Marigold — the little flower that could … heal wounds, that is

Better Nutrition, Nov, 1998 by C. Leigh Broadhurst

Calendula, or pot marigold (Calendula officinalis), was grown in monastery gardens in medieval Europe, and was valued as a vulnerary, referring to any botanical or compound that helps to heal wounds faster and cleaner. This was of great importance in medieval times, prior to the understanding of how microbes and poor hygiene cause infection, when minor wounds easily developed into festering, life-threatening ulcerations.

Traditional salves were made by simmering calendula flowers in lard and beeswax; often, honey was added. Wounds were washed with infusions containing herbs such as calendula, yarrow, myrrh, betony, and rosemary, then dressed with the salve.

Modern research has confirmed that calendula does help wounds heal, and that the monks' preparation methods were well-designed.

Calendula is considered anti-inflammatory, immunostimulating, antiseptic, antihemorrhagic, and antiulcerogenic, all of which may contribute to the healing effect. Calendula flowers contain such high concentrations of water/alcohol-soluble flavonoids (plant pigments with antioxidative properties) and fat-soluble carotenoids that they have been used as yellow-orange natural dyes.

In fact, as far as antioxidants and carotenoids are concerned, the flowers have the highest lycopene concentration of all plants in the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) database, and also contain beta-carotene and lutein.

Carotenoids are crucial for immune function, skin growth, and vision, among other benefits. These data may not mean much if you're not in the habit of eating marigolds, but, historically, they were enjoyed in salad/vegetable dishes, especially in Elizabethan England. You might resurrect this practice, as calendula remains approved by the German Commission E for internal use, such as slow-healing mouth and throat sores.

The main anti-inflammatory compounds of C. officinalis are phytochemicals called triterpendiols. A 1997 Austrian study looked at the fat-soluble portions of 1,200 samples of 20 commercially available C. officinalis flowers.

The results? The fat-soluble compounds, once identified and tested in experimental studies, reduced artificially brought-on skin inflammation (swelling) by anywhere from 45 to 73 percent.

It seems that certain compounds in marigold may blend naturally occurring oils with our skin to help protect damaged skin in the area of a wound.

Are water- and/or alcohol-based calendula extracts also effective? In 1996, Brazilian scientists reported success with alcohol extracts of calendula for burns, skin lesions, sunburns, and ulcers. They recommended calendula, particularly for ulcers resulting from severe varicose veins. Both C. officinalis and Styphnodendron barbadetiman are used traditionally in Brazil to treat many ailments, including burns.

Patients with either varicose ulcers or skin lesions were treated with an alcohol extract of calendula, or calendula extract plus gel from the stem bark of S. barbadetiman. The patients were chosen because they had not responded well to conventional treatments. Results showed that either treatment was effective in aiding the process that brings ulcerative wounds to a close.

Also in 1996, researchers in the United Kingdom described another facet of the vulnerary effect. Wounds treated with a water extract of calendula showed increases in the number of microscopic blood vessels and factors associated with connective tissue repair and growth. Flavonoids were the major components of this extract. Therefore, traditional wound cleansing with calendula tea makes sense, as well. Stock up on this herb, in any form.

REFERENCES

Duke, J.A., Beckstrom-Sternberg, S., and Broadhurst, C.L. U.S Dept. of Agriculture Phytochemical and Ethnobotanical Data Base. http://www.arsgrin.gov/~ngrlsb/, 1998.

Hostettmann, K., Marston, A., Maillard, M., and Hamburger, M. (eds.) Phytochemistry of Plants Used in Traditional Medicine. New York: Oxford Science Publications, 1995.

Jorge Neto, J., Fracasso, J.F., Neves, M.D., C.L.C., Santos, L.E.D., and Banuth, V.L. "Treatment of varicose ulcer and skin lesions with Calendula officinalis L. or Stryphnodendron barbadetiman (Vellozo)," Martius Revista de Ciencias Farmaceuticas 17:181-186, 1996.

Molan, P.C. "The Antibacterial Activity of Honey." Part 1 and Part 2, Bee World 73:5-76, 1992.

Patrick, K.F.M., Kumar, S., Edwardson, P.A.D., and Hutchinson, J.J. "Induction of vascularisation by an aqueous extract of the flowers of Calendula officinalis L. (European marigold)," Phytomedicine 3:11-18, 1996.

Subrahmanyam, M. "Topical application of honey in treatment of burns," Br J Surg 78:497-498, 1991.

Zitterl-Eglseer, K., Sosa, S., Jurenitsch, J., Schubert-Zsilavecz, M., Della Loggia, R., Tubaro, A., Bertoldi, M., and Franz, C. "Anti-oedematous activities of the main triterpendiol esters of marigold (Calendula officinalis L.)," Journal of Ethnopharmacology 57:139-144, 1997

RELATED ARTICLE: Healthful honey

To give credit where due, the honey used in the monasteries is also a vulnerary. Honey is a broad-spectrum antibiotic and antifungal. The antimicrobial activity is present even when honey is greatly diluted. In a clinical trial on burn patients, honey was evaluated versus a control consisting of the conventional treatment: gauze soaked in the drug silver sulfadiazine (SS). After seven days, 91 percent of the honey-treated burns were free from infection, compared to only 7 percent for those treated with SS. After 15 days, 87 percent of honey-treated wounds were healed vs 10 percent in the SS group. Honey formed a flexible protective barrier which prevented infection, absorbed pus, and reduced pain, irritation, and odors. In addition, the enzymes in honey appeared to stimulate the growth of new tissue.