan 18 2006


A extract from black elderberries could be used to combat the bird flu virus, according to research.


A study looked at whether the food supplement Sambucol could combat the deadly H5N1 strain of bird flu when added to canine cells in laboratory tests.


The team, from research institute Retroscreen Virology, found that the elderberry-based product was at least 99 per cent effective at reducing the virus in the cells.


But experts warned that many more studies were needed to find out whether the formula was effective in combating H5N1 in humans.


The virulent H5N1 strain of avian flu has already killed more than 80 people, mainly in Asia, after they contracted it from close contact with birds.


But there are fears that the virus could mutate into a form that is easily passed from human to human, leading to a flu pandemic which could potentially kill millions worldwide.


The main medical solutions in case of a pandemic include a vaccine, but this could take up to six months to develop once the strain emerges.

Countries around the world are stockpiling antiviral drugs which can reduce the length and severity of flu symptoms.

I know it works great on regular flu, gave it to son, and hubby, they were over their flu in 24 hours. works like magic. so am going to buy a ton of the stuff.

It does work like magic and best of all if you live near many of the places where it grows wild and often abundant, it's free!

You should have posted this on the main board.

I have always known it works but this is another proof.

Thanks

Hi Onebyone

I posted here I guess because I thought that was one of the reasons this particular forum is set up.

If anyone wants to post it to the main board that's ok but this forum is clearly marked on the main board and accessible to none members

I've also found that elderberry syrup works as well with colds as flu in lessening the severity of symptoms and shortening the duration of the illness.

I now also use it to prevent cold sores which I have suffered badly from in the past Painful lip swelling, trigeminal neuralgia, old blistered scabs which hung about for weeks, scars on my mouth from old attacks, skin peeling inside my mouth and swollen glands under the jaw. Anti-viral cream and antibiotics didn't do diddly squat. However, since I began taking elderberry syrup at the first sign of tingling in my face/lip I have had NO blisters or any of the other sundry nasties that come with the activation of a dormant virus in my system.

sdemon, you're right, thanks. Bird flu stuff should be right here, so people with any interest in it can find it after the first few hours.

you can make your own very simply and should all do it now!

i buy organic elderberries (cause none grow in my area i know of *sigh*), fill a sterile glass jar 3/4 of the way with dry berries, and then fill with vodka. i use 1/2 gallon or 1 gallon canning jars usually. add about 1/2-1 cup sugar. ( i use at least 1/2 cup per 1# berries or its real real tart and has a strong pucker factor!)

let it soak up and top off with more vodka to about an inch over the line of the berries. put snug lid on and set in place out of sunlight. turn jar over at least 2 times a day and let soak for 30 days. (some folks soak for 2 weeks, but im a 30 day-er).

strain out berries--careful it can be very purple and messy. store your elderberry tincture in a dark bottle out of sunlight. i keep mine in a brown glass bottle usually, but often i will pour it back into the same vodka bottle and store in the bottom of a closet that stays cool. label and date.

cost is about 8-12$ for 1 lb of dried elderberries
about $14.99 for large bottle --1.75 litre--of vodka 80 proof
cost: about $30

you will get almost a full 1.75 litre (ummm, maybe about 1/2 gallon?) of tincture for a fraction of the store bought price.

i know of some herbalists who leave the berries soaking in the liqued until they need it, saying it gets more potent. i usually strain after about 30 days.

i think elderberry is very, very important and it has proven itself to me and my family over and over. ive made sure my family will never be without it and have made gallons.

by the way, it tastes pretty durn good with a squirt in a vodka & juice get-home-from-a-killer-day-at-work cocktail.


i think everyone should make their own and have on hand---ummm--the elderberry tincture, not the cocktail. well, have a cocktail anyway!

im not a master herbalist like some kind folks on TB, but this is what i have been doing and it has worked wonderfully for us.

jazzy

Brooks said:

sdemon, you're right, thanks. Bird flu stuff should be right here, so people with any interest in it can find it after the first few hours.

Click to expand...

Brooks,

It is really not a big deal but when they set up this forum I believe they said you could post stuff on the main so more people see it then when it falls off the front page the mods will move it here; so it would end up here for future reference anyway.

