# Making Comfrey Salve



## faithmarie (Oct 18, 2008)

Making Comfrey Salve
Comfrey is a strong plant and grows easily in the home garden.


Together comfrey and plantain work to reduce a variety of skin irritations and encouraging cell growth…
…the balm made from these two plants is a perfect remedy for hard to treat diaper rash (you know the kind that nothing else will heal), eczema, burns, and psoriasis.
So after drying the two plant materials, I began the infusion process.
Supplies
-1 quart glass mason jar
-double-boiler or small pot
Ingredients
plenty of good, quality organic olive oil
6 ounces dried comfrey leaves
3 ounce dried plantain leaves
4-6 ounces beeswax
Method
Please note: For this salve — because I had the time — I decided to create a triple-infused herbal oil.
1. To begin, I combined 2 ounces of dried comfrey leaves and 1 ounce of dried plantain leaves in a quart-sized glass mason jar. Note: Use a small kitchen scale to measure the herbs.
2. Pour enough olive oil to cover the herbs, leaving 1/2 inch head space.
3. Leave on the counter to infuse for 4-6 weeks.
4. Strain oil through a cheesecloth. Reserve the herb-infused oil and compost the plant material.
5. For a double-infusion, repeat step 1 then pour the reserved herb-infused oil over the herbs (adding more oil if needed to bring 1/2 inch from the top of the jar). Infuse again for 4-6 weeks.
6. For a triple-infusion, repeat the process. Note: Click this link to read more about creating an herbal-infused oil.
7. After the final straining you should have anywhere from 24-32 ounces of herb-infused oil. Now it’s time for the beeswax!
8. In a small pot — or double boiler if you have one– over very low heat, add the herbal oil and beeswax. Depending on how hard you’d like your salve, the general rule is to add 1-2 ounces of beeswax per 8 ounces of oil (Note: These are all measurements by weight, using a kitchen scale). I suggest starting with the lesser amount of wax and adding more if needed. (Note: To check if the mixture is the right consistency, because the salve hardens as it cools, the wonderful Rosemary Gladstar suggests placing a “tablespoon of the mixture in the freezer for just a minute or two. If it’s soft, add more beeswax; if too hard, add more oil.”)
9. Once melted, pour the mixture into tins or glass jars. Note: These tins are my favorite!
10. An herbal salve prepared in this fashion should keep in a cool, dark place for up to 5 years.
Please Note: According to Philip Fritchey, a comfrey salve should not be used on those deep/puncture type wounds. This because it has the power to regenerate new cell growth over the top of the wound before it has had time to heal the deeper tissue. A salve such as this one or one made of calendula, goldenseal, or Oregon grape root may be more suitable for the treatment of deeper wounds.


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## faithmarie (Oct 18, 2008)

http://sphotos-b.xx.fbcdn.net/hphotos-prn1/521425_137488079738673_1368107269_n.jpg
Contemporary herbalists view comfrey as an ambivalent and controversial herb that may offer therapeutic benefits.
One of the most common uses of Comfrey extract is as a skin treatment. The plant contains the small organic molecule allantoin, which is thought to stimulate cell growth and repair while simultaneously depressing inflammation.[4] Scientists and physicians agree that the use of Comfrey should be restricted to topical use, and should never be ingested, as it contains dangerous amounts of hepatotoxic pyrrolizidine alkaloids (PAs).[5][6] Use of comfrey can, because of these PAs, lead to veno-occlusive disease (VOD). VOD can in turn lead to liver failure, and comfrey has been implicated in at least one death.[7] In 2001, the United States Food and Drug Administration issued a warning against internal usage of herbal products containing comfrey, and eventually banned Comfrey products intended for internal use.[8][9] In addition to restrictions on oral use, scientists and medical professionals recommend applying Comfrey extracts no longer than 10 days in a row, and no more than 4-6 weeks a year.[4][10]
One of the country names for comfrey was 'knitbone', a reminder of its traditional use in healing bone fractures. Modern science confirms that comfrey can influence the course of bone ailments.[11][12][13][14]
The allantoin contained in the plant is thought to help replace and thus repair cells in the body through its proliferant properties. Comfrey was used in an attempt to treat a wide variety of ailments ranging from bronchial problems, broken bones, sprains, arthritis, gastric and varicose ulcers, severe burns, acne and other skin conditions. It was reputed to have bone and teeth building properties in children, and have value in treating "many female disorders". Constituents of comfrey also include mucilage, steroidal saponins, tannins, pyrrolizidine alkaloids, inulin, and proteins.[citation needed]

The flowers of Russian comfrey
Excessive doses of symphytine, one of the PAs in comfrey, may cause cancer in rats.[15] This was shown by injection of the pure alkaloid. The whole plant has also been shown to induce precancerous changes in rats.[16]
Most recently, in a placebo-controlled study comfrey was found to decrease back pain when used topically. However, it is not clear if these results reached statistical significance.


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