Page 59
The Willner Window Product Reference Catalog, Winter 2014
since 1911
• Willner Chemists •
the nutritional supplement professionals
Allergy Research Group
There’s a New Healing Comfrey
Cream on the Block
By Dr. Holly Lucille
Besides being a sort of "daredevil doctor"
and fairly active myself, I see a lot of active
people in my practice. Many of them have
sprains, cuts, bruises, scrapes, and all kinds of
minor (and sometimes not so minor) trauma.
In times past, comfrey was considered a
powerful healing plant and would have been
a remarkable natural intervention to relieve
pain and hasten healing. Unfortunately, com-
frey contains liver toxic compounds
(pyrrolizidine alkaloids, or PA), so its oral use
was banned in the United States. Some doc-
tors were even concerned with creams and
soaks, for fear these compounds would
absorb.
Fortunately, there is a a new comfrey topi-
cal cream e that is great for open wounds, so
any cuts and other normal results of an active
life can be healed quickly. The other good
news is that this comfrey cream is safe for
children as young as four years old, so it’s an
option even for kids who get into enough of
their own scrapes. The reason is because
there is finally a way to use this excellent nat-
ural medicine without any risk, because it
does not contain any liver toxic compounds.
So, how does comfrey actually work? It
does many things, and addresses wounds
and bruises – even bone damage – in a vari-
ety of ways.
Aside from soothing pain, comfrey slows
down damage to tissues and boosts tissue
regeneration. It quickly and efficiently
rebuilds damaged blood, bone and flesh –
the exact response you need for wounds,
sores, burns, cuts, scrapes, bites, stings, rash-
es, swollen tissue, sprains and broken bones.
In fact, the popular names for comfrey give
you a pretty good idea of what it has been
used for: knitback, bruisewort (wort meaning
plant), Knitbone, and Boneset.
Technically, most comfrey is known as
Symphytum officinale. “Symphytum” is a
Latin word meaning “to make grow togeth-
er.” The term “officinale” refers to the fact
that this plant was used for botanical reme-
dies and most likely kept in a monastery
storeroom – an early form of medieval phar-
macy.
But now, thanks to a wonderful blend of
age-old wisdom and modern plant science,
there is a type of comfrey that avoids the
problem of liver toxicity altogether. This vari-
ety of comfrey, known as Symphytum x
uplandicum NYMAN, has been designated as
“Trauma Comfrey” by the German Health
authorities a specialized species, much like a
patent.
This special form of comfrey has been
specifically cultivated to be low in PA con-
tent. Plus, only the aerial parts – leaves,
stems and flowers – that are naturally PA-free
(rather than roots that typically have a higher
PA content) are used.
But, just as important as what your comfrey
doesn’t include is what it does provide.
Three of the major players in comfrey’s
team of winning compound are allantoin,
choline, and rosamarinic acid.
• Allantoin quickly stimulates the rebuild-
ing of cells and regenerates damaged tissue.
It can actually travel through the skin all the
way to tendons, cartilage and bone.
. . . continued on page 63
Vega
the first complete,
all-natural, plant-based
sport performance system
20% off
all VeGa
Valid from
Jan 6
th
to feb 14
th
vegasport.com