FWIW - Ladies;

There are 2 different stories about black elderberries being effective against H5N1 (on tonight's 19th H5N1 thread).

I too, am interested in anything which will help reduce symptoms (such as Cold-Eeze) - or for that matter, combat the virus, like Tamiflu; and hopefully Black Elderberries...

This bug is coming! No political compromises can be made with a virus, no 'balance of terror' can be put in place to halt it's rentless invasion....

Last year, Cold Eaze, which is zinc, I think, kept all the bug/viruses away. This year,the viri were very subtle. You could not feel the tingle in your throat, a sign to get out the cold eaze...they viri just walked in and sat down.

The elderberries, which I harvested when ripe, stripped the berries into baggies and added sugar, did nothing. Maybe I didn't take them at the appropriate time? Or maybe what I thought was bad would have been much worse?

We all need to figure this out before (or if) that bird flu thingie gets active.

I have been making elderberry syrup for a couple of years now. I really think it does help keep infections from getting a hold on us. We start feeling sick and start on the elderberry syrup and it just goes away...seems like if we take it at the first sign, we are feeling better the next day.

My future SIL got sick....flulike symptoms. He didn't believe in the elderberry syrup. He really got to feeling lousey. My daughter finally just almost forced him to take the elderberry. He had a drs. appointment the next day. He went to the dr. and got a prescription for antibiotics. By the time he got home from the dr. he was feeling so much better that he never got the antibiotics filled. He decided to keep taking the elderberry and was up and feeling well the next day.

I am sure that it doesn't work for everything, but I don't want to be without it.

Kind of Off Topic, but my sister-in-law has lung cancer and got to coughing so bad that she could hardly breathe. They called the dr. and he said that she could take cough syrup but that it probably wouldn't help. My husband told his Mom give her the elderberry syrup that I had made for them. She took the syrup and after trying everything else, it was the only thing that eased the cough at all. Not a miracle cure, but anything that helps to make her more comfortable is priceless.

Springledge, I have some commercially bought elderberry. The directions say to take a spoonful, I guess as a preventative. It also says in serious instances to take 4 spoonsful. I expect that's when you are definitely sick. Just wondering, how much of your concoction do you take/administer?

Trivium Pursuit, I use fresh elderberries that grow on our farm. I add a little water to get them started cooking and then crush the fruit and cook them as little as possible to release the juice. Then I strain out the berries and add sugar to make a syrup, add some lemon juice, bring it back to a boil and can it like jelly. I know a lot of people don't like sugar in things, but it seems to make it coat the throat better than anything else.

If we feel like we are getting sick, we take about a tablespoon of the syrup about every 4 hours until we start to feel better. If we are already sick, we increase it to two tablespoons every 4 hours. It does seem to help...I may get sick at any time...knock on wood ,,,but haven't had a full blown cold or flu since I have been making it. I used to have at least 2 really bad colds a year and some crud about mid winter that made me cough until spring. So far...so good.

Onebyone said:

It is really not a big deal but when they set up this forum I believe they said you could post stuff on the main so more people see it then when it falls off the front page the mods will move it here; so it would end up here for future reference anyway.

Click to expand...

Sure, but it's been up for a while and threads could be moved but MANY THREADS ARE NOT (you can prove that for yourself). Besides, if someone wants to know the latest on bird flu, this is the most convenient place to come. Then there is no reason to jumble important news together on the same thread. I think much is being missed with the current approach of threads on the main page, especially composite threads of unrelated flu material. So, I would hope that this forum is the first place someone thinks of to post. I appreciate it was set up, and I hope it is used more. And I prefer a set up where volunteer mods have nothing to do.

surfingdemon said:

Hi Onebyone

I've also found that elderberry syrup works as well with colds as flu in lessening the severity of symptoms and shortening the duration of the illness.

I now also use it to prevent cold sores which I have suffered badly from in the past Painful lip swelling, trigeminal neuralgia, old blistered scabs which hung about for weeks, scars on my mouth from old attacks, skin peeling inside my mouth and swollen glands under the jaw. Anti-viral cream and antibiotics didn't do diddly squat. However, since I began taking elderberry syrup at the first sign of tingling in my face/lip I have had NO blisters or any of the other sundry nasties that come with the activation of a dormant virus in my system.

