Calendula

Scientific Name(S): Calendula officinalis L. Family: Compositae

Common Name(S): Calendula, garden marigold, gold bloom, holligold, marygold, pot marigold, marybud

Calendula, more commonly know as Marigold, is one of the most common herbs and can be found growing in people's homes throughout North America and Europe. The colorful petals of the calendula have been used in herbal preparations for hundreds of years. Today, the dried petals of the calendula plant are used in tinctures, ointments, and washes to speed the healing of burns, bruises, and cuts, as well as the minor infections they cause.

Botany: Believed to have originated in Egypt, this plant has almost world wide distribution. There are numerous varieties of this specie, each one varying primarily in flower shape and color. Calendula grows to about two feet in height and the wild form has small, bright yellow-orange flowers that bloom from May to October. It is the ligulate florets, mistakenly called the flower petals, that have been used medicinally. This plant should not be confused with several other members of the family that also carry the "marigold" name.

History: The plant has been grown in European gardens since the 12th century and its folkloric uses are almost as old. Tinctures and extracts of the florets had been used topically to promote wound healing and to reduce inflammation; systemically, they have been used to reduce fever, to control dysmenorrhea and to treat cancer. The dried petals have been used like saffron as a seasoning and have been used to adulterate saffron.

The pungent odor of the marigold has been used as an effective pesticide. Marigolds are often interspersed among vegetable plants to repel insects.

Uses of Calendula

Calendula has been used in folk medicine topically to treat wounds and internally to reduce fever, treat cancer and control dysmenorrhea. Extracts have proved antibacterial, antiviral and immunostimulating in vitro. Petals are consumed as a seasoning. The plant has been used to repel insects

Side Effects of Calendula

Allergic reactions to the botanical family and one case of anaphylaxis have been reported.

Recommended adult doses are as follows:

• Infusion: 1 tsp dried florets in 8 oz water; steep 30 to 40 minutes; drink two to three cups per day
• Fluid extract (1:1 in 40% alcohol): 0.5 to 1.0 mL three times per day
• Tincture (1:5 in 90% alcohol): 2 to 4 mL three times per day
• Ointment: 2 to 5 g crude drug in 100 g ointment

Toxicology: Despite its widespread use, there have been no reports in the Western literature describing serious reactions to the use of calendula preparations. A report of anaphylactic shock in a patient who gargled with a calendula infusion has been reported in Russia.

Allergies to members of the family Compositae (chamomile, feverfew, dandelion) have been reported, in particular to the pollens of these plants. Users of calendula preparations should consider the potential for allergic reactions to occur.

In animals, doses of up to 50 mg/kg of extract had essentially no pharmacologic effect and induced no histopathologic changes following either acute or chronic administration. Saponin extracts of C. officinalis have not been found to be mutagenic.

Summary: Calendula is one of the many plants used persistently despite no clear evidence that its components exert any consistent pharmacologic effect. Some support in the form of animal studies exists for its topical wound healing and anti-inflammatory uses, and these properties should be investigated further. The plant appears to have a low potential for toxicity, but nevertheless, cannot be recommended at this time for the systemic treatment of any disease.