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I made elderberry tincture last year and while it lasted, it seemed to keep colds and flus at bay very well.  Haven't made any yet this year and I've already had two long-lasting colds.    I'm going to start a batch this afternoon.

In a glass jar with a good lid (such as a food canning jar):
* fill 1/3 with elderberries
* fill the rest of the way with cheap vodka, minimum 80 proof
* put the lid on tight and let sit 7-10 days out of exposure to light
* strain, and squeeze as much tincture as possible out of the berries w/ cheesecloth

Take a couple tablespoons of the tincture, every 4-6 hours, at the first sign of cold or flu.

I like it in a mug of hot water with a little honey, and 1/4 teaspoon of powdered ginger stirred in to take the edge off the body aches.

You can get dried elderberries by the pound from an online herbal wholesaler; I'm not sure if I'm allowed to put their name or link here though.  A pound costs less than a movie ticket and is enough for three quart-jar batches.

"For nearly a century and a half, scientists have debated the fossilized remains of an organism originally believed to have been an ancient evergreen and since suggested to have been an oversize alga, fungus or lichen. Now a team has concluded that the bizarre life form, which was the largest known organism on land in its day, was in fact a humongous fungus."

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/main.jh ... ush124.xml

I take 1/4 teaspoon 5-htp every night before bed to stay relatively normal, and if I stop taking it the world slowly but steadily becomes a dark and nasty place to be.  From my readings a few years ago I have a vague recollection that it does pass the blood/brain barrier, but I'm not 100% certain on that.

I buy it under the category of Bulk Wellness Powders from a place that mainly caters to bodybuilders, which can be found by searching google for "bulk nutrition."

oooh, and what about elderberry wine , would that have the protective factor?

Cassie,

I don't know.

Hi there eShirl ... i have a wonderful elderberry tree which is not toooo far away from flowering.  How would one make a preparation using fresh elderberries?

Good morning/afternoon/evening, Cassie.  Oh, fresh elderberries!  With fresh berries they are saying fill your glass canning jar 3/4 full of berries, then add the vodka until it reaches the top, put the cover on tight and proceed as with the recipe using dried elderberries.

Oh - these recipes are for black elderberries; there was some concern about whether red elderberries might be toxic.

Feel free to post the link to forum if you still have it. Nice to check around after other usefull stuff.

OK; I wasn't sure if that was considered good form or not.

http://www.curevents.com/vb/forumdisplay.php?f=40

This is quite an active forum... it may not be a bad idea to get a snack before one starts reading.  

I read the study on elderberry. It isnt really obvious for me how anyone could trust it as much as tamiflu.

The thing is, IMO it is a better backup to have than nothing in the event there weren't enough TamiFlu to go around.

I'm a semi-regular at another forum dedicated to preparedness in case the bird flu becomes a human pandemic.  There is a lot of discussion there about elderberry tincture, that a certain name brand tincture has been proven in studies to lessen the severity and length of flu, at least as effective as that anti-viral medication Tamiflu that all those governments are stockpiling.  (Apparently it keeps the virus from getting into new body cells that it wants to take over.)  

Anyway, most of us are making our own elderberry tincture to keep on the back shelf until such time as it is needed.  The recipe is: fill a quart canning jar 1/3 full of dried elderberries, add an entire 750 ml bottle of vodka or other clear unflavored 80+ proof alcohol meant for human consumption.  Put the cover on tightly, shake, and keep in a paper bag in a dark nook somewhere, giving it a daily shake, for at least 2 weeks.  Strain, then wring out the berries in cheesecloth.  Toss the berries and save the tincture, store it tightly covered where it won't be exposed to light (brown glass bottles is a good idea if possible).  It should stay potent for a few years.

edit: forgot to say how to use it!
Starting at the first sign of flu, 1 tablespoon (some say two) four times per day, seems to be the consensus.

disclaimer:  I have not yet personally used elderberry tincture for flu