Borage

borago officinalis

WARNING
Contact with the fresh leaves
may cause dermatitis in sensitive persons.
Prolonged use of borage is not advisable.

Parts Used Medicinally
Leaves, and to a lesser extent, the flowers.

Nutrient Content
Potassium

Constituents
Borage contains potassium and calcium,
combined with mineral acids.
The fresh juice affords 30 per cent,
the dried herb 3 per cent of nitrate of potash.
Stems and leaves supply much saline mucilage,
which when boiled and cooked
likewise deposits nitre and common salt.
It is to these saline qualities that
the wholesome invigorating properties
of Borage are supposed to be due.
Owing to the presence of nitrate of potash when burnt,
it will emit sparks with a slight explosive sound.

Biochemical Information
Mucilage, tannin, traces of essential oil.
Seeds: Gamma Lineolinic Acid (GLA)

Formulas or Dosages
Prolonged use of borage is not advisable.

Infusion:
use 1 tsp. dried flowers or 2-3 tsp. dried leaves
with 1/2 cup water; steep for 5 minutes and strain.
Take for 1 week at a time.

Extract: mix 1 tsp. of extract in juice; drink daily.

Fluid extract: Dose, 1/2 to 1 drachm.

Capsules: take up to 3 capsules per day.

For internal use, an infusion is made of one ounce of leaves
to one pint of boiling water, taken in wineglassful doses.

Externally, it is employed as a poultice for inflammatory swellings.
Poultice of leaves applied to inflamed swellings has been helpful.

PREPERATIONS
Flowers, candied and made into a conserve,
were deemed useful for persons weakened
by long sickness, and for those subject to swoonings;
distilled water was considered as effectual,
and valuable to cure inflammation of the eyes.

Juice in syrup was thought to be good in fevers,
to be a remedy for jaundice, itch and ringworm.
Culpepper tells us that in his days:
'The dried herb is never used,
but the green, yet the ashes thereof
boiled in mead or honeyed water,
is available in inflammation and ulcers
in the mouth or throat, as a gargle.'



Medicinal Properties

ACTIONS
anti-inflammatory
aperient
demulcent
diaphoretic
diuretic
emollient
febrifuge
galactagogue
pectoral
tonic

Medicinal Action / Uses
Borage is much used in France for fevers and pulmonary complaints.
By virtue of its saline constituents, it promotes the activity
of the kidneys and for this reason is employed
to carry off feverish catarrhs.
Its demulcent qualities are due to the mucilage
contained in the whole plant.


I love the blue flowers on borage.
Too bad they face down and don't show off more though.
Bright Blessings,
Another Thyme, Lilith

My grandmother told me they used to take
the flowers of borage, dip them in egg whites,
then in sugar and put them on waxed paper to harden.
They stored them in jars and used them to decorate birthday cakes,
along with similarly treated violets and rose petals.
~Fae

It's good for depression.



Special Thanks

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