Comfrey

I would like to share my experience with comfrey. In the summer of 1998 I broke my ankle, splitting the bones all the way through so that my foot was at a 60 degree angle to my leg. After the bone was set and metal pins inserted for support, I began to take comfrey and horsetail roots to help the bone heal.

My comfrey provider was not sure how much I should take, and I really don't remember now exactly how I decided how much to take. I tried mixing the ground root with water and it was not very soluble and tended to clump. I just drank it down in clumps in the water. My provider also informed me that comfrey will tend to cause you to taste and smell a peculiar taste/odor as the body becomes saturated with it. This is exactly what happened after a few days. I lowered my intake slightly and the taste/odor went away.

When I went for my 2 week checkup to see how my recovery was progressing, the doctor looked at the new xray for a moment and then called in another doctor. They both were looking at the xray rather seriously and I began to think something was wrong. My doctor said that nothing was wrong, it was just that my ankle bone seemed to be healing faster than they had ever seen a bone heal before. My ankle healed very well and has been put under a lot of stress with long outdoor hikes and it has never given me any problems.

A close friend of mine smashed (literally) his leg in a motorcycle accident. He also used horsetail and comfrey in a similar manner to the way I used it. After one of his earlier checkups, he told me there were 4 doctors that came into his doctor's office to look at his latest xray. They had the same disbelief at the speed at which his leg was healing.
 
It is very easy to grow comfrey and hard to get rid of. It can be started from a small piece of root, so digging and rototiller fail to eliminate the plant in a location which no longer works. It is best to carefully choose a permanent, out of the way spot for comfrey in the garden. The plant is vigorous and hardy and non-invasive. The fresh leaf and root has a mucilaginous quality which soothes and heals the mucous membrane. I used to have hay fever and would eat a few small leaves raw each day until the mucous tissue was no longer inflamed for that season. I also used the fresh root for stomach issues and as a poultice for sprains and wounds in those days of hippy agriculture. It is a wonderful addition to the backyard pharmacopeia.
 
Laura and others that used Comfrey, have you guys any updates on sucess stories?
I got interested in using it to treat my own eczema patches, and my mothers problems with tendonitis.
 
Iron said:
Laura and others that used Comfrey, have you guys any updates on sucess stories?
I got interested in using it to treat my own eczema patches, and my mothers problems with tendonitis.
Click to expand...

How did this work out Iron; the eczema & tendonitis treatments?
 
I have not yet used it, maybe my phrasing was unclear.
English is not my first language.
I'm thinking of using it, and wanted more information about people that already have used it, such as any side effects, protocols, etcetera.
 
Iron said:
I have not yet used it, maybe my phrasing was unclear...
Click to expand...

Your phrasings fine, my interpretation was excessively active. Read a few testimonials and here is a step by step application link for comfrey use for eczema.

_http://www.livestrong.com/article/103974-botanical-eczema-home-remedy/
 
Hi,
I am looking for datas on components of comfrey for animal feed (amino-acids, xanthophylle and so on)
We are in Brittany (France) and involved in comfrey for organic gardening ( http://www.b-actif.fr/ )
If you know studies about that and if you can help us thanks
Excuse me for my poor english
Thank you
Maxime Morvan
 
Hello Morvan, welcome to the forum :) . It is customary for new members to give a brief introduction in the Newbies section. It doesn't have to be personal and you can look there at how others did it.
 
This is my first post apart from the required newbie introduction. I found the site whilst researching more information on using comfrey to make liquid fertiliser. Comfrey is one of my passions in life and has been for about 20 years.

It might seem churlish to open with a negativity, especially since this thread contains a vast amount of perfectly accurate information (and I particularly like the info provided by RedFox) but the information on Henry Doubleday in the opening post is not correct. He was not a farmer. I have lent my book "Comfrey Past, Present and Future" to a young local agronomist who showed an interest in comfrey so I cannot check what Lawrence Hills wrote about him, but he was a scientist. HD did not form the HDRA, Lawtrence Hills did, and it was named the HDRA as a mark of respect for Mr Doubleday.

On the assumption that people who have read this thread from beginning to end are interested in all aspects of comfrey I thought they might be interested in an article I was asked to write for a private USA based website last year. It was split into different parts to suit the website owner, and I put them into a blog format in November 2012. It contains little information that is included in this thread and more about the origins of the various comfreys, Lawrence Hills' work and some information on feeding it to poultry and livestock as well as my proposals for using it in my olive groves. I do not want to repeat this lengthy article here, so only if you are interested, it can be found at www.oldmcdonaldinportugal.blogspot.com in the November 2012 posts. I am considering using it more as a liquid feed for my olives rather than the mulch I had intended at the time I wrote the article, and that is how I discovered this site.

