Echinaforce Junior Good & Bad

My kids had been battling for two months to get rid of a terrible flu that had been going around and around and around and… in 2016. Well, anyway, I decided to dose them with echinacea and elderberry to give their immune systems a huge boost. Here’s some information about both of these wonder plants:

www.herbwisdom.com

Elderberries (Sambucus) have been a folk remedy for centuries in North America, Europe, Western Asia, and North Africa, hence the medicinal benefits of elderberries are being investigated and rediscovered. Elderberry is used for its antioxidant activity, to lower cholesterol, to improve vision, to boost the immune system, to improve heart health and for coughs, colds, flu, bacterial and viral infections and tonsillitis. Bioflavonoids and other proteins in the juice destroy the ability of cold and flu viruses to infect a cell. Elderberry juice was used to treat a flu epidemic in Panama in 1995. 

www.pureinsideout.com

A member of the daisy family, Echinacea is an herbal supplement best known for stimulating the immune system. Its immunity- boosting properties are commonly used to relieve flu and colds symptoms. It’s also used as a remedy for weak immune systems. While there’s no specific season to boost your immunity, it is recommended to do so during the Fall and Winter, as your body becomes more vulnerable, due to lack of vitamin D – amongst other factors.

Top Uses and Benefits of Echinacea

• Immune system booster

• Antiviral

• Stimulates the production of white blood cells

• Relieves bloating, flatulence, gas, cramps and nausea

• Shortens the duration of common colds and flu and relieves their symptoms.

• Alleviates upper respiratory infections

• Soothes sore throat and cough

• Speeds wounds and burns healing

• Encourages skin rejuvenation and relieves skin infections

• Reduces urinary tract infections

Why combine Echinacea with Elderberry?

The Elderberry and Echinacea combination stimulates the body’s defense mechanisms, and the combination of both results in a more potent immune system booster than when used separately. 

I bought a bottle of Elderberry chewable tablets, and for the echinacea, a bottle of A.Vogel Echinaforce Junior.  Both tablets worked very well, my kids loved the taste of them and their health definitely improved, but I was not impressed with the Echinaforce bottle’s lid. It is a dark brown glass bottle with a soft metal lid. 

Here are my concerns with the lid:

• The material of the lid is such that if you squeeze it a little it easily squashes out of shape;
• It is also quite sharp around the edge and if one were to put the lid down to get tablets out of the bottle then a child could play with the lid, cutting themselves or possibly cutting their mouth with it.

I sent an email to the company who make the product, Bioforce/A.Vogel, querying how they could make a product for children with a dangerous cheap quality lid. This was their response:

Dear Mrs Burkinshaw
Thank you for your kind mail. The lid you mention is a safety seal and protection for the tablets. It is the proven lid commonly used for this purpose. At the time it is broken, i.e. when opening the bottle, it completely loses its function and has to be removed in total. 
Hopefully this information can assist you . Please do not hesitate to contact us otherwise.
Thank you for your trust in our products.
With very best wishes to your health
Head of Medical Services and Central PV Unit
Bioforce AG
Grünaustrasse 4
CH-9325 Roggwil

I then responded explaining that she had misunderstood me, as there was only one lid and not two. I attached the following photograph:

I received a reply from her:

Dear Mrs Burkinshaw
Thank you for the photos, now we understand. As we have never had a similar query before we were a bit at a loss what you were referring to. Thank you for the clarification.
The lid is the one commonly used with glass bottles. For the lid to be in plastic we would have had to use plastic bottles which wasn’t an option for us. The other type of metallic lid that can be used on glass bottles, i.e. the one with a rounded edge and with a separate safety seal, was tested and proved not to be as satisfactory with regard to sealing and protection of the tablets. So the present lid got selected.
We do not recommend that very small children open the bottle by themselves as they might not stick to the daily dosage (which wouldn’t be a problem but could in very high overdose cause diarrhea due to the cyclodextrin content).
For older children the lid is fine as the tablets are not taken from the lid but from the glass bottle.
Hopefully this can assist. Please do not hesitate to contact otherwise.
With best regards

I am not sure how you view this final letter, but I do not feel that this is a satisfactory response, for the following reasons:

• She states that they could not put a plastic lid on a glass bottle, but I have done some research and have discovered that there are many medicinal products, both chemical and homeopathic, that are produced in dark glass bottles with very safe, well sealed, child-proof, plastic lids.
• I did not mention to her in my email that the children would be opening the bottle by themselves but rather that the lid is dangerous for small children if they should get hold of it.
• Then, as far as I know, all tablets should not be handled too much, therefore it is suggested that the correct dosage be emptied into the lid of the container/bottle and the lid then offered with the tablets in it to the person taking the medicine, rather than offering the tablets out of one’s hand.

Finally, to summarise, I feel that it is a pity that the container for this outstanding medicine is of such poor quality, and I am disappointed in the reply from the company. 

So I would highly recommend these tablets, but just a warning with regards the lid of the bottle. Be careful not to squeeze it or let your children get hold of it!