The English name “dandelion” is a corruption of the French “dent de leon“, meaning lion’s tooth. The name refers [...]]]> Some may be surprised to learn that dandelions have a number beneficial herbal properties, both culinary and medicinal. Taraxacum officinale is the most common species of dandelion, but there are other dandelion species in the Taraxacum genus.

The English name “dandelion” is a corruption of the French “dent de leon“, meaning lion’s tooth. The name refers to the toothed margins of the leaves. The scientific Latin species name “officinale” is derived from “officinal“, meaning laboratory or pharmacy.

All parts of plant are edible raw. As a food, dandelion leaves are the tastiest in early spring, before the flowers appear. The leaves can be used for salads and in cooking. The older leaves are too bitter for most people to enjoy raw, especially after the plant has flowered, but are satisfactory after a brief boiling with a change of water or two. The yellow dandelion flower petals can also be made into dandelion wine. The roots can be dried, roasted and made into dandelion coffee. Dandelion leaves are a good source of dietary fiber, calcium, iron, manganese, potassium, riboflavin, thiamin, vitamin A, vitamin B₆, and vitamin C.

For medicinal usege, dandelions can be used as a diuretic. Dandelions have traditionally been used in the treatment of liver disorders, and scientific studies have supported the efficacy of this use (Domitrovic et al., 2010). Dandelion also possesses antioxidant, demulcent, prebiotic, laxative, anti-inflammatory, choleretic, and antirheumatic properties (Hu and Kitts, 2005; Choi et al., 2010; Yarnell and Abascal, 2009). Bioactive constituents of dandelions include flavonoids, triterpenoids, and inulin. Of other phytochemical interest, triterpene alcohols, such as taraxasterol, are found in high concentrations in Taraxacum officinale flowers, as well as many other flower in the Asteraceae family. These compounds possess strong anti-inflammatory and antitumor properies (Akihisa et al., 1996).

Below are some methods of preparation for medicinal use, with adult dosages given (Ehrlich, 2008).

• Dried leaf infusion: 1–2 teaspoonfuls, 3 times daily. Pour hot water onto dried leaf and steep for 5–10 minutes. Drink as directed.
• Dried root decoction: 1/2–2 teaspoonfuls, 3 times daily. Place root into boiling water for 5–10 minutes. Strain and drink as directed.
• Leaf tincture (1:5) in 30% alcohol: 100–150 drops, 3 times daily.
• Standardized powdered extract (4:1) leaf: 500 mg, 1–3 times daily.
• Standardized powdered extract (4:1) root: 500 mg, 1–3 times daily.
• Root tincture (1:2) fresh root in 45% alcohol: 100–150 drops, 3 times daily.

References

References for culinary information:

“Common Dandelion” in “Wildman” Steve Brill with Evelyn Dean, Identifying and Harvesting Edible and Medicinal Plants in Wild (and Not-So-Wild) Places (New York: Hearst Books, 1994), pp. 190 ff.

Jack B. Keller, Jr., “Dandelion Wines”, Winemaking Home Page, updated on May 22, 2004.

Roger Doiron, “Wild About Dandelions: Learn how to use freshly harvested wild dandelion greens at their young and tender best”, Mother Earth News, April/May 2008. For the full text on one page, see here.

References for nutrient information:

“Search the USDA National Nutrient Database for Standard Reference”, Nutrient Data Laboratory (Agricultural Research Service, U.S. Department of Agriculture). Do a search on the word dandelion in order to retrieve nutrient data.

“Calories in Dandelion Greens”, Calorie Count (About, Inc., a part of the New York Times Company).

“Dandelion greens, raw”, Nutrition Data.

References for medicinal information:

Steven D. Ehrlich, N.M.D., “Dandelion”, University of Maryland Medical Center (UMMC), review provided by VeriMed Healthcare Network on December 5, 2008.

