{"id":3881,"date":"2021-03-11T09:28:10","date_gmt":"2021-03-11T09:28:10","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.herbalreality.com\/?post_type=herb&p=3881"},"modified":"2026-03-03T12:29:29","modified_gmt":"2026-03-03T12:29:29","slug":"dandelion","status":"publish","type":"herb","link":"https:\/\/www.herbalreality.com\/herb\/dandelion\/","title":{"rendered":"Dandelion"},"content":{"rendered":"","protected":false},"featured_media":3872,"parent":0,"menu_order":0,"template":"","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":"","beyondwords_generate_audio":"1","beyondwords_integration_method":"rest-api","beyondwords_project_id":"47224","beyondwords_content_id":"e987f338-9d6f-482b-8a7b-46f062ab4438","beyondwords_preview_token":"0c70f5ab-8ea1-4b84-9a3c-9fccf49bf10b","beyondwords_player_content":"","beyondwords_player_style":"","beyondwords_language_code":"","beyondwords_language_id":"","beyondwords_title_voice_id":"","beyondwords_body_voice_id":"","beyondwords_summary_voice_id":"","beyondwords_error_message":"","beyondwords_disabled":"","beyondwords_delete_content":"","beyondwords_podcast_id":"","beyondwords_hash":"","publish_post_to_speechkit":"","speechkit_hash":"","speechkit_generate_audio":"","speechkit_project_id":"","speechkit_podcast_id":"","speechkit_error_message":"","speechkit_disabled":"","speechkit_access_key":"","speechkit_error":"","speechkit_info":"","speechkit_response":"","speechkit_retries":"","speechkit_status":"","speechkit_updated_at":"","_speechkit_link":"","_speechkit_text":""},"tags":[41,329,327,163,328],"conditions":[685,701,699,700,697],"sustainability":[1576],"sense":[18,786,27],"western_action":[1008,989,992,996,1001,1004,2062,1012,1013,1014,1016],"chinese_action":[1168,1033],"ayurvedic_action":[],"energetics_action":[1499,1512,1505,1382,1487,1519,1529,1511],"writer":[],"region":[1893],"class_list":["post-3881","herb","type-herb","status-publish","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","tag-bitter","tag-dandelion","tag-digestive","tag-liver","tag-skin-urinary","conditions-digestive-system","conditions-immune-system","conditions-musculoskeletal-system","conditions-skin","conditions-urinary-system","sustainability-green-sustainability-status","sense-bitter","sense-cooling","sense-sweet","western_action-diuretic","western_action-alterative","western_action-anti-inflammatory","western_action-antirheumatic","western_action-bitter","western_action-cholagogue-and-choleretic","western_action-digestive-tonic","western_action-galactagogue","western_action-hepatic","western_action-hepatoprotective","western_action-laxative","chinese_action-clear-heat-dry-damp","chinese_action-clear-heat-and-relieve-toxicity","energetics_action-astringent","energetics_action-bitter-taste-chinese","energetics_action-cold-temperature-chinese","energetics_action-cool","energetics_action-dry","energetics_action-liver-channel-chinese","energetics_action-stomach-channel-chinese","energetics_action-sweet-taste-chinese","region-western-herbs"],"acf":{"last_reviewed":"20240802","herb_author":null,"banner_text":"Dandelion is a common liver and kidney detox remedy","latin_name":"Taraxacum officinale<\/em>","pseudonym_name":"","family_name":"Asteraceae","herb_summary":"Dandelion is a beginner friendly digestive, liver and kidney support that can effectively reduce skin inflammations and arthritis and improve liver, bile and kidney functions.","key_benefits":"Dyspepsia\r\nIntolerance to fats\r\nFluid retention\r\nUrinary problems\r\nEczema and skin problems\r\nArthritis","how_does_it_feel":"Dandelion is a bitter remedy, although also a gentle one. Upon tasting the leaf, there is an instant bitter taste, settling into an earthy bitter quality, a slight acridity and a subtle sweetness. In the case of the root, the bitterness is effected by a more mucilaginous sweetness, which varies depending on the time of year it is collected \u2014 a spring root will have used up more of its carbohydrate (inulin) stores over winter and will be more bitter. Even then, the presence of inulin can linger on the tongue long after the bitterness has faded.<\/span>\r\n\r\nDandelion\u2019s bitterness is due to sesquiterpene lactones, unique to this plant, but the contribution of the inulin in the root is a reminder that this is above all a gentle bitter, and a good option to begin exploring bitter plants (1).<\/span>","hdif_image_1":11822,"hdif_image_2":3918,"hdif_image_3":307979,"hdif_video":"https:\/\/youtu.be\/Rp93Acv_2mw","sense":[18,786,27],"what_can_i_use_it_for":"[caption id=\"attachment_3871\" align=\"alignright\" width=\"312\"]\"Dandelion Dandelion (Taraxacum officinale<\/em>)[\/caption]\r\n\r\nDandelion leaf and root have been widely used for skin conditions and joint problems. Dandelion is especially effective in cases where there are also underlying liver, bile and urinary factors.The root, particularly, is one of the safest and most efficatious ways to improve biliary elimination (choleresis) and relieve an overworked liver. <\/span>\r\n\r\nIt can be used in cases of fat and alcohol intolerance coupled with associated digestive congestion or dyspepsia, and even to relieve the symptoms of non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) \u2014 sometimes associated with metabolic syndrome and build up of abdominal fat. An increase in bile flow by dandelion can help to relieve stubborn <\/span>constipation<\/span><\/a> (1,2).