Should You Get a Flu Vaccine or Take Echinacea?

If you are worried about catching the cold or flu, should you get a flu vaccine or take the immunity herb echinacea?

In order to address that question, researchers conducted a pilot study . . . 

that gave thirty-eight people either the flu vaccine, echinacea or both. All of the people in the study had respiratory disorders (bronchitis, respiratory insufficiency or asthma).

35.7% of the flu vaccine group got sick, while only 16.6% of the echinacea group got sick. 8.3% got sick in the group that got both.

These results suggest that echinacea, either alone or with a flu vaccine, offers more protection than the flu vaccine.

Altern Med Rev 2012;17:36-41