Omnia SanaCommon names in 29 European languages →
The complete database record: 4 documented constituents, 8 pharmacological actions, 13 traditional / indicated uses, with 14 cited sources.
Botanical Description
Biennial or short-lived perennial herb, 30-120 cm tall, with erect or sprawling, branched, often reddish stems. Leaves are alternate, long-stalked and palmately lobed with 5-7 shallow rounded lobes and toothed margins. Flowers are pink-purple with darker veining, with five notch-tipped petals borne in small axillary clusters. The fruit is a flattened, disc-shaped schizocarp ('cheese') that splits into a ring of small single-seeded nutlets.[2]
Habitat & Distribution
Common on roadsides, waste ground, hedgebanks and field margins across Europe, North Africa and temperate Asia, and widely naturalised elsewhere; tolerates a wide range of soils, favouring sunny, disturbed, nitrogen-rich sites.[2]
Harvesting
Leaves and flowers are gathered during the flowering period (summer) and dried quickly out of direct sun to preserve their mucilage content; fresh material can also be used directly for infusions or poultices.[11]
Key Constituents
The high mucilage content gives the demulcent, soothing action.
The blue-purple pigments and antioxidant constituents.
Phenolic constituents associated with antioxidant and reported antiproliferative (anticancer) activity in cell studies.
Pharmacological Actions
Anti-inflammatory, analgesic and wound-healing (preclinical)
Antibacterial / antimicrobial (methanolic leaf extracts; the naphthoquinone Malvone A)
Demulcent for irritation of the mouth or throat and associated dry cough (soothing mucilage); Mild laxative for occasional constipation (mucilage; traditional)
Mild laxative for occasional constipation (mucilage; traditional)
Traditional & Indicated Uses
inferred from anti-inflammatory action
inferred from analgesic action
inferred from vulnerary action
inferred from anticancer action
more plants for cancer (anticancer research) →detailed sources →
Mild laxative for occasional constipation (mucilage; traditional)
Demulcent for irritation of the mouth or throat and associated dry cough (soothing mucilage)
inferred from analgesic action
inferred from antimicrobial action
inferred from anti-inflammatory action
inferred from analgesic action
Soothes irritated and inflamed skin and mucous membranes
inferred from antimicrobial action
Traditional Use & History
Mallow leaf and flower have a long ethnobotanical history across Europe as a demulcent for irritated mucous membranes - soothing coughs, sore throat and mouth irritation - and for occasional constipation and skin irritation, reflecting the mucilage-rich leaf and flower. Modern phytochemical and pharmacological work confirms antioxidant, anti-inflammatory, antimicrobial and wound-healing activity of its extracts.[2, 11]
Preparations
Dosage
EMA herbal-monograph guidance suggests roughly 1.5-2 g of dried leaf or flower per cup, taken as an infusion up to 3 times daily. Educational reference only, not a prescription.
Safety, Cautions & Contraindications
Generally very well tolerated. Irritation of the mouth/throat or a cough that persists beyond about a week, or is accompanied by fever or breathlessness, needs medical assessment.
Use in pregnancy and breastfeeding is not recommended in the absence of adequate data.
Harvest Readiness
[14]
[14]
External Identifiers
References & Sources
- Mousavi, S.M., Hashemi, S.A., Behbudi, G., Mazraedoost, S. and others (2021) 'A Review on Health Benefits of Malva sylvestris L. Nutritional Compounds for Metabolites, Antioxidants, and Anti-Inflammatory, Anticancer, and Antimicrobial Applications', Evidence-Based Complementary and Alternative Medicine, 2021, pp. 5548404. doi:10.1155/2021/5548404 Meta-analysis / review
https://doi.org/10.1155/2021/5548404 - Gasparetto, J.C., Martins, C.A., Hayashi, S.S., Otuky, M.F. and others (2012) 'Ethnobotanical and scientific aspects of Malva sylvestris L.: a millennial herbal medicine', Journal of Pharmacy and Pharmacology, 64(2), pp. 172-189. doi:10.1111/j.2042-7158.2011.01383.x Meta-analysis / review