“Generic Name: Dandelion (Taraxacum officinale) – Oral”, MedicineNet (WebMD Health, LLC), last editorial review on March 2, 2005.

“Dandelion Leaf”, Natural Health Information.

Toshihiro Akihisa, Ken Yasukawa, Hirotoshi Oinuma, Yoshimasa Kasahara, Sakae Yamanouchi, Michio Takido, Kunio Kumaki and Toshitake Tamura, “Triterpene alcohols from the flowers of compositae and their anti-inflammatory effects”, Phytochemistry, Vol. 43, Issue 6 (December 1996), pp. 1255-1260.

C. Hu and D. D. Kitts, “Dandelion (Taraxacum officinale) flower extract suppresses both reactive oxygen species and nitric oxide and prevents lipid oxidation in vitro“, Phytomedicine: International Journal of Phytotherapy and Phytopharmacology, Vol. 12, Issue 8 (August 2, 2005), pp. 588-597.

Katrin Schütz, Reinhold Carle and Andreas Schieber, “Taraxacum—A review on its phytochemical and pharmacological profile”, Journal of Ethnopharmacology, Vol. 107, Issue 3 (October 11, 2006), pp 313-323.

Eric Yarnell and Kathy Abascal, “Dandelion (Taraxacum officinale and T mongolicum)”, Integrative Medicine: A Clinician’s Journal, Vol. 8, No. 2 (April/May 2009), pp. 35-38.

Ung-Kyu Choi, Ok-Hwan Lee, Joo Hyuk Yim, Chang-Won Cho, Young Kyung Rhee, Seong-Il Lim and Young-Chan Kim, “Hypolipidemic and Antioxidant Effects of Dandelion (Taraxacum officinale) Root and Leaf on Cholesterol-Fed Rabbits”, International Journal of Molecular Sciences, Vol. 11, Issue 1 (January 2010), pp. 67-78.

Robert Domitrovic, Hrvoje Jakovac, Željko Romic, Dario Rahelic and Žarko Tadic, “Antifibrotic activity of Taraxacum officinale root in carbon tetrachloride-induced liver damage in mice”, Journal of Ethnopharmacology, Vol. 130, Issue 3 (August 9, 2010), pp 569-577.

A herbal infusion is a stronger version of herbal tea. Generally the leaves, flowers and/or berries parts of the plant are used. Hot or boiling water are usually poured over the herbs but you can make infusions with cold water. I like to boil the water, take [...]]]>

A herbal infusion is a stronger version of herbal tea. Generally the leaves, flowers and/or berries parts of the plant are used. Hot or boiling water are usually poured over the herbs but you can make infusions with cold water. I like to boil the water, take it off the heat for one minute and pour it over the herbs. Herbs like peppermint which contain volatile oils are not to be boiled—if you do so you will lessen the effect of the volatile oil.

Herbal infusions are one of the most potent ways to absorb the medicinal constituents. The body readily absorbs warm liquid and can extract the concentrated herbal properties easily.

You can use about 1/2–1 tbsp. of herb to 1 cup of water to start out with. The usual dosage is an ounce of herb to a liter/quart of  water.  I  use a canning jar and seal it for 2–6 hours; once it’s infused you can store your infusion in the refrigerator for up to five days. You can use honey to sweeten your infusion. Take 1/8–1/4 cup up to four times a day.

Once you’ve made an infusion you can customize it to your taste the next time you make it. For instance, when I infuse skullcap in the amount of 1 tsp. to 2 cups of hot water, it’s so bitter that it’s as strong as I can take it. With a herb like red clover which tastes nice, I use a tbsp. per cup. Learn about the herbs you are using and let your intuition guide you.

Some commonly infused herbs are:

Elderflower for fever

Dandelion for weight loss/liver

Hyssop for a congested cough (expectorant)

Lemon Balm for gas (carminative)

Red clover for fertility

To learn more about herbal infusions check out Susan Weed’s site.