We all have dandelion in our gardens, whether we like them or not. In fact, many of us would do anything to kill them because they like to have clean cut green grass. Well, think twice before you try to kill them again. Here I’ll introduce you to dandelion roots.
These are so healthy, you would want to plant Dandelion all over your garden.
What’s so good about dandelion roots?
Dandelions roots are really good for your health. But their benefits are only known to a few. Nevertheless, these roots have been instrumental in curing many diseases for centuries. If you want to know, the plant has been involved in curing liver problems and kidney issues. It also cured stomach and diabetes-related ailment.
Looking at the plant from another angle, you need to know that dandelion roots, dandelion leaves and flowers can be eaten and are highly recommended as a healthy intake. In fact, the whole dandelion is edible and highly nutritious.
You’ll find plenty of vitamins in this herb. It is full of vitamins A, C, D and B complex. It is also full of minerals. You’ll find iron, zinc, calcium, potassium and magnesium.
The herb that we all fight against on a daily basis has got a lot in it. My brother eat them raw. He says ‘like this, I optimize the benefits of the plant’.This herb is versatile and can be easily incorporated into your daily diet.
So if he can eat it raw, you can be sure you can use the plant in so many different ways. Dandelions are a little bit bitter in flavor. The roots are really nice when you roast. You can use them to make tea as a healthier substitute to our standard tea or coffee.
What does dandelion root do for the body?
I have got several questions sent to me through my contact page as to why dandelion roots tea is good for you? or why drink dandelion tea? or a more direct question, that is why dandelion tea at all?Here are 10 reasons why dandelion root is good for your body.
Well, let me tell you 10 reasons why dandelion root is good for your body. Whether you drink it as tea, you eat it raw in a salad or your roast them, they are really good for you.
1. Dandelion roots for weight loss
As weird as it may sound, dandelion root is very good at helping you losing weight.
The root contains phytochemicals. These provide you with diuretic and laxative benefits. They have an upside and a downside. The downside is that you’ll increase the frequency and the volume of urination. Now the upside: the increase in frequency and volume of urination will lead to losing excess water weight.
The Journal of Alternative and Complementary Medicine published an article about dandelion. They demonstrated that dandelion extract will definitely increase urination output. They went to define this in much more details. For instance, they identified that the effect of dandelion will last for five hours.
So now that you got rid of excess water, you need to know that dandelion root suppresses your appetite. This is the second excellent news about this root. and promote fat and cholesterol breakdown. It also has very few calories.
Here is the third good news about it. The root boost fat and cholesterol breakdown. And the last good news in terms of weight loss is that it contains very few calories.
What you can do if you want to start right now weight loss is:
- Drink dandelion root tea – Try 2 or 3 times a day and you can have as much as 5 to 6 cups a day.
- Add some nice dandelion greens to your salad. They are a little bit bitter, but they are great to eat.
- Make dandelion soup if you are in winter. Low calories, rich in minerals and vitamins, all you need to get through the cold winters.
2. How does dandelion root help the liver
Dandelion roots are probably one of the most powerful liver tonics. It is known that if you drink the appropriate liver tonic, you’ll improve your liver health.
The most important bit about this plant is that it helps to melt the fat your liver has accumulated throughout the years. By doing so, it boosts your liver function.
Drinking tea and eating the plant’s root enhances the flow of bile. As such, it further detoxifies your liver.
The Journal of Ethnopharmacology defined that dandelion root has therapeutic effects on many different hepatic disorders.
An article in the Food and Chemical Toxicology showed some great hepatoprotective effects from dandelion root. This study focused on alcohol-induced oxidative stress. So if you had too much to drink, get rid of the oxidation by drinking dandelion tea.
Acetaminophen is one of the worse things you can have in your body. It is one of the main reasons behind hepatitis, cirrhosis and hepatic transplant. The Journal of Medicinal Food clearly states the positive effect dandelion has against this form or toxicity.
Finally, Food and Chemical Toxicology journal identified that dandelion leaf extract prevents nonalcoholic fatty liver disease. See the above picture, where the liver on the right is fatty and on the left, the liver is clean and healthy. Chose the liver you like, for me the choice is clear. Drink dandelion root tea to avoid fatty liver.
3. Dandelion roots to kill cancer properties
Lately, a lot of cancer research been done on dandelion roots.
The focus is on investigating the antioxidant properties of the roots. The scientists aimed at identifying how the root can prevent the body cell to get damaged from free radicals. In fact, it is effective in killing different cancers as a result of its free
Researchers have shown that eating extract of dandelion roots is highly effective in killing several types of cancers. This was made possible because of the abilities of the plant to fight free radical.
The International Journal of Oncology published a study where it was shown that dandelion root extracts have anticancer agents.
Again, the Journal of Ethnopharmacology defined that aqueous dandelion root extract has a component that fights leukemia cells (in cultural cells).
Evidence Based Complementary and Alternative Medicine journal summarizes the high efficiency of dandelion root extract as an alternative source of chemotherapeutic against aggressive chemo-resistant types of cancers.
Pancreas journal documented that dandelion root extract can lead to apoptosis and autophagy in human pancreatic cancer cells. But what it really highlight is that the extract does not have any significant effect on noncancerous cells. This means, no sided effect!
4. Reduce high blood pressure issues
Now any increase in urination will help you releasing excess sodium (or salt). This is true and this will occur without you losing potassium. This is really good news as usually when you get an over-the-counter diuretics, then you will also flush potassium.
