Beauty Ingredient: Benefits of Comfrey

Reader Contribution by Staff
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Dawn is the owner of Seattle Hill Soap Company and formulates natural and safe soaps and skin care items that are enhanced by herbs, botanicals, or clays. You can find Seattle Hill Soap Company atwww.seattlehillsoaps.com.

I’m always searching for great herbs to color our soap and skin care products with. Recently I’ve discovered a plant that not only provides a beautiful green color but also provides wonderful skin benefits. Today, I’m going to tell you a little bit about comfrey. 

Comfrey is a plant that isn’t given much attention, most likely due to the potential for liver toxicity if ingested. It is frequently used as a fertilizer/compost tea and mulch because of its intense nitrogen content. As an herbal remedy, it has wonderful benefits for the skin.

One of the main components in comfrey leaf is allantoin–a compound that is used to hasten skin regeneration. Comfrey leaf is also known for healing bruises and scrapes quite effectively.  Studies in Europe show it’s effective in treating eczema, dermatitis, and viral skin infections. For skin applications, it’s best used as a poultice or infused into liquid to be used as topical treatment only.

My newest creation containing comfrey is a gardener’s soap that has a gentle exfoliant and scented with a peppermint rosemary fragrance. I thought it a refreshing way to end a day of gardening. (Click here to learn how to make soap.) 

  • Published on Mar 1, 2010
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