Burns

Burns

My wife is no real fan of herbal medicine. She'd rather go to doctors and take pills than have anything to do with the herbal concoctions and healing vegetable soups that I mix up, messing up her kitchen. But like so many homemakers, my herbally skeptical Peggy still has a small potted aloe plant on her kitchen windowsill, and she's used its gel to treat burns several times over the years.

My secretary is also a fan of aloe for burns. Once she fell asleep outdoors and wound up with a nasty sunburn on her feet and ankles. She reached for her aloe and got effective relief.

Burns by the Numbers

Burns come in three degrees of severity. First-degree burns injure only the outermost layer of skin. An ordinary sunburn, for example, is a first-degree burn.

When a burn develops blisters, the injury has penetrated deeper into the skin, and you have a very painful second-degree burn.

The worst type of burn, a third-degree burn, is, oddly, often not painful at all. That's because the injury penetrates so deeply that it destroys the nerves that transmit pain signals to the brain.

Third-degree burns are medical emergencies that always require professional care and typically necessitate hospitalization. And any second-degree burn that covers an area of skin larger than a quarter should receive medical attention.

Green Pharmacy for Burns

For first-degree and smaller second-degree burns, there are a number of herbal treatments that can soothe the burn and help bring relief.

Aloe (Aloe vera). Aloe has been used to treat burns and other wounds since ancient times. But it's not just a folk remedy. Many studies have shown that the gel obtained by slitting open the succulent's fat, leathery leaves relieves burns, including burns caused by radiation treatments for cancer.

Aloe Aloe, which is easily grown indoors on a windowsill, has been used medicinally since biblical times.

My friend Varro Tyler, Ph.D., dean and professor emeritus of pharmacognosy (natural product pharmacy) at Purdue University in West Lafayette, Indiana, cites many studies showing that aloe gel is useful in treating burns, wounds and frostbite.

Scientists are still not certain how aloe speeds the healing of burns, but the herb appears to have several beneficial effects. One study showed that aloe increases the amount of blood flowing to areas of burned tissue, which brings more of the body's healing resources to the area where they're needed.

Aloe also contains enzymes, carboxypeptidase and bradykininase, that relieve pain, reduce inflammation and decrease redness and swelling. In addition, aloe gel has antibacterial and antifungal properties, which might help prevent burns from getting infected.

Aloe belongs in every kitchen, the place where most household burns occur. It's my first-choice herb for burns. Unfortunately, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) does not share my opinion. Two FDA advisory panels found "insufficient evidence" that aloe is useful for burns.

When the FDA says "insufficient evidence," it doesn't mean that the evidence isn't out there--it clearly is, and lots of it. It means only that years ago, when the panels were considering over-the-counter drugs (and when U.S. herbalism was at a low ebb), no one sent the panels enough studies to convince them. And why should they? The herbal believers are already convinced, and there's no economic incentive for drug companies to get aloe approved when anyone can grow it and the companies can't make any money on it.

Echinacea (Echinacea, various species). Most people familiar with herbs know that echinacea (also known as coneflower) stimulates immune responses. Because it does, if I had a burn, I'd take out my tincture of echinacea and drink a teaspoon or two. (Although echinacea can cause your tongue to tingle or go numb temporarily, this effect is harmless.) One of the main concerns with any kind of burn is infection, and a beefed-up immune system helps guard against infection. In addition, I'd apply a few drops directly to the burn. Few people know that echinacea is also a gentle antiseptic that helps prevent infection at the burn site.

Garlic (Allium sativum) and onion (A. cepa). From Africa to Rome to America, these herbs or their close relatives (chives, leeks and scallions) have been applied directly to burns. These plants all have undeniable antiseptic properties. To use any of these plants on a burn, just mash them and apply the paste as a poultice.

Gotu kola (Centella asiatica). Naturopathic physicians suggest taking this herb (along with foods high in vitamin C) for treatment of burns. There is some evidence that the combination of the vitamin and three compounds in gotu kola--asiatic acid, asiaticoside and madecassic acid--stimulate collagen synthesis, a key element in skin repair. (Collagen is a protein that forms the basic structure of skin.)

Lavender (Lavandula, various species). During the 1920s, French perfume chemist René-Maurice Gattefossé burned his hand in his laboratory. He plunged it into the nearest liquid--a container of lavender oil. The pain subsided quickly and the burn healed with no scarring. This incident may have led to the development of aromatherapy, the use in healing of various essential oils taken from plants.

Other essential oils, such as camomile, camphor, eucalyptus, geranium, onion, peppermint, rosemary and sage, have also been touted as burn treatments. But aromatherapists I know reserve their highest praise for lavender oil. Consider placing a vial on your kitchen windowsill right next to the aloe plant. (Remember, though, that you should never ingest essential oils, as even a small amount can be toxic.)

Plantain (Plantago, various species). Plantain is one of the most popular folk herbal remedies for burns in the United States. Juice from the fresh leaves of this plant is applied directly to mild burns. I've used it many times and found it soothing.

St.-John's-wort (Hypericum perforatum). Germany's Commission E, the scientists who advise the German government about herbal treatments, praised St.-John's-wort as an anti-inflammatory external treatment for first-degree burns. One German study showed that St.-John's-wort salves speeded up burn healing time and helped reduce scarring. You may need to beat the bushes to find a salve containing this herb in America, but tinctures are readily available. You can also make a suitable preparation by steeping one to two teaspoons of dried herb (preferably the flowering tops) in a few ounces of vegetable oil.