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Common Name | Comfrey |
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| Constituents |
mucilage, allantoin, starch, tannin |
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 Remedies using Comfrey
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Water infusions, salves and ointments.
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Comfrey salves, ointments and teas are best know for the topical treatment of burns, skin ulcerations, abrasions, lacerations, flea and insect bites, and just about any skin irritation. Likewise a poultice, salve or infusion of the leaves can be applied to bruises, fractures, sprains, and other closed-tissue injuries. Well known and widely used by early herbalists, science now confirms the healing effects of comfrey are attributable to allantoin, a compound shown to speed cell production both inside and outside the body. Comfrey works so fast that many herbalists will add antibacterial herbs such as goldenseal or thyme to comfrey salves to prevent sealing bacteria inside a fast healing wound.
Comfrey is a marvelous herb and is one of the best-known healing herbs of all times. Its very name, symphytum, means to heal. Comfrey has been used for centuries for its bone mending qualities, for its healing effects on ulcers, and for its general soothing effect on the mucous membranes, making it invaluable in soothing sore throats and coughs.
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 Comfrey roots, together with Chichory and Dandelion roots, are used to make a well-known vegetation 'Coffee,' that tastes practically the same as ordinary coffee, with none of its injurious effects.
(Grieve, M.) |
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| Broken bones | | [389] It's a time honored treatment for healing sores, bruises and healing broken bones.
(Duke, James A, Ph.D. ) | | Lungs, Skin | | [390] Literally a one-herb pharmacy - healing for any kind of respiratory disease. It is a cell proliferant, and is healing for internal and external use. This wonder plant contains potassium, calcium, phoshorus, iron, magnesium, and cobalt. It is rich in Vitamin B and C and E.
(Dawson,Adele ) | | Decrease tumor growth | | [1054] Some comfrey extracts have shown the potential to decrease tumor growth and extend the lives of lab rats with cancer.
(Duke, James A, Ph.D. ) | | Stimulate hormones | | [1243] Comfrey has been shown to affect the sex hormones which stimulate the ovaries and testes. Such a hormonal effect is also indicated by traditional belief.
(Mabey, Richard 32) | | [1244] The root is more effectual than the leaves and is the part usually used in cases of coughs. It is highly esteemed for all pulmonary complaints, consumption and bleeding of the lungs.
(Grieve, Maude ) | | Osteoarthritis | | [1253] The results of patients with painful osteoarthritis of the knee treated with comfrey root extract in an ointment showed a reduction in pain , mobility of the knee improved and quality of life increased
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. Efficacy of a comfrey root (Symphyti offic. radix). (2007 Jan;14(1):2-10), Phytomedicine 2007-12-18 | | Diabetic sores | | [1055] You may want to try comfrey or allantoin skin creams for diabetic sores.
| | Weeping eczema | | [983] For weeping eczema, make a tea of comfrey and apply the liquid as a compress.
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| In the late 1970s experimental data showed lab rats fed comfrey 3 to 4 times their body weight over a long period of time developed liver damage. It would take a human drinking 3 to 4 cups of comfrey tea for 140 years to acheive the same effect, still it must always be considered that what is safe for the majority can cause allergic reactions in a few. Herbalists are divided on the use of this age old herb, some say it should only be applied externally, others point to the fact that a cup of comfrey contains less cancer causing potential than a can of beer. |
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Koehler's Medicinal-Plants 1887
 The plant grows two to three feet high. The lower leaves are large, ten to sixteen inches long, ovate, lanceolate, pointed and slightly wavy, hairy, with veins and veinlets clearly defined. The upper leaves are smaller, the stem branched, terminating in one-sided cluster of drooping, bee-shaped flowers that grow on only one side of the stem
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| Comfrey does best in part shade in dampish soils. If you grow it in the full sunshine, it will thrive in excellent soils that are well watered. Established plants self sow, and can be propagated by root division and cuttings. Seeds can be started in pots indoors in January for spring planting when soil temperatures rise. Barely cover seeds, needs light to germinate. |
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 This is an herb of Saturn, and I suppose under the sign Capricorn, cold, dry, and earthy in quality... the root boiled in water or wine, and the decoction drunk, helpeth all inward hurts, bruises, and wounds, and the ulcers of the lungs, causing the phlegm that oppresseth them to be easily spit forth Nicholas Culpeper |
Common Typos: compfrey
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Comfrey Medicinal Uses
