Navelwort (wall pennywort)

What is Navelwort (wall pennywort)?

Navelwort is a small succulent plant that grows on old walls, rocks and banks in western Europe. Each round leaf has a dip in the middle, like a navel. That shape gave it both its names: navelwort and wall pennywort.

Folk healers in Ireland, Britain, France and Portugal used the fleshy leaves on the skin. The cool, juicy leaf was peeled and laid on burns, corns, chilblains and piles (swollen veins around the back passage). In some regions the young leaves were eaten in salad.

Here is the honest verdict on evidence. There are no published human trials of navelwort for any use. Long folk use is not proof that it works, and it is not proof that it is safe.

How does Navelwort (wall pennywort) work?

Nobody has shown how navelwort works in people. What follows is a proposal, not a proven mechanism.

The leaf is thick, cool and full of water and mucilage (a slimy plant gel). On skin, that may soothe and soften, much as aloe gel does. The relief people describe may be simple cooling and cover.

In test tubes, extracts of Umbilicus show antioxidant activity. A few rodent studies suggest the extract may calm swelling and dull pain. Results in animals often fail to repeat in people.

The leaf also holds flavonoids and tannins. In laboratory tests, tannins tighten tissue and slow the growth of some bacteria. Whether any of that happens on human skin is not established.

What forms does Navelwort (wall pennywort) come in?

The fresh leaf is the main form. Navelwort is rarely sold, so most use comes from picking it.

Forms you may meet: - Fresh leaf, with the thin skin peeled off, laid on a small spot. - Crushed leaf or pressed juice.

- Juice or pulp stirred into an ointment, salve or infused oil. - Dried herb, which loses the cool, juicy quality tradition valued. - Young leaves eaten raw as a wild salad green.

You will not find a standard capsule or tincture in most shops. There is no agreed strength for this plant. Two home-made preparations can differ a great deal.

Where it comes from:

Navelwort held a steady place in western European folk medicine for centuries.

In Ireland it was known as cornán caisil. In Britain, children called it penny-pies for the round, dished leaves. Healers peeled a leaf and laid it on burns, corns, chilblains and piles.

Culpeper, writing in the 1600s, listed it as kidneywort. He praised the juice for hot, red skin and for the kidneys. Irish and Welsh custom also tied the plant to epilepsy (a seizure condition).

These are records of what people did. They were written long before anyone could test whether it helped.

What does Navelwort (wall pennywort) help with?

• Minor burns and scalds: This was the best known folk use. A peeled leaf was laid on the burn as a cool, wet cover. No human trial has tested this. Cool water held on a small burn is the step with real support behind it. A plant picked from a wall is not clean. Putting it on broken skin can bring in germs.
• Corns, calluses and hard skin: Tradition used the moist leaf, bound on overnight, to soften hard skin before paring it away. There is no trial evidence. Any effect is likely the same soaking effect that plain damp dressings give. If you have diabetes or poor circulation, foot problems need a podiatrist, not a leaf.
• Chilblains: The crushed leaf or juice was rubbed on itchy, swollen toes and fingers in winter. No studies support this. Chilblains usually settle on their own as skin is kept warm and dry. Broken or ulcerated chilblains should be seen by a doctor or nurse.
• Piles (swollen veins around the back passage): Folk practice used the cool leaf or an ointment made from it to ease soreness. There is no human evidence for navelwort here. Pharmacy creams for piles have been tested; this has not. Bleeding from the back passage always needs a medical opinion, whatever you put on it.
• Insect bites and minor skin irritation: The juicy leaf was rubbed on stings and nettle rash as a cooling touch. Any relief reported is likely from cooling and moisture. No trial has measured it. Stop at once if the skin reddens further or itches more.
• Earache (historic use): Some accounts describe warmed juice dropped into a sore ear. This is a historic record, not advice. There is no evidence that it helps, and no safety data for the ear. Never put liquid in an ear that is discharging or where the eardrum may be burst.
• Epilepsy (historic claim only): Irish and Welsh lore linked navelwort to fits. This claim has never been tested in people. There is no reason to think it controls seizures. Stopping prescribed medicine is dangerous. If you have epilepsy, talk to your neurologist before trying any herb.

Which foods are rich in Navelwort (wall pennywort)?

Navelwort is not an ingredient in everyday foods. In parts of Portugal, Spain and the British Isles the young leaves were eaten raw as a wild salad green. They are crisp and slightly sour, and they offer no nutrient worth seeking out.

What are the side effects of Navelwort (wall pennywort)?

• Itchy rash or redness where the leaf touched the skin
• Stinging on broken or raw skin
• Allergic skin reaction, which is rare but possible
• Infection in a wound from plant material that was not clean
• Nausea or stomach upset after eating a lot of leaves
• Unknown effects from large amounts taken by mouth

Good to know:

Reported side effects are few, and the ones on record are mild and local.

Read that with care. Few reports here reflect how little the plant has been studied, not a clean safety record.

Skin problems are the likeliest issue. Eating large amounts is the least charted risk of all.

How much Navelwort (wall pennywort) should you take?

• Recommended daily: There is no label dose, because navelwort is not sold as a standard product. Nothing here is an instruction for you. Traditional outdoor practice was simple. One or two fresh leaves were peeled and laid on a small patch of skin, held with a cloth. Food use meant a few young leaves in a salad. No safe amount has been set for taking it by mouth as a medicine. The evidence gives no reason to do so.
• Best time of day: Time of day does not matter for skin use. The leaves do taste sourer in the morning, because of how the plant stores acid overnight. That is a quirk of the plant, not a reason to time anything. If you bind a leaf on a corn, overnight is simply when a dressing stays put.
• With or without food: This does not apply to skin use. If you eat young leaves, treat them as a salad green with a meal. Keep the amount small. Do not use eating as a back door to dosing yourself with a medicine.
• Time to effect: Any cooling feeling is immediate, and comes largely from the wet, cool leaf itself. For softening hard skin, folk accounts describe several nights of use. No study has measured this. It may do nothing at all for your complaint. That is a real possible outcome here.
• How long to take it: Folk use was short. Days at most, for a passing problem such as a burn, a corn or a chilblain. There is no safety data for long or daily use, on skin or by mouth. That gap is a reason to keep any trial brief. Stop at the first sign of a rash, stinging or spreading redness.