Plantain leaves can be used internally to both draw out heat and support healing of damaged tissues. The tea is particularly useful for calming gastrointestinal inflammation and supporting restoration of damaged mucosa, and, because it has both astringent and demulcent properties, plantain is also useful for helping to ease diarrhea. When you put these qualities together, you can see why plantain is often used to support conditions such as IBS, leaky gut or intestinal permeability, colitis, esophagitis, and gastrointestinal ulcers.