Click to expand...

I will agree that it works, really works with colds and flues.

Now I get the cold cores and I have trigeminal neuralgia and honey, it doesn't
work for either of those on me!

Why is it that it does certain things for some people but not for others? If this
helped my trigemial neuralgia, I would be drinking it by the gallons! No, I have
to take 10 pills a day for mine! UGH!!

My husband can't tolerate elderberries. More UGH! When takes it he gets a
bad stomache ache and spends alot of time in the bathroom. This morning he
woke up with a sore throat and I gave hime some colloidal silver since he
can't/won't take the elderberries.

I don't have any other options, do I?

sassysha said:

I will agree that it works, really works with colds and flues.

Now I get the cold cores and I have trigeminal neuralgia and honey, it doesn't
work for either of those on me!

Why is it that it does certain things for some people but not for others? If this
helped my trigemial neuralgia, I would be drinking it by the gallons! No, I have
to take 10 pills a day for mine! UGH!!

My husband can't tolerate elderberries. More UGH! When takes it he gets a
bad stomache ache and spends alot of time in the bathroom. This morning he
woke up with a sore throat and I gave hime some colloidal silver since he
can't/won't take the elderberries.

I don't have any other options, do I?

Click to expand...

My son and daughter HATE the taste of elderberry but will actually ask for some voluntarily when they feel they are coming down with something because, as they say, they know it works. Still get all the face pulling and dramatic sounds of disgust though but at least they take it.

We are all different and some things do work for some and not for others, I feel very fortunate that elderberry does work for my herpes simplex and it's accompanying horrors.

Lemon balm essential oil has research to back up the claims that it is very effective in treating cold sores, so you might find it helpful to do some more research on that yourself.

We also use homemade colloidal silver, in my experience it is more effective for bacterial based illnessess but, as you quite rightly pointed out, we are all different and if that is what works for you go with that.

In our house gargling 4x day with 2 drops of eucalyptus and 2 drops of cedarwood essential oils in 4 fluid oz of tepid water not only lessened the pain but cleared up my daughters 'gunky' tonsils the last time she was unwell.

I'm sorry your husband is unwell and hope he feels better soon.

I would like to add that it is ESSENTIAL to discuss with your medical practitioner before you use alternative medicines, or think of changing your treatment, particularly if you take prescribed medications for any medical conditions/complaints.

sassysha,

I'm going slightly off track with the subject of the thread here but if you would like more information about the use of lemon balm (Melissa officinalis) in treating cold sores this would be one place to start -

http://www.uspharmacist.com/oldformat.asp?url=newlook/files/Feat/LemonBalm.htm&pub

"Antiviral, Antibacterial, or Antifungal Activities: In a randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled clinical trial, the antiviral effect of lemon balm on herpes simplex virus was investigated.10 The criterion used as a therapeutic outcome was a combined-symptoms score at day 2 of therapy, when the symptoms are usually most intense. Lemon balm was administered topically to 34 patients with recurrent herpes labialis, whereas 32 matched patients with the disease received a placebo formulation. Patients who received the herbal formulation had a statistically lower combined-symptoms score than the placebo group (i.e., they experienced fewer overall symptoms than the control group).10 These effects on the herpes virus are believed to be related to the presence of caffeic acid, rosmarinic acid, and ferulic acid in the plant.7"

As with anything else there are side effects, "This effect of lemon balm is perhaps most serious in patients with hypothyroid disease. In fact, hypothyroid disease is probably a direct contraindication to its use. The potential sleep-inducing and sedative properties of lemon balm may have serious consequences in patients who operate machinery or drive a motor vehicle. Moreover, there is evidence in animal models that lemon balm may enhance the hypnotic effect of pentobarbital16 and hexobarbital19 due to its sedative and sleep-inducing activities. Pharmacists should point out potential side effects of lemon balm and advise patients to consult their physician before taking this herb."

Hope this helps as a start, good luck

.

