As we move into fall, the busy season in Moab, changing weather, and pre-cold and flu season, we’re featuring elecampane for our bulk herb of the month. This herb is best known for stimulating excretions, moving old and stagnant dampness out of the body, supporting the respiratory and digestive systems, and as an emotional ally for those who are grieving or going through challenging transitions.
Botanical Description
This tall, scraggly member of the sunflower family is native to southern and eastern Europe but naturalized around the world. It produces bright yellow flowers and large, aromatic roots that have been used in traditional European herbalism since ancient Greek times. Its Latin name, Inula helenium, refers to the high inulin content of its roots and Helen of Troy, who allegedly carried the flowers with her when she was abducted—or, depending on which version of the myth you read, the plant grew where her tears fell.
Historical & Traditional Use
For thousands of years, elecampane was prized for treating chest complaints, phlegm, and melancholy, and was a part of a 9-herb blend intended to offer protection against witchcraft. In English folk medicine, it was known as elfwort—a protector against fae mischief and “elf-shot” illnesses (what we might now call unexplained fatigue, sadness, or loss of vitality).
Health Benefits of Elecampane
Elecampane is the “Swiss army knife” of respiratory herbs. It’s great for clearing chronic, lingering conditions in the chest, and it helps strengthen the lungs so you can breathe easier. Its expectorant and anti-tussive properties help to move phlegm, making coughs more productive and reducing the need to cough.
Elecampane is a potent disruptor of biofilms—communities of living microorganisms that form a barrier together against external aggressors, like desiccation, antibiotics, or the host’s immune system. Elecampane is effective at “drawing out” infections, which may be due to its ability to disrupt biofilms. Some evidence shows that it can actually make antibiotics effective against antibiotic-resistant strains of bacteria!
Elecampane is one of the few energetically warming bitter herbs. Bitters stimulate digestion, promoting the body’s secretions that aid in breaking down food and absorbing nutrients. Elecampane helps start this process and is especially helpful for sluggish digestion or bloating and for those who run cold. It helps create the heat that is required for the digestive process. It also contains inulin, a starchy prebiotic that feeds healthy gut flora (you won’t get any inulin from a tincture; only when you eat the root or make a decoction). You won’t benefit from the probiotics in your gut if they have nothing to eat!
Elecampane’s stimulating actions apply to other body systems as well; it can help with urinary and pelvic stagnation and function as a stimulating diuretic and emmenagogue (stimulates the menses). Elecampane gets things moving and allows for fresh secretions and vitality to be restored.
As an herb that makes a strong impression on the lungs, elecampane can be useful in times of grief and emotional stagnation. The lungs are often where we hold grief. In traditional Western herbalism and Chinese medicine, the lungs are the organ of sorrow—often where we hold grief, suppress tears, and have trouble breathing in times of distress. Elecampane can help those who feel like they can’t take a full breath in or let a full one out restore fullness to the breath, lift a heaviness in the chest, and move through grief that has become stuck. This herb can support and allow you to “breathe life into the change you want to/must make,” especially when the shift is challenging, scary, or uncomfortable.
How to Use Elecampane Root
The dried root can be infused into herbal honey, vinegar, syrups, or lozenges, and powdered, tinctured, or used as a spice. Its flavor profile is strongly earthy and a bit peppery, but can be improved marginally by adding other strongly-flavored herbs such as ginger, cinnamon, and angelica. Its slight sweetness from the inulin can actually go well with coffee, so it can be added to your morning cup or an herbal coffee substitute for a fiber boost.
Find dried elecampane root in our bulk herbs department!