So if you reduce the amount of sodium, keep your potassium levels, then you’ll definitely lower high blood pressure.
At the same time, and if you like it, you can eat more of the dandelion herb. This one is rich in fiber and potassium. Both of these help your body regulating blood pressure.
In fact, the fiber you find in this plant can also reduce cholesterol. If you control your cholesterol, then you control your blood pressure.
The International Journal of Molecular Science reported you can change plasma antioxidant enzyme activities by using both dandelion roots and leaves.
In summary, eating dandelion will stabilize and reduce blood pressure as well as cholesterol levels. This will, in turn, reduce the risks of suffering from heart disease.
5. Fight urinary disorders
Again, this is a highly diuretic plant. As such, dandelion root will eliminate deposits of toxic substances in your kidneys. It will also eliminate these in your urinary tract.
The Journal of Alternative and Complementary Medicine showed that dandelion works first as a diuretic. Second, it showed that it increases urine production. Obviously, the more you go and urinate, the better it is for your kidneys. It effectively helps cleanse them.
This plant has some strong disinfectant properties. Eating it will block microbial growth in your urinary tract. This is great as it prevents from urinary tract infections.
6. Helps Control Diabetes
Dandelion is almost everywhere. It even helps diabetic patients. The issue with a diabetic patient is that their pancreas does not produce enough insulin. So you need to stimulate it. This is exactly what dandelion does.
The plant simply stimulates the pancreas. By doing so, it keeps your blood sugar level right and under control.
Again and again, I need to tell you this again, dandelion has diuretic properties. So it increases urination. This increase in urination helps in removing excess sugar from your body. Hence, you reduce issues with blood sugar levels.
The Journal of Ethnopharmacology described that consuming the extract of dandelion will in lower blood sugar in diabetic mice. Though this is not applied to human, we know that what applies to mice is quite often true for us human. More research is being carried out to proof this.
7. Dandelion root for digestion
The whole of dandelion plant is good for your digestive system.
It is a mild laxative and as such promote good digestion. The herb balances your natural intestines bacteria. It can also act to increase the release of stomach acid, which you need to digest properly. It helps your bile too, thereby aiding your overall digestion.
The pressure within the stomach will be increased by ingesting dandelion. While the pressure is increased, your sphincter muscle will relax. This will definitely help you digest food, even the heaviest food too.
The Neurogastroenterology and Motility published a study where it shows that dandelion increased gastric motility. Two groups were used for this study.
One that ate dandelion and the one that did not. Gastric motility increased by as much as 37 percent for the group who ate dandelions. However, it did not do a thing to the group that did not eat it.
By the way, eating dandelion also reduce constipation. So if you travel a lot and have some constipation issues, you may start eating dandelions.
8. Dandelion root for inflammation and swelling
The diuretic property is what makes this plant so great. I am sure by now you have got this.
Well, it is this property that helps your body to get rid of excess water, inflammation and swelling too.
When you eat dandelion, you flush extra fluid. This makes the plant a great remedy for swelling and inflammation in your body.
If you have heavy legs and water retention in them, then use dandelion.
Try and use the plant’s high potassium content to your advantage. Again, this helps balance your body sodium levels. By making the sodium levels appropriate, then your reduce swelling and inflammation.
If you have swelling issues, then it is best that you drink dandelion tea 2 or 3 times a day. Normally, drinking this tea should drain your off water retention.
Important note: I would suggest that you avoid dandelion if you are subjected to gallbladder problems.
9. Improves Skin Health
Do you remember that when you break a dandelion stem, you get some kind of milky white substance coming out of it? This milky stuff is highly beneficial for your skin health.
The milk and sap are highly alkaline in nature and contains a lot of germicidal, insecticidal and best of all fungicidal properties.
So apply the sap directly on your skin to treat ringworm, itching, eczema and other skin conditions.
Peptides reported that there are three types of peptides in dandelion flowers. They all provide high antimicrobial activities. These are against fungal and bacterial pathogens. At this timeframe, this is still at laboratory levels, but this will change through time.
Dandelions are really good as a body detoxifier. They are also good as diuretics and antioxidants. One of its great features is that it can be highly effective in treating acne.
Important note: I want to warn you that you should not be using the plant and the sap in your eyes. You have been warned.
10. Great for your bone health
Dandelion has a lot of antioxidants. These protect your bones from age-related damage (weakness of the bones making them fragile, frailty).
The plant contains calcium. We have all been told that we need to drink a lot of milk if we want to have good bones density. I did drink a lot of milk when I was a child. But I did not eat dandelions.
Because it has a little bitter taste, it was wise for me not to eat this plant when I was a child. I would have surely rejected it. But now, I love it as it helps me with maintaining the strength of my bones.
One thing I’d like to share with you is that dandelion tea (or even eating the greens) will help in strengthening your bones but also reduce tooth decay.
Dandelion contains vitamin K. This particular vitamin has an important role in maintaining a good bone health. The vitamin mineralizes your bone (meaning it provides minerals to your bones). So you will avoid most fracture issues with frail bones.
Where to find Dandelion Root?
It is not difficult to find dandelion roots. This is true if you have a garden or access to a local park. However, if you do not have that access to these, you need other means. You can click on the below two pictures. One of the pictures will direct you to buy dandelion roots substitute and on clicking on the other one, you’ll be able to buy dandelion roots tea.
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