Does anyone have a reliable source for dried Elderberries? The vodka, however, is no problem to find

Sure, but it's been up for a while and threads could be moved but MANY THREADS ARE NOT (you can prove that for yourself).

Click to expand...

Hope all is going well with you Brooks as you seem out of sorts yelling about something that is really to me no big deal. I was just suggesting to her more could see it on main.

i have been getting mine at

www.shopnatural.com

Wild-T2, I got mine from www.herbalcom.com, 5.30 a pound (free shipping too), thanks for whoever here that originally posted the link:

http://www.herbalcom.com/store.php3...hE-H&session=05a4a0a166b89603979f776d72f46b16

Brooks FWIW, I agree with you on the thread placement.

Sassy

I used my Sambucol syrup for the first time last weekend. I was sure I was getting a cold or flu, so I started with 2 tsp. right off then one every six hours, I felt better almost right after the first dose. Slept well and my sinuses stopped draining and cleared up. Went to the maintenance dosing the next day for a couple of days and never got sick. Too bad I only ordered two little bottles of the stuff. I'm going to have to buy it by the JUG, next time. Don't forget the Curcumin for the cacade reaction that the bird flu causes to the immune system.

I had trigeminal neuralgia for about a month after some dental work (drilling w/temp filling). I was also under extreme work-related stress at the time. I learned that nueralgia can happen after dental work. It was the most excruciating pain I've ever felt. Fortunately, I got relief from some anti-seizure medication, and after two months, I stopped the medication and found that the pain had stopped. My job also got much better, but not after cracking a molar causing bacteria to form an abcess.

Stress sucks!

I'm a bit puzzled about folks worry of the cacade reaction that the bird flu causes to the immune system when using Elderberry (doesn't matter if taken in the form of syrup or tincture as both in my experience are equally effective and therefore it is down to personal choice).

As far as I understand it cytoken storm is caused by a massive overload of virus in the system and the body over reacts to compensate. Keeping the viral load down while the immune system learns to recognize and build a defense against the virus seems, to me anyway, to be key here. The good news is that wonderful Elderberry would seem to do this. Of course it is always prudent to have something that would counteract a cytoken storm on hand but I don't believe that it will be necessarily needed.

SassyinAZ said:

Wild-T2, I got mine from www.herbalcom.com, 5.30 a pound (free shipping too), thanks for whoever here that originally posted the link:

http://www.herbalcom.com/store.php3...hE-H&session=05a4a0a166b89603979f776d72f46b16

Brooks FWIW, I agree with you on the thread placement.

Sassy

Click to expand...

Thanks for the link Sassy. I ordered some up today!

Onebyone said:

Hope all is going well with you Brooks as you seem out of sorts yelling about something that is really to me no big deal. I was just suggesting to her more could see it on main.

Click to expand...

OBO, I'm not yelling at all. I'm pointing out that more people will eventually see (and find it again!) if it is posted directly to this forum. If all the threads were being moved here, that might be one thing, but they aren't. And yes, thing are going splendidly for me. Keep sending that warm weather north!

Brooks said:

OBO, I'm not yelling at all. I'm pointing out that more people will eventually see (and find it again!) if it is posted directly to this forum. If all the threads were being moved here, that might be one thing, but they aren't. And yes, thing are going splendidly for me. Keep sending that warm weather north!

Click to expand...

Glad things are going well with you. Hope we all keep this warm weather

Just saw two very large deer in the back woods crossing a clear area so they are being well fed from the green things shooting up already down here due to the warm weather.

Onebyone said:

... they are being well fed from the green things shooting up already down here due to the warm weather...

Click to expand...

Hey, stop that, that didn't help me one bit!

OK, so the highlight of this winter is the large snowblower. I want winter over so I can garden but I also want to use it a few more times.

onebyone
It is a shame that you have felt the need to pop in and out of this thread for the apparent sole purpose of detracting from it. Your stated aim of seeing this subject placed on the main page has been fulfilled by pandora and as such the continual interjection of your opinion as to the location of the thread is now a mute point.

Continuing to post in this way is in fact in opposition to your stated belief, that the more people who see this information the better, as people aren't going to want to wade through reams of meaningless posts of where you think the thread should be and meaningless banter to find the information.