<\/span>\r\n\r\nThe <\/span>choleretic<\/span><\/a> effect of dandelion means that it is a standard remedy for gallbladder problems, such as gallstones and cholecystitis. It is certainly a standby gentle remedy if there is a tendency to these problems. It combines well with <\/span>artichoke leaf<\/span><\/a> (<\/span>Cynara scolymus<\/span><\/i>) to relieve gallstones; however, care must be exercised to ensure there is no obstruction before using these herbs.\u00a0<\/span>\r\n\r\nChronic skin conditions are often associated with poor liver detoxification and in these cases dandelion can be transformative (1,2). Dandelion leaf is more often associated with <\/span>diuretic<\/span><\/a> properties \u2014 it is a frequent component of blends to reduce fluid retention, oedema and to help flush the urinary tract when there are stones and infections. Its application to <\/span>arthritis<\/span><\/a> (particularly osteoarthritis and gout) relates to ancient associations of these conditions with the build up of metabolic waste in the body. A classic addition in these problems is <\/span>celery seed<\/span><\/a> (<\/span>Apium graveolens<\/span><\/i>).<\/span>\r\n\r\nDandelion is a bitter, the basis of its benefits for the liver, and as such is also a gentle but effective bitter digestive remedy, a component in any blend to improve appetite and digestive function (1,2).<\/span>\r\n<\/b>","into_the_heart_of":"[caption id=\"attachment_3918\" align=\"alignright\" width=\"512\"]\"Dandelion Dandelion (Taraxacum officinalis<\/em>)[\/caption]\r\n\r\nDandelion is one of the cornerstones of herbal treatment in many cultural traditions, certainly seen as such by herbal practitioners in the UK. Modern life can put a significant strain on the liver, as it has to detoxify increasing quantities of ingested industrial pollutants, and for some late 20th century practitioners, dandelion became almost a constant feature in a prescription, as a general detox component.<\/span>\r\n\r\nThis reverence of dandelion, however, is not new. The great herbal archivist of the 17th century, John Parkinson, sums up dandelion\u2019s effect in the first line of his description: \u201cby the bitternesse doth more open and clense, and is therefore very effectuall for the obstructions of the liver, gall and spleene, and the diseases that arise from them, as the jaundise and the hypochondriacall passion...\u201d.\u00a0 He moves straight on from extolling these hepatic virtues of dandelion to say:\u00a0<\/span>\r\n\r\n\u201cit wonderfully openeth the uritorie parts, casing abundance of urine, not onely in children \u2026\u00a0 without restraint or keeping it backe they water their beds, but in those of old age also upon the stopping or yeelding small quantitie of urine; \u2026it also powerfully clenseth apostumes and inward ulcers in the uritorie passages, and by the drying and temperate qualitie doth afterwards heale them\u201c.<\/span>\r\n\r\nIt is interesting to note too that various species of dandelion have been used around the world consistently for skin, liver, digestive and urinary problems (3).<\/span>","tradtional_uses":"[caption id=\"attachment_3873\" align=\"alignright\" width=\"513\"]\"Dandelion Dandelion (Taraxacum officinalis<\/em>)[\/caption]\r\n\r\nThe genus name <\/span>Taraxacum<\/span><\/i> is derived from the Greek words <\/span>taraxis<\/span><\/i> meaning inflammation, and <\/span>akeomai<\/span><\/i> meaning curative (4). Arabian physicians of the 10th and 11th centuries referred to dandelion to treat liver and spleen ailments. The German physician and botanist Leonhard Fuchs (1543) described its use, among others, for the treatment of gout, diarrhoea, spleen and liver complaints (5). <\/span>\r\n\r\nIn native North American medicine, infusions and decoctions of the root and herb were applied to remedy kidney disease, dyspepsia and heartburn. Furthermore, dandelion is considered to be a blood purifier and is employed as a mild laxative, for treating arthritic and rheumatic complaints as well as eczema and other skin conditions in popular medicine (5).\u00a0<\/span>\r\n\r\nTraditional Chinese medicine (TCM) uses dandelion, often in combination with other herbs, to treat hepatitis, to enhance immune response to upper respiratory tract infections, <\/span>bronchitis<\/span><\/a> or pneumonia (4). In TCM, they commonly used the species <\/span>Taraxacum mongolicum<\/span><\/i> (<\/span>pu gong ying<\/span><\/i>) amongst other species. The character of the plant is similar to European dandelion and many of the popular usages are similar. <\/span>\r\n\r\nIn Chinese terms, the plant is seen as having cooling and cleansing effects and it is used in toxic, inflamed and chronically infected conditions \u2014 those classified as damp heat problems in particular. This links with the qualities above, given the detoxifying roles of liver and kidney (and Parkinson\u2019s assertion of it as\u201cclensing the malignant humours\u201d, as well as the cooling and drying properties of all bitters. There is a tradition for using <\/span>pu gong ying<\/span><\/i> as a stimulant to lactation that is not recorded in Europe (6).<\/span>","what_practioners_say":"\"DigestiveIn summary, dandelion can be seen as gently improving both liver and kidney functions. Although there is a tendency to use the root for the liver and leaf for the kidney, there is enough overlap to recommend both plant parts. In the case of the liver and digestion it combines well with and overlaps the activity of <\/span>artichoke leaf<\/span><\/a> (<\/span>Cynara scolymus<\/span><\/i>) (6).<\/span>\r\n

