Comfrey- Symphytum Officinale
Not the best tasting herb. But if you are experiencing external and internal musculoskeletal pain, you will be glad you had a cup of green, slimy comfrey leaf tea.
What Makes Comfrey Stand Out
Two years ago, I sprained my right wrist when I was establish my first herbal garden. the pain due to the sprain was very severe; I could barely move my right arm from the wrist up. Conventional medicine, with the exception of a wrist brace, did not work. Worst part, I did not have medical insurance (ʃ_⌣̀ )/||. Over-the-counter medicine could not alleviate my pain. With nowhere else left to turn medically, I turned to Mother Nature’s Natural Band-Aid: Comfrey.
Every morning and before bedtime, I brewed and drank a large cup of Comfrey Leaf Tea. Every few days, I took the wrist brace off to move and rotate my wrist to look for improvement. At the beginning, such physical therapy was excruciatingly painful. Nevertheless, I continued to take an infused tea of Russian Comfrey (Symphytum uplandicum) for 6 weeks to treat my severely sprained wrist. By the fourth week, I rotated my wrist and viola! I felt the first reduction of my pain in weeks. It was unbelievably amazing how my wrist healed so well. This healing experience made a medicinal herb believer out of me. Since then, whenever I run into someone with pain, Comfrey leaf tea is one of the herbs I recommend.
Monograph
Botanical Name: Symphytum Officinale
Common Name: Knitbone, knitback, boneset, bruisewort, consormol
Family Name: Boraginaceae
Plant Parts Used: Aerial parts, leaves, rhizome, and root
Constitution: Cold and dry
Taste: Bitter
Key Actions: Astringent, anti-inflammatory, cell-proliferation, demulcent, expectorant, emollient, heals wounds & bones, homeostatic, mucilage, nutritive, pectoral, styptic, tonic, vulnerary
Plant Preparations: Decoction, fluid extract, fomentation, infused oil, infusion, ointment, paste, poultice, powder, lotion, syrup, tea, tincture
Cautionary Pearls: Do not use comfrey on dirty wounds, since rapid healing can trap dirt or lead to abscesses/pus. Do not use if pregnant or breastfeeding. Take internally only under professional supervision. Avoid excessive consumption of comfrey. If the liver is congested and weak, use the mature leaves for internal use.
Self-Help Uses: Acne & boils, asthma, boils, bronchitis, bruises, burns, cough, cuts, fractures, fungal skin problems, gout, gangrene, heals wounds, hemorrhage, insect bites, inflamed skin rashes, sprains, swelling, inflamed stomach or bowels, pleurisy, pneumonia, ruptures, stiff & aching joints, torn ligaments, tuberculosis, ulcerated kidneys, ulcerous wounds
References (Books/Author/Page):
- Encyclopedia of Herbal Medicine/Andrew Chevallier/Pg. 137
- The Complete Illustrated Holistic Herbal/David Hoffman/Pg. 148
- The New Age Herbalist/Richard Mabey/Pg. 33
- School of Natural Learning/John R Christopher/Pg. 309-316
- The Way of the Herbs/Michael Tierra/Pg. 121-124
Pertinent Information
Comfrey’s traditional use is in mending broken bones. As a wound herb, it is highly regard for its healing properties.
Comfrey promotes the healing of bruises, sprains, fractures, scrapes and broken bones. The herb encourages ligaments and bones to knit together firmly.
As a fine respiratory healing herb (esp. hemorrhage of the lungs), comfrey is beneficial for bronchitis, irritable coughs and other respiratory disorders. It soothes and reduces irritation while helping expectoration and healing the inflamed tissues.
Comfrey has the highest content of mucilage of any of the herbs.
Plus, comfrey is excellent poultice (from root and young leaves) for chronic varicose ulcers and as a compress for varicose veins. A comfrey compress applied immediately to a sprained ankle can significantly reduce the severity of the injury.
Comfrey oil or ointment is used to treat acne/boils and to relieve psoriasis. Additionally, comfrey guards against scar tissue developing incorrectly and alleviates minor burns.
Related Species & More Information
In addition to Common comfrey (S. officinale) are Russian comfrey (S. uplandicum) and Prickly comfrey (S. asperum). In my experience, Russian comfrey can be taken internal for severe sprains for at least 6 weeks. Prickly comfrey originated from Asia as a feed plant for pigs, rabbits and goats, Like Common comfrey, Prickly comfrey is used externally as a poultice to heal wounds and reduce joint inflammation.
References (Books/Author/Page):
Prickly comfrey (S. asperum). https://gobotany.nativeplanttrust.org/species/symphytum/asperum/
Cautionary Pearls
Comfrey has high pyrrolizidine alkaloid content which is toxic to the liver. This constituent increases the liver enzyme levels in the body. Therefore, alcoholics and those with liver disease or chronic conditions that leads to liver disease should avoid taking comfrey.
Also, for healthy individuals taking comfrey, be sure to monitor your liver enzyme levels through your regular blood tests that you get from the doctors office.
Since comfrey absorbs easily through the skin, wearing gloves when applying the ointment, cream or poultice is preferable.
Because of its rapid healing properties, comfrey must not be used on dirty wounds because, the rapid healing with trap the dirt leading to pus/abscess. Do not use if pregnant or breastfeeding. Avoid excess consumption. USE FOR AT LEAST 6 WEEKS AND NOT MORE THAN THAT!
As for internally use, I have had good experience using the Russian comfrey (Symphytum x uplandicum) internally, for 6 weeks, with no incident. If you decide to use this particular species, be sure that the herbalist or the person behind the counter gives you this brand. There is another species known as Common comfrey (Symphytum x officinale) which should be used only topically and can be easily confused for the Russian comfrey. If your liver is congested and weak, the fresh mature leaves can be used in place of the fresh, young ones.