We all know by now what you believe/feel/think ad nauseum about where the thread should have been placed in the first place and this is not only irrelevant to the subject matter of the thread but is getting really old, really quick.

....and here I thought there would be more elderberry info/testimonials since the last time I was here....

Here, let's start anew..............discuss.

gillmanNSF said:

....and here I thought there would be more elderberry info/testimonials since the last time I was here....

Here, let's start anew..............discuss.

Click to expand...

Haven't got any more testimonial but I do have an alcohol free Elderberry Syrup if that will do. Jazzy has given a really good recipe for Elderberry Tincture, this is an alternative recipe for a syrup for those who don't want to consume alcohol for whatever reason.


Eldererry, Honey and 3 spices Syrup

This Elderberry Syrup can be given to children age 1 year and over. However, it is not recommended for younger children as they are susceptible to the disease infant botulism which is caused by spores of the bacterium Clostridium Botulinum. It is extreemely difficult to remove bacterial spores from honey without destroying it and they are routinely consumed with honey by children and adults with no problems. They can, however, cause problems in children under 12 months as they lack a fully developed gastrointestinal tract (http://www.nhb.org/download/factsht/infantbotulism.pdf)

I use honey not only as a sweetener but also because it contains phytochemicals (chemicals found in plants and different foods) that kill viruses, bacteria, and fungus. As most bacteria and other microorganisms cannot grow or reproduce in honey it works as a preservative too. I use a form of Manuka honey which contains an antibacterial component called UMF (Unique Manuka Factor), which has been found to be even more useful than ordinary honey in combatting infections.

Ginger (Zingiber officinale) - well known for its warming action on the upper respiratory tract, so it has been used to treat colds and flu, aids digestion also has anti toxic properties which have an anti viral, anti fungal, anti histamine and anti bacterial effect.

Cloves (Eugenia caryophyllata) - used chiefly to assist the action of other herbs, anti-bacterial and antioxidant properties, highly antiseptic, excellent source of manganese, vitamin C and omega-3 fatty acids, calcium and magnesium.

Cinnamon (Cinnamomum Zeylanicum) Aids digestion, anti- microbial properties, recent research demonstrates this spice can be used as an alternative to traditional food preservatives (study, published in the August 2003 issue of the International Journal of Food Microbiology).

I also added the juice of freshly squeezed lemon to replace some of the vitamin c that may have been simmered off as part of the process.

3 cups fresh Elderberries or 1 cup dried Elderberries
3 cups purified water
1/2 cup honey
1oz fresh ginger root grated
10 Cloves
1/2 Cinnamon Quill

1. Combine crushed berries and water in a stainless steel or glass pan. Heat on low to medium until simmering.

2. Continue to gently simmer uncovered until reduced in volume by one third

3. Remove from heat. Cool. Strain through fruit press/muslin cloth

4. Pour Elderberry liquid back in the pan and heat just enough to disolve the honey.

5. Remove from heat, allow to cool. Once cooled stir in lemon juice. Divide the cinnamon, cloves and ginger by the amount of dark (preferably glass) bottles and place into bottles. Fill bottles with Elderberry syrup, label with date and ingredients, store in a cool dark place.

Sambucol fights bird flu virus in lab​

http://www.nutraingredients.com/news/ng.asp?id=65394

By Dominique Patton

26/01/2006 - Sambucol, a standardized extract of black elderberry, has been found to fight the avian flu virus H5N1, revealed British researchers last week.

A team at Retroscreen Virology, an institute associated with the University of London, said that the extract was at least 99 per cent effective against the H5N1 virus and significantly neutralized the infectivity of the virus in cell cultures.

Dr Madeleine Mumcuoglu, the Israel-based developer of Sambucol, said the good results confirmed her earlier findings on the product, which is currently marketed around the world as a natural supplement for fighting common flu.

“It is active against lots of different types of flu viruses and I did my PhD on its effect on a non-virulent strain of bird flu so the results did not surprise me,” she told NutraIngredients.com.

“But I'm very happy with these results, especially as the work was done by Dr John Oxford, a reputable specialist in flu,” she added.