Digestive system<\/a><\/h3>\r\nAs a gentle bitter digestive, dandelion root is a standard first step in exploring this approach, perhaps as a test run for stronger bitters like <\/span>andrographis<\/span><\/a> (<\/span>Andrographis paniculata<\/span><\/i>), <\/span>gentian<\/span><\/a> root (<\/span>Gentiana lutea<\/span><\/i>), and <\/span>wormwood<\/span><\/a> (<\/span>Artemisia absinthium<\/span><\/i>). Bitters were traditionally described around the world as cooling and drying, suggesting they could be suitable in poor appetite linked to fever and inflammatory conditions, where heat or humidity is exacerbatory, and traditionally where there is a yellow coating on the tongue. They are also particularly useful where there is a liver-bile element, marked by intolerance to rich food, fats and alcohol, and in managing more overt problems like jaundice linked to hepatitis, gallbladder conditions and <\/span>inflammatory gut diseases<\/span><\/a>. Artichoke and <\/span>chicory<\/span><\/a> (<\/span>Cichorium intybus<\/span><\/i>) are of comparable strength and are often combined in traditional bitter digestive blends (1).<\/span>\r\n

Skin health<\/a><\/h3>\r\nDandelion\u2019s bitter quality also lends it to being a common ingredient in herbal regimes for managing chronic inflammatory problems around the body, notably skin conditions like <\/span>eczema<\/span><\/a>. Dandelion supports effective elimination of metabolic waste through the liver and kidneys, which can be a causative factor in chronic skin conditions. Another component can be sluggish bowel movements, for which dandelion is also indicated (1,2,7).<\/span>\r\n

Musculoskeletal system<\/a><\/h3>\r\nDandelion is known to modulate the inflammatory response associated with <\/span>osteoarthritis<\/span><\/a> and gout through its excretory action on the liver and kidneys. There is a strong naturopathic tradition that some arthritic problems are linked with inadequate elimination of acid wastes produced by cell metabolism. Much of this is expelled as carbon dioxide from the lungs, with the rest removed in the bowel, sweat and urine. The aim in these traditions is to consume higher proportions of foods that leave alkaline residues after digestion (plant foods) and reduce acid-forming (typically animal) foods \u2014 in other words, a more vegetarian diet. Dandelion is one of a number of familiar remedies that were seen to improve the elimination of acidic metabolites (e.g., phosphates and urates) by the kidneys, along with common folk remedies celery seed, <\/span>nettles<\/span><\/a> (<\/span>Urtica diocia<\/span><\/i>), and <\/span>birch<\/span><\/a> (<\/span>Betula pendula<\/span><\/i>) (8,9,10).<\/span>\r\n

Urinary system<\/a><\/h3>\r\nWith its role in diluting both the bile and urine, thus reducing the propensity for crystal and stone deposition in each, it is indicated in the treatment of <\/span>kidney stones<\/span><\/a> (10).<\/span>\r\n\r\nAll parts of\u00a0 dandelion, especially the leaf, have demonstrated diuretic effects. This has led to dandelion being used in fluid retention, oedema and even to reduce <\/span>high blood pressure<\/span><\/a>. It can also be used in a mixture to relieve fluid retention premenstrually. It is worth noting that one needs to take relatively high doses to elicit this effect (11).<\/span>","research":"[caption id=\"attachment_270957\" align=\"alignright\" width=\"516\"]\"Dandelion Dandelion root (Taraxacum officinale<\/em>)[\/caption]\r\n\r\nIn spite of its widespread use around the world, clinical evidence for the effects of dandelion are minimal, with most of the research being laboratory studies.<\/span>\r\n

