As COVID-19 spread in the spring, real-time analysis showed elderberry featured in 20% of the top products in Amazon’s Vitamin and Dietary Supplements category. Google Trends data provides further evidence, revealing spikes in searches for elderberry that surpassed those for Tamiflu®, a prescription-only antiviral drug. Consumer interest in elderberries reflects their position at the intersection of traditional medicine and modern science. In recent years, researchers have validated the traditional use of the European black elderberry by running clinical trials that position the ingredient as an effective way to help relieve cold and flu symptoms and reduce
illness duration.
The European black elderberry, also called Sambucus nigra with its variety ‘Haschberg‘, is the most studied species of this plant.
As of 2020, three independent human clinical trials that tested European black elderberry against upper respiratory infections have been performed and published in peer-reviewed scientific journals. The results are in line with what has been observed for centuries in traditional medicine. A common observation is a reduction in symptoms and a reduction of illness duration.