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What is it?

The silky, creamy-white threads on the surface of the corn after you have taken off the main sheath of its outer layers. In herbal medicine we use the Corn Silk after it has dried and then it looks very different to its fresh form; becoming brown, curled, crinkly and incredibly light-weight.

How has it been used?

Corn (or Maize) has been and still is the main food source for many people in the world. For example it is the most widely grown crop in America and it is the most important food crop in Africa. The main historical and current use of Corn Silk as a medicine is for being what is known as a ‘soothing diuretic’ and the main problems that Corn Silk has been used to help with are kidney stones and bladder infections.

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Personal experiences

Corn Silk lives up to its name in that the texture of the tea is very silky and smooth. Corn Silk is like a more liquid version of Marshmallow root. It is not as strong a soother as Marshmallow but it travels to where it needs to go more easily; like water compared to milk.

I have used a lot of Corn Silk in my practice when people are experiencing painful urinary tract problems. So long as I use it in sufficient doses I am confident it will rapidly ease pain and assist healing.

Corn Silk is a herb that needs to be given confidently until its benefits have been obviously received.  For example 10-15 grams a day would be the starting point for serious pain from an infection or a stone. This is a large amount of herb and at least one litre of freshly boiled water is needed to extract it for at least 20 minutes after which it can be strained off and drunk in divided doses through the day. This treatment should be seen to be averting the crisis within two days and can be safely kept up for a week.

Corn silk combines perfectly with Uva ursi for urinary tract infections and Marshmallow root for painful stones or inflammation.

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Excerpt from Felter & Lloyd's Kings Dispensatory from 1898

Corn-silk has been found useful in many urinary troubles, associated with renal and cardiac disorders. It has been found of value by physicians in the treatment of cystic irritation, due to phosphatic and uric acid concretions, and in both acute and chronic inflammations of the bladder, whether traumatic or idiopathic. Dropsy, when due to cardiac or renal origin, and particularly after such urinary disorders as those above mentioned, and pyelitis, catarrh of the bladder, and urinal retention appear to be benefited by the diuretic action of this drug, which action is said to be quite positive. Besides its diuretic effects, the drug seems to be a cardiac stimulant as well. In fact, its diuretic action is largely due to its tonic action upon the heart and blood vessels. It is especially of value in the bladder disorders of children, in gonorrhoea, and in cases where decomposition of the urine is prone to take place within the bladder.

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