The diuretic effect in human subjects of an extract of <\/span>Taraxacum officinale<\/span><\/i> folium over a single day<\/span><\/h3>\r\nIn one pilot human study involving 17 subjects, administration of a fresh leaf hydroethanolic dandelion leaf extract at a dose of 8 ml led to a significant increase in the frequency of urination in the five hour period after the first dose. There was also a significant increase in the excretion ratio in the five hour period after the second dose of extract. The third dose failed to change any of the measured parameters (11).<\/span>\r\n

Taraxacum\u2014A review on its phytochemical and pharmacological profile<\/span><\/h3>\r\nThis review found <\/span>Taraxacum officinale <\/span><\/i>to be rich in sesquiterpene lactones including taraxinic acid and taraxasterol which are responsible for the bitter taste. These constituents are responsible for its digestive, choleretic and anti-inflammatory effects through their action on inflammatory mediators. The phenolic compounds (hydroxycinnamic acids including caffeic and chlorogenic acids) and flavonoids were shown to exhibit potent antioxidant activity, helping to protect hepatic tissue against damage from free radicals. The triterpenes (taraxasterol) is associated with anti-inflammatory and hepatoprotective actions, whilst the inulin rich polysaccharides (higher in the root) offer a prebiotic effect, helping to support microbiome (12).\u00a0<\/span>\r\n

The role of dandelion (<\/span>Taraxacum officinale<\/span><\/i>) in liver health and hepatoprotective properties<\/span><\/h3>\r\nThis narrative review explores dandelion and its effect on the liver. Preclinical evidence from animal models indicates that dandelion extracts can protect against chemically induced liver injury, including damage caused by alcohol, carbon tetrachloride, and paracetamol, as a result of its antioxidant and anti-inflammatory actions. The triterpene taraxasterol is a key constituent, shown to modulate oxidative stress and inflammatory pathways implicated in hepatic injury. While these findings support traditional use, the authors conclude that more robust human clinical trials are needed to establish safety, efficacy, optimal dosing, and potential drug interactions of dandelion (5).\u00a0<\/span>\r\n

The potential of dandelion in the fight against gastrointestinal diseases: A review<\/span><\/h3>\r\nThis review evaluates the effect of dandelion in the treatment of gastrointestinal (GI) diseases. It found that preclinical evidence suggests dandelion preparations exert protective effects across a range of conditions\u2014including dyspepsia, gastritis, GERD, ulcerative colitis, liver disorders, gallstones, pancreatitis and GI malignancies\u2014via anti-inflammatory, antioxidant, apoptotic, autophagic and cholinergic mechanisms, as well as potential interactions with the gut microbiota. While these findings support traditional use, the authors conclude that clinical data remain limited, and further studies are needed to further clarify its mechanisms and safety in the treatment of gastrointestinal diseases (13).\u00a0<\/span>","did_you_know":"Dandelion comes from the French \u2018<\/span>dent de lion<\/span><\/i>\u2019 (lion\u2019s tooth) and refers to the characteristic shape of the leaf. As a result, dandelion is easily recognisable in any sward even without flowers or the seed heads. Its common French name \u2018<\/span>pisenlit<\/span><\/i>\u2019 derives from its diuretic properties and contains the implicit instructions not to take dandelion too close to bedtime!<\/span>\r\n\r\nFor most purposes the root should be picked in early spring rather than autumn because of the improved bitterness at that time (due to the plant using up the slightly sweet and starchy inulin during the winter months). The leaves are picked in the spring or early summer preferably before flowering (6).<\/span>","additional_information_right":{"illustration":108618},"additional_information_left":{"botany":"A very well-known plant that is, however, confused with a number of similar plants such as the hawkweeds, hawkbits and cat\u2019s-ears. <\/span>\r\n\r\nThe dandelion arises as a rosette of leaves in a variety of shapes, from almost entire lanceolate, to deeply pinnatifid with three to six often backward-pointing triangular lobes likened to lion\u2019s teeth (<\/span>dent de lion<\/span><\/i>).<\/span>\r\n\r\nFrom the centre of the rosette arises a single hollow stem, yielding white sap on cutting, and terminating in a yellow capitulate flowerhead made up of 200 or more yellow ligulate bisexual florets each giving way in turn to the familiar floating pappus with seed \u2014 it is the globular mass of these pappi that comprise the \u2018fairy clock\u2019 so beloved of children. <\/span>\r\n\r\nThe long taproot issues from a short rhizome: all the underground parts are covered by a dark-brown bark, but are almost white inside, and like the stem, produce a bitter-tasting white milky sap (17).<\/span>","common_names":"