If I recollect from my days as the head of vitamins at my old workplace, the problem with longterm echinacea is only when you have a high doseage. High doses are intended for treatment of colds only. If you plan to take echinacea for an extended period of time (more than 6-8 weeks is extended) make sure the doseage is low. A lower doseage is suggested to be up to 2000mg per day.
All I recall about WHY you don't take high doses for extended periods is that it has been shown to negate the positive immune benefit, that is, you won't get the immune boost that you're looking for, and you may as well be having a sugar pill But I don't know what causes this.
[ 02 July 2002: Message edited by: MezZedUp ]
Sorry, i should have elaborated on the badness of too much echinacea, especially if you are asthmatic. Too much echinacea if you have asthma can cause an attack, or so my dr. says. I havent ever had it happen cos i dont take too much echinacea! So if you are planning to start taking echinacea, dont take too much of it just cos you are feeling fluey. its not good for you and it tastes like crap! Instead take the same dosage every day (its usually 1-3ml diluted in water if you are using the greenridge triplex or biotic mixtures {the best kind, around $33 for a 200ml bottle} twice a day.) and only double your dose (2-4ml twice a day) when you are sick. ive also found that regular echinacea is a kick arse way to control hayfever!
and just to add to my previous post, another thing that you should never ever ever do on a comedown if you want to feel human again the next week is: take sleeping tablets to make you sleep. If you were sleepy but lost your wave, tough titties, wait for the next one even if it is 6 hours away. If you need to go to work the next day but you are still speeding, its your fault. forcing your body to shut down when its stimulated beyond normal is a very very bad and fucked up thing to do and will make you feel very crap and very depressed the next week. if you need to be relaxed to get to sleep, try ovaltine, warm milk, valerian or chamomile tea. if those dont work just have a joint!
Andromeda
But I don't know what causes this.