Dr Mumcuoglu stressed that the results could in no way demonstrate a benefit for humans infected with the bird flu strain that has killed more than 70 people, mostly in South East Asia, since the outbreak began in 2003. Nor will she be able to test it in a human trial.

But she is looking into starting an animal trial using ferrets, which have similar flu symptoms to humans.

Dr Mumcuoglu added that bird flu is still a lower threat than common flu, thought to kill about 25,000 people in the UK alone each year through complications.

While the new bird flu results might boost sales of Sambucol, it is the evidence from two human clinical trials on human flu that has created a significant market for the product. The double blind, placebo-controlled studies – the first done in Israel, and the second in Norway – both found that people who took the elderberry supplement got rid of flu in half the time of the placebo group, or after two to three days compared to about six.

Dr Mumcuoglu says Sambucol blunts the haemaglutinin spikes on the outside of viruses and stops them from entering cells where they reproduce, cause the cell to explode and allow the virus to continue invading the body.

An in vitro study has also shown Sambucol to be effective in increasing the production of four inflammatory cytokines, suggesting that the supplement may have an immuno-stimulatory effect and therefore be worth taking all year round to prevent flu and other disease.

Jerusalem-based Razei Bar Industries now produces more than 1.5 million bottles of Sambucol syrup, with average growth of 10 per cent each year.

"I didn't invent anything," claims Dr Mumcuoglu. "Elderberry has been known from the beginning of time. What people didn't know is what the active ingredient is, how to keep it intact and how to formulate to keep it active."

This active substance has not been patented to protect the firm's market. While several copycat products are available in healthstores, Razei Bar says it has tested several of these and found none of the active ingredient.

The new laboratory results were presented at a press conference held in the Royal Society of Medicine, London last week. Another trial is now underway at Hadassah Medical Organization Ein Kerem in Israel.

I'd like to make some tincture, see post #7.

WHERE do you get elderberries? I called our organic store and they don't carry them. They are supposed to call me back on how much it will cost to special order them. Are they seasonal? Frozen?

For those of you with cold sores...


LYSINE, LYSINE, LYSINE, LYSINE!!!!


Found in vitamin section.

Works like majic! (take at first signs of feeling sores coming on)

tsk, tsk...

(now, back to our regularly scheduled program of elderberries!

This is what I take for my cold sores.

Sorry about helping with the drifting but wanted to give a "Yeah, me too!"


Elderberries:

I ordered mine here:

http://www.herbalcom.com/store.php3...hE-H&session=457c4d7a80125897786981e715b55976

I have a few exta pounds that I didn't use. I think I will put them in food
saver bags and put them in the freezer. Is this ok to do?

Thank you!! They are only $5.30 / lb and about the same SH. I consider that a good price! I'll be ordering.

Oops! I just read MORE CAREFULLY through ALL the posts and found my answer up there. My only excuse is that this is all new to me, as is the TB2K site, and I'm reading fast and furiously to build a base of information.

Thanks for all the good info!

What is the dose of the elderberry tincture? The one made with vodka?

I'm assuming part of what makes Nyquil type products effective is the alcohol that helps me sleep through coughing. It sure seems as if the alcohol could be a help with the flu.

Would it be OK for children? Again, what dose for them?

Homemade tincture is the way to go

Yeah, make your own, a whole lot cheaper. A $15 four oz bottle of Sumucol is not going to give a full course of treatment. You need 2-4 tablespoons every 4-6 hours for 8-10 days for something like H5N1.

Like Jazzy said, buy some dried elderberries and vodka and do the 1 part berries 2 parts vodka mixture. Let soak for 7-10 days and then strain into sterile dispensing bottles of some sort. I used little 700ml wine bottles with the labels removed.

I've heard over at glocktalk.com some people talking about the "cytokine storm" and they seem to think that this would be like throwing gas on a fire using this tincture, but I completely disagree and have people in the medical field highly recommend and dispense this information as being a positive and possibly only solution for H5N1 treatment. Not as a preventative but as a treatment during the first signs.

If H5N1 does not occur ( I feel it will) you can use this tincture as a liquer/mixer if you add sugar. You will have to add sugar as a medicine as well because it taste very bitter and smells funky too.