Two: During the second World War, an Englishman named Henry Doubleday devoted himself to hybridizing comfrey and making it safe to eat as a cooked green.One: An herbal group that I belong to sent three samples of comfrey leaf (one from the west coast, one from the east coast, and one from the Rocky Mountains) to a lab to be tested for the problematic alkaloids they found none.How can I be so sure that cultivated comfrey is safe to consume internally? Three things have convinced me. But cultivated comfrey (uplandica) leaves don't. Wild comfrey (officinale) leaves have some of the same poisons. Comfrey roots, like most perennial roots, contain poisons. To complicate the situation even more: the roots and the leaves of comfrey contain different constituents. But gardeners and herbal sellers alike usually mislabel it, causing no end of confusion. uplandica x.) is a large plant-often surpassing two meters-with blue or purple flowers.Įveryone I know grows uplandica and that is what is sold in stores. off.) is a small plant-up to a meter tall-with yellow flowers. (The "x" means it is a hybrid, a cross.)Wild comfrey (S. There are two species of comfrey: wild comfrey, Symphytum officinale, and cultivated comfrey, Symphytum uplandica x. Perhaps it starts with confusion, aided by imprecise language. How did such a wonderful green ally come to have such a terrible reputation? Comfrey has so much to offer as an aid to health and healing. "Every time I mention comfrey, someone asks if it isn't "unsafe." When I identify with comfrey, I feel like a persecuted witch wrongly accused of evil-doing. Susun Weed has an interesting take on the safety of taking Comfrey internally: Animal studies have also shown that these chemicals lead to the development of liver tumors." Several studies have shown that comfrey contains toxic compounds called pyrrolizidine alkaloids or PAs, which can cause severe liver damage. "When taken internally, comfrey can cause severe liver damage. I listened to a great podcast this week by Jack Spirko on Comfrey and it got me thinking about what is true here about it and what isn't.Ĭomfrey has been used since 400 BC internally (and eaten as a vegetable) until I think one research experiment with rats that ate 3-4 times its body weight for a long period of time determined it was dangerous. I must have 8 big plants now and it is used every week in our household for cuts, bruises, pain, etc. I've had it for a few years by my fruit trees.
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