https://doi.org/10.1111/j.2042-7158.2011.01383.x - Wu, Y., Qiu, A., Yang, Z., Wu, J. and others (2019) 'Malva sylvestris extract alleviates the astrogliosis and inflammatory stress in LPS-induced depression mice', Journal of Neuroimmunology, 336, pp. 577029. doi:10.1016/j.jneuroim.2019.577029 Preclinical
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jneuroim.2019.577029 - Ben Saad, A., Rjeibi, I., Brahmi, D., Smida, A. and others (2016) 'Malva sylvestris extract protects upon lithium carbonate-induced kidney damages in male rat', Biomedicine & Pharmacotherapy, 84, pp. 1099-1107. doi:10.1016/j.biopha.2016.10.026 Preclinical
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.biopha.2016.10.026 - Zuo, H., Li, Y., Cui, Y. and An, Y (2017) 'Cardioprotective effect of Malva sylvestris L. in myocardial ischemic/reperfused rats', Biomedicine & Pharmacotherapy, 95, pp. 679-684. doi:10.1016/j.biopha.2017.08.111 Preclinical
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.biopha.2017.08.111 - Benso, B., Rosalen, P.L., Alencar, S.M. and Murata, R.M (2015) 'Malva sylvestris Inhibits Inflammatory Response in Oral Human Cells. An In Vitro Infection Model', PLoS One, 10(10), pp. e0140331. doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0140331 Preclinical
https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0140331 - Prudente, A.S., Sponchiado, G., Mendes, D.A.G.B., Soley, B.S. and others (2017) 'Pre-clinical efficacy assessment of Malva sylvestris on chronic skin inflammation', Biomedicine & Pharmacotherapy, 93, pp. 852-860. doi:10.1016/j.biopha.2017.06.083 Preclinical
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.biopha.2017.06.083 - Mohaghegh, Z., Golfakhrabadi, F., Faal Siahkal, S., Dastoorpoor, M. and others (2022) 'The Effect of Malva sylvestris Cream on Episiotomy Pain and Healing: A Randomized Controlled Clinical Trial', International Journal of Community Based Nursing and Midwifery, 10(4), pp. 248-258. doi:10.30476/IJCBNM.2022.95772.2082 Randomized trial
https://doi.org/10.30476/IJCBNM.2022.95772.2082 - Areesanan, A., Nicolay, S., Keller, M., Zimmermann-Klemd, A.M. and others (2023) 'Potential benefits of Malva sylvestris in dry-eye disease pathology in vitro based on antioxidant, wound-healing and anti-inflammatory properties', Biomedicine & Pharmacotherapy, 168, pp. 115782. doi:10.1016/j.biopha.2023.115782 Preclinical
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.biopha.2023.115782 - Martins, C.A., Weffort-Santos, A.M., Gasparetto, J.C., Trindade, A.C. and others (2014) 'Malva sylvestris L. extract suppresses desferrioxamine-induced PGE2 and PGD2 release in differentiated U937 cells', Biomedical Chromatography, 28(7), pp. 986-993. doi:10.1002/bmc.3106 Preclinical
https://doi.org/10.1002/bmc.3106 - European Medicines Agency (HMPC) (n.d.) 'European Union herbal monograph on Malva sylvestris L., folium and flos (Malvae folium / Malvae sylvestris flos)'. Available at: https://www.ema.europa.eu/en/medicines/herbal/malvae-folium Traditional / reference
https://www.ema.europa.eu/en/medicines/herbal/malvae-folium - Paul, Z.A. and Malla, A.T. and Dar, M.A. and Masoodi, M.H (2024) 'Phytochemistry and Pharmacological Activity of Malva sylvestris L.: A Detailed Insight', Combinatorial Chemistry & High Throughput Screening, 27(16), pp. 2309--2322. doi:10.2174/0113862073269336231009110313 Traditional / reference
https://doi.org/10.2174/0113862073269336231009110313 - Batiha, G.E. and Tene, S.T. and Teibo, J.O. and Shaheen, H.M. and Oluwatoba, O.S. and Teibo, T.K.A. and Al-Kuraishy, H.M. and Al-Garbee, A.I. and Alexiou, A. and Papadakis, M (2022) 'The phytochemical profiling, pharmacological activities, and safety of Malva sylvestris: a review', Naunyn-Schmiedeberg's Archives of Pharmacology, 396(3), pp. 421--440. doi:10.1007/s00210-022-02329-w Traditional / reference
https://doi.org/10.1007/s00210-022-02329-w - Plants For A Future 'Malva sylvestris (Common Mallow)'. Available at: https://pfaf.org/user/Plant.aspx?LatinName=Malva+sylvestris Traditional / reference
https://pfaf.org/user/Plant.aspx?LatinName=Malva+sylvestris
Selected studies & references
All 13 studies in the Knowledge Finder →
This profile is assembled automatically from the Omnia Sana plant database, which we curate by hand. How this site is built.