Have you ever noticed everyone seems to be sick in February? That’s not just your perception. According to data from the Centers for Disease Control, for more than 40 years, February has proven to be the peak time for flu infections. The common cold has a similar peak season, with the highest number of cases typically occurring between December and February.
If you’ve been worried about getting sick this time of year, or are trying to prevent any chance of illness, you may have come across a trendy home cure on social media: elderberry. This small, blue-purple berry has been used in herbal medicine for centuries, and content creators today are spotlighting how they still use it at home.
Influencers most often share clips of themselves preparing drinks or gummies made with elderberry, which they say helps prevent or heal a cold or the flu. But as we (hopefully) all know, taking medical advice from the internet is rarely a good idea — so what does science say about this suggested home remedy, and is it worth trying?
Are elderberries safe to eat?
There are a few caveats that come with this ingredient. To start, most parts of the elderberry plant are poisonous, including the stems, leaves, seeds, and roots, because they contain cyanogenic glycosides, which are compounds that can produce cyanide when digested. Only the flowers and fruits of elderberry plants are edible. The flowers can be eaten whole — the United States Department of Agriculture Natural Resources Conservation Service even says, “The entire flower cluster can be dipped in batter and fried while petals can be eaten raw or made into a fragrant and tasty tea…” — but it’s important to note that the fruit can only be eaten after it has been cooked.
Even when cooked, professional health resources consistently recommend that pregnant people should not eat or drink elderberry in any form, because there is not enough documented research to prove it is completely safe for them to consume.
Cooking elderberries breaks down the glycosides in the seeds of the fruit, rendering them safe to eat. To ensure you are thoroughly destroying the toxic glycosides, it’s best to buy packaged elderberries and follow the instructions included for cooking them. This will also ensure you’re consuming black elderberries (Sambucus nigra), which contain the most antioxidants and are regularly documented as safe to ingest once cooked. Other varieties, like red elderberries, may not be safe to consume even after being cooked.
Can elderberries prevent the cold or flu?
It’s these antioxidants that have likely led to elderberry’s reputation as an immune system booster. As you can tell from their hue, black elderberries are especially rich in anthocyanins, a naturally occurring pigment that gives plants a blue, purple, or reddish color. Per the Cleveland Clinic, anthocyanins are known to have strong antioxidant properties — and because antioxidants are often touted as a supplemental tool for boosting your immune system, it’s not surprising that people have made the leap to assume elderberries may help with fending off diseases too.
A small number of studies have investigated whether elderberries can successfully prevent the contraction of viral diseases or reduce the time an individual is sick, with mixed results. In 2019, the peer-reviewed medical journal “Complementary Theories in Medicine” published a meta-analysis of clinical trials focused on whether elderberries could reduce upper respiratory symptoms caused by viral infections like the common cold and flu.
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This analysis concluded that “Supplementation with a standardized elderberry extract is significantly effective at reducing the total duration and severity of upper respiratory symptoms, as compared to a placebo group” and that elderberry extract could be “a potentially safer alternative to prescription drugs for routine cases of the common cold and influenza.”
However, not every piece of research on the medicinal potential of elderberries has reached such a clear conclusion, and it’s important to note that this meta-analysis only investigated the fruit’s capacity for reducing symptoms once someone is sick and did not review its potential for preventing the contraction of viral diseases.
Another systematic review of multiple studies on elderberries, published in 2021 by the open-access, peer-reviewed journal BMC Complementary Medicine and Theories, took a broader approach, with the intent “to determine benefits and harms of elderberry for the prevention and treatment of viral respiratory infections.” The review ultimately found that “Elderberry may be a safe option for treating viral respiratory illness, and there is no evidence that it overstimulates the immune system.”
While this research did discern some indications that elderberry could help reduce the duration of viral symptoms, it did not find enough evidence to suggest that the fruit could prevent contraction of the common cold or flu. Within its findings the review also notes that there needs to be more substantial and continued research on the impact of consuming elderberries as a method for treating viral infections.
Kristen Carli, MS, RD, and owner of Camelback Nutrition and Wellness, confirms that there is mild evidence to indicate elderberry might help individuals fight off the flu or a cold, saying “Research on elderberry is limited, but current evidence seems to suggest that elderberry (in the form of extract or supplements) can prevent the growth of the flu virus and ease cold symptoms like congestion, runny nose, and cough.”
Dr. James DiNicolantonio, a cardiovascular research scientist, doctor of pharmacy, scientific advisory board member at IM8, and an expert on the relationship between nutrition and long-term health, tells Food & Wine that “There are at least four human clinicals suggesting that elderberry extracts (standardized to 12-15% anthocyanins) may reduce the duration of influenza/cold by [about] two to four days.”
If it’s not obvious, one of the common themes in conclusions about the efficacy of elderberry is the word “suggest.” There are several instances of research which suggest that the fruit could help shorten the length of your bout of illness, but there is not enough research to draw any firm conclusions. Will it harm you to have some elderberry extract the next time you come down with the flu, just to give it a try? As long as you follow appropriate safety guidelines for eating or drinking the fruit and its flower, feel free to give it a try.
How should you consume elderberries?
Most social media videos depict users creating their own elderberry syrups or gummies. If you are following a recipe that mandates that the berries be thoroughly cooked, these kinds of beverages or snacks will likely be fine, but there is still some small risk that they could contain trace amounts of cyanide; consequently, they may not be safe to use on a daily basis.
It’s also possible that homemade elderberry beverages may not have a high enough concentration of those anthocyanins you’re looking to take advantage of. When we asked Dr. DiNicolantonio if a homemade elderberry syrup mixed into a drink was likely sufficient to reap the benefits of the fruit, he said, “This would unlikely be a therapeutic dose but possibly if they contain at least 72 milligrams of anthocyanins….”
Carli also notes that “Drinks made with elderberry syrup may provide some benefits, but their potency depends on the concentration of elderberry extract,” and “There is no standardized dosage for elderberry, but always read and follow the dosage recommendations from the manufacturer.”
For this reason, if you want to be completely safe and also get a clear sense of how much elderberry you’re ultimately consuming, it’s best to buy commercially available supplements or syrups. These products will provide guidelines on how much and how frequently you should take your elderberry product of choice, including whether or not it is safe for children to eat. And even better, there are still fun beverages and ideas for using commercially-purchased elderberry syrup on social media, so you don’t have to totally miss out on the trend.
Elderberry can interfere with some other medications, so if you’re on any prescriptions, it’s best to consult your doctor before ingesting elderberry in any format, homemade or not.
