Lady's mantle
Alchemilla(?)
Other names: Lady's mantle
Edible plantPhoto credit: Jina Lee
Safety information
Safety information
Toxicity: Low; high-tannin (astringent) — large/prolonged internal use not advised.
Contraindications: Pregnancy (traditional uterine/'women's' use — avoid medicinal doses); none otherwise well established.
Interactions: Tannins may reduce absorption of iron and some drugs taken together; theoretical additive astringent/constipating effect.
Pregnancy & breastfeeding: Avoid medicinal doses (traditional uterine use).
Evidence level
Supported by laboratory or animal studies; not yet confirmed in humans.
Preparations
infusion · leaf
Part used: leaf
Traditional use: folk: 'women's complaints' (heavy menstruation, after childbirth), diarrhea
Proposed mechanism: high tannin/ellagitannin astringency; anti-inflammatory, wound-healing
poultice/wash · aerial part
Part used: aerial part
Traditional use: topical for wounds and skin(Folk and historical sources have not been validated by clinical research.)
Associated conditions
Edibility
Edible parts: young leaves edible cooked/in salads in small amounts (astringent)
Toxic lookalike warning
The pleated, fan-shaped lobed leaves are fairly distinctive (famously hold dew drops), but confirm Alchemilla before eating and avoid unknown lobed-leaf rosettes.
Nutritional notes
Minor; vitamin C and tannins in young leaf.
Healing traditions
Sources (1)
- Bussmann et al., A comparative ethnobotany ... Republic of Georgia, J Ethnobiol Ethnomed 2016;12:43