The brilliant blue, star-shaped flower with a clean cucumber taste, and the fuzzy green leaf that tastes the same. An old garden herb famous for 'gladdening the heart,' and the source of borage seed oil, one of the richest plant sources of the anti-inflammatory fatty acid GLA.
Borage is an easy garden flower that gives a cooling cucumber food and a striking blue garnish; its seed oil is an affordable, evidence-backed anti-inflammatory for the eczema and joint pain that weigh on the community. Knowing the leaf-versus-oil distinction is the key piece of wisdom.
Borage's claim to fame is its seed oil — the richest common plant source of gamma-linolenic acid (GLA), an omega-6 fatty acid the body converts into anti-inflammatory prostaglandins. Borage seed oil has the best evidence among borage products: studies support GLA for easing eczema and dry, inflamed skin (relevant to the high eczema burden in Black skin), for rheumatoid arthritis joint pain and stiffness, and for some hormonal and PMS symptoms. The flowers and leaves themselves are a refreshing cucumber-flavored food, high in vitamin C and potassium, with a soothing mucilage traditionally used for coughs and as a mild calming, mood-lifting herb (borage's old name was the herb that 'maketh men merry'). CRITICAL caution: the LEAVES and to a lesser extent the flowers contain small amounts of pyrrolizidine alkaloids (PALs), which in large or chronic doses can damage the liver — so the leaf and flower are fine as an occasional garnish or salad addition but should NOT be eaten in large quantities or daily long-term, and the seed oil should be certified PA-free.
Use flowers and young leaves as an occasional fresh food — float the blue stars in lemonade or iced tea, freeze them in ice cubes, scatter on salads, or chop the cucumber-flavored leaves into yogurt dips and cold soups. Don't make borage leaf a daily green or a strong medicinal tea because of the alkaloids. For the anti-inflammatory GLA benefit, use commercial borage SEED OIL capsules labeled 'PA-free,' following the product dose — that's the form with the real evidence.
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