I have not specifically used comfrey for medicinal purposes because I have never had the need, but I do eat it as a vegetable on a regular basis, twice in the last three days, and normally have about 4 large leaves. I think it goes particularly well in stir-fries.
 
Thanks for the link Old McDonald. I have been wondering how viable it would be to grow, and feed my pigs.
 
I injured my internal meniscus of the right knee two months ago. I was in pain every time I walked even short distances. Stairs were out of the question.

Meniscus injuries are often managed with exercise to strengthen the quadriceps muscles, that is, the muscles that supports the knees. Also, with surgery... So as to avoid surgery, I started doing exercises but it started hurting even more! It was pretty depressing...

So I got a comfrey formula in olive oil. I chose a liquid oily formula so I could rub throughout the day. Also, for me it was more practical and readily available than the herbs. I mixed it up with DMSO and rubbed it several times a day. I noticed a relief almost immediately! After 2 weeks of treatment, my meniscus doesn't hurt while walking, climbing stairs, nor when exercising. It is only sensitive when I force maneuvers of the meniscus in an exaggerated way. I kept doing exercises to strengthen my muscles, and now it is certainly helping with the healing process. It looks like I'm going to heal entirely from this particular problem!

Thought you guys might want to know this story. People with the problem I had are lining up for surgeries with a waiting list of 6 months or so and no guarantee the surgery is going to fix the problem. On the contrary, it can make things worse. Viva la comfrey with DMSO! :)
 
hi
i havent read the thread yet just seen the title and a little of the first post i just thought i would share a story

comfry :D is a great plant we have 2 growing in buckets on the balcony it grows great in well fertile soil

a year ago our young cat hurt its back leg he could not walk we had to carry him to use the litter box
we had to carry him around for nearly 2 weeks after the 2 weeks he could walk a bit within 4 weeks he was just about fully healed
didnt take long before he was running around again :D

i read some were when i was looking into its uses that the chinese army used to bring comfry into battle for healing purposes
anyway heres what i used

comfry leaves into the blender little bit of flour just to stiffin it up some then
put the comfry into bandages wrapped his leg changing it twice a day
was wet and a bit messy but it worked :D happy days
 
Gaby said:
Thought you guys might want to know this story. People with the problem I had are lining up for surgeries with a waiting list of 6 months or so and no guarantee the surgery is going to fix the problem. On the contrary, it can make things worse. Viva la comfrey with DMSO! :)
Click to expand...

I think this would have helped my whiplash immensely - i did try Comfrey + Magneisum Chloride baths - and i was going to ask if mixing it with DMSO would be effective (i had read the threads stating it carries other things and really penetrates the skin). Really really good to know! (dodgy knees run in the family, not me so far..)

I'm not sure whether you could dilute the DMSO into a small bath.... But what i did, because i ached all over; grab a cup of magnesium chloride flakes, pour the oil of your choice onto the flakes (Comfrey in Olive oil in my case) - add any essential oils at this point too - stir or shake the mixture and pour directly into the bath (either under the tap or not). The result is a 'thin film' of the oils (rather than blobs) and so when you step in, your body is coated completely. Just make sure to pay yourself dry when you step out.

It saves the whole palaver of applying a heavy or thick oil and it clogging your pores, and is super quick and easy.

I can't say i noticed any tangible result from just Comfrey, but i used up a few bottles of the stuff anyway because it was cheap, accessible and i'd read so many positive things. And that it has an old wives name like 'knit bone' says it all.

I also tried oil pulling with it, and adding a few drops to my homemade toothpaste for it's healing qualities; but not for very long as it's not as tasty as coconut oil.
 
Added: If you don't have magnesium flakes, it works with bicarbonate of soda too. Any powder that absorbs the oil and so on contact with the water will disperse into droplets.
 
itellsya said:
Gaby said:
Thought you guys might want to know this story. People with the problem I had are lining up for surgeries with a waiting list of 6 months or so and no guarantee the surgery is going to fix the problem. On the contrary, it can make things worse. Viva la comfrey with DMSO! :)
Click to expand...

I think this would have helped my whiplash immensely - i did try Comfrey + Magneisum Chloride baths - and i was going to ask if mixing it with DMSO would be effective (i had read the threads stating it carries other things and really penetrates the skin). Really really good to know! (dodgy knees run in the family, not me so far..)
Click to expand...

I have to add that the last couple of months also coincided with the re-starting of the ketogenic diet. I think that helped with inflammation too. Although I only noticed a significant difference with the comfrey/DMSO combo. It is just good to know that some traumatic injuries can be dealt so effectively with these measures...

Fascinating experiment :flowers:
 
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