Yes John, I'm a physician. Since you've been around here awhile, I had thought you were familiar with the backgrounds of posters who are members of health professions and interested in herbalism. I had gathered from your own posts that you are a practicing naturopath. "Materia medica" is a general term for publications on herbal uses which covers a wide range of books and listings going back for centuries. Without knowing more about how up-to-date your citation is and what scientific studies support it, it's hard to judge how accurate it is. And of course, noting that it does not "precaution" the use of comfrey in children doesn't indicate that it mentions kids and safety at all. While we're talking about materia medicas and naturopathy, maybe you can explain the online materia medica for your own profession. The Australian Naturopathic Network has published a listing on comfrey that details a whole laundry list of internal diseases and conditions the herb is supposed to help, including bronchitis, "gut wall erosions", colitis, diarrhea, "rheumatic arthritic conditions", gastric and duodenal ulcers and cancer (not to mention my favorite, that comfrey "Fosters the Yin". We could use more of that around here ;) It's only in one line at the bottom of the page that it's noted that comfrey should not be taken internally. Since nearly all of the wondrous things that the naturopathic association promotes comfrey for involve internal complaints, why hasn't the association deleted these references for public safety and to avoid misleading members of your profession? (the one-line disclaimer about not self-medicating is hardly going to discourage enthusiasts reading about all the great things comfrey allegedly does, none of which have been documented by authoritative research).

The Bottom Line  Like all living organisms, plants have natural resistance mechanisms to fight insect attack or disease.  Covering wounds with traditional sealants inhibits oxidative processes, which in turn will reduce callus formation and subsequent compartmentalization.  Optimal pruning time for insect- or disease-prone species is in the fall or winter when temperatures and infection rates are lower.  If you must prune a disease-prone species when insects or fungi are active (i.e. during the warmer times of the year), a light coating of an insecticide or fungicide may be warranted.  Try sterilizing pruning tools. Such measures can help reduce the transmission of certain plant diseases to healthy plants.  Control disease spread through preventative management practices such as disposal of contaminated organic material and use of disease-free compost and mulch Here is a link that might be useful: Wound Sealer

Dog Bowls: I was visiting with a bunch of young professionals involved in dog rescue, and they were discussing the fact (?) that plastic dog bowls can cause a dog's nose to turn pink. I would not have given this any credence except that they are engineers - rocket scientists to be exact - and tend to analyze things before repeating them. They claim it is a chemical reaction as the nose touches the bowl. My dog bowl system: I was experiencing wrist pain and realized how much wrist movement is involved in handwashing the dog's bowls. I bought a third bowl for the dog, and now I pop both his food and water bowls into the dishwasher at night. The dog gets a fresh clean bowl of water at night, the two used bowls come out of the dishwasher in the morning. One bowl is used for food and the clean bowl sits on the counter all day until evening when it is filled with water.

I got burned by a laser printer at work trying to remove a paper jam, and I was sent to a workman's comp doctor who prescribed a cream that I think is Silvadene. He gave me a 2 oz jar of it, and I have kept it in the fridge for kitchen burns. It works better than anything else I've tried, and if I put some of it on the burn right after it happens, it's as if I never got burned. I have not tried egg white, but will keep that in mind, once I run out of Silvadene. I have quite a few aloe plants in my front and back yards (several are blooming now), but I have used those mainly for sunburn. Now I use sufficient sun screen that I do not get sunburn and stay out of the sun in general. If you get a second degree burn, it is good to go to your emergency clinic and get treatment from a doctor. They can give you something stronger than the home remedies, but the home remedies are essential as a first aid treatment, before you can get to the doctor. Once you have a supply of burn cream from a doctor, you can store it in the fridge for quite some time. Lars Aloe blooming in front yard last week-end, in the rain: