Elderberry and flowers combined has been my absolute go to favorite Herbal remedy for the "virus" that has caused cold and flu s of the past few years in the Ontario region. The first time I came down with this flu virus i reached for a course of Echinacea and Bergamot; tried Ginseng as well as Coltsfoot and even Golden Seal. After two weeks of feeling rather ill I began dosing with Elder flower and berry tincture prepared with a 1:1 ratio, and found within just a few days i was feeling much better.

Elder has long been used in Traditional Medicine especially by the Northern Europeans who revered this medicine and shroud it in myth and rituals for protection, to nourish and to heal of many varying conditions. A panaceas for healing. Elderberry, Sambucus nigra, is native to Europe, though grows all over the American Northwest in large dense stands in moist habitats. The black or common elder S. Canedensis is a smaller tree or shrub bearing large clusters of lacy white or creamy flowers followed by the dark purple berries. It blooms in June or July and the berries mature in the Fall. The flowers, berries, and bark are used as medicine.
In a warm infusion the leaves and flowers are diaphoretic and gently stimulating, while in a cold infusion they become diuretic, alterative and cooling. The berries can be made into a tincture or prepared as an Elder berry syrup. This has been a favorite among Herbalists. Here is a link for a recipe. https://blog.mountainroseherbs.com/elderberry-syrup-recipe. The inner bark of Sambucus nigra is an emetic and cathartic and has been successfully used in epilepsy.

Elder is traditionally used to strengthen the immune system possessing significant antioxidant activity and boosting cytokine production. Most notably Elderberries provide a high concentration of flavanoids, including quercetin and anthocyanins, (which give the berries its color), and rich in VItamin C. The leaves and flowers are a rich source of flavonoids, anthcyanins, carotenoids, essential oil, mucilage and tannins. A unique protein found in Elderberry acts as a messenger which is due to its regulating effect of the immune system. Research has shown elderberry as being a potent viral inhibitor and has an anti influenza ability to inhibit the herpes virus and HIV in cell culture. THE H1N1 inhibition activities of the elderberry flavanoids compare favorably to the known anti influenza activities of some of the drugs used in the flu vaccination according to Donald R. Yance in Adaptogens in Medical Herbalism.

There are no adverse reactions to ripe elderberries and elder flowers. The leaves bark and unripe berries contain a toxic cyanide producing glycosides and ingestion should be avoided.