Before I begin, I want to make a quick little disclaimer that of course nothing I say below has been evaluated by the FDA.  The following information should not be used to replace medical advice or treatment and if you are ill you should see your doctor or naturopath or nurse practitioner or herbalist or whoever it is you see.  Sorry I had to go through all that, but sometimes people can be goofy about this stuff!  I use herbs in my daily life but I go to my naturopath or my MD when I’ve got something major wrong with me. 

OK!  Dandelion!  Dandelion’s scientific name is Taraxacum officinale.  Some of its common names are as follows: Chinese: Pu gong ying, Huang-hua ti-ting,  ju-chi ts’au.  English:  Piss-in-bed, lion’s tooth, blow ball, fortune-teller, doonheadclock, tell-time, clock flower, bitterwort, swine snort, Irish daisy, wet-a-bed, priest’s crown, cankerwort, puffball and wild endive.  French:  Dent-de-lion, pissenlit.  German:  Lowenzahn, Kuhblume, Pfaffenrohrlein.  Greek:  Radiki.  Italian: Diente di lieone, Radicchiallar, Tarasasaco, Soffione.  Persian: Trakhasnkun.  Russian:  Oduvanchik, pushki.  Spanish: Chicoria, diente de leon, consuelda.  Turkish:  Kara hindiba otu, yabani, aci Marul. 

Dandelion has been documented in its use as a medicinal herb for over a thousand years, and we can assume that this wonderful herb was also used long before documentation existed.  As you can tell from all the names listed above, dandelion is one of those universal weeds that seems to grow in every place on earth.  Where it was originally native and how it got to us here is unknown.  Some sources suggest that dandelion hitch-hiked to America on the backs of European immigrants, and I read somewhere a long time ago that dandelion was brought to America from Africa by slaves to cultivate as food, then escaped their fields and grew rampant across the country.  I find this unlikely, given the reports that several North American Indian tribes have traditonally used dandelion for food and medicine. 

The roots of Dandelion have been used to improve liver congestion, treat hepatitis, and enhance the bile flow (some sources suggest that you be a little careful with herbs that enhance bile flow if you have severe gall stones or a completely obstructed bile duct, as this can possibly cause a worsening of the problem—it would be like water building up behind a dam, as I imagine it—although other sources specifically suggest dandelion as a treatment for gall stones.  In my opinion, each case is different, so see your ND or herbalist if this is something you want to try).    Dandelion root has been used to stabilize blood sugar, reduce hypoglycemia, and has been suggested to assist in prevention of type 2 diabetes (Susun Weed, Healing Wise).  It can help increase the appetite and relieve chronic consitipation.  Dandelion root is a highly nutritive herb.  According to Susun S. Weed in the book Healing Wise, dandelion root contains high levels of iron, manganese, phosphorus, protein, aluminum, and carotenes (vitamin A).  It also contains average amounts of calcium, chromium, cobalt, magnesium, niacin, potassium, riboflavin, silicon, sodium, tin, zinc, and vitamin C complex (ascorbic acid).  Wow!

Dandelion leaf is one of the best known herbal diuretics.  Diuretics are what remove excess water from your system, through the kidneys and bladder.   One of dandelion’s nick-names is “piss-in-the-bed”…probably because if you drink too much dandelion tea before you go to bed, this is what’ll happen to you!  Most diuretics deplete the body of vital potassium along with the water.  Dandelion leaf, however, is itself one of the best natural sources of potassium, so it is excellently balanced and can be used for any kind of water retention problems.  Along with potassium, dandelion leaves are also high in vitamin A, vitamin C, calcium, iron, riboflavin, thiamin and niacin.  There are also trace amounts of manganese, sulphur, magnesium, silica, and vitamin D.  It’s no wonder that dandelion leaves have been eaten for centuries as a delicious bitter spring salad!  (A hint here— if you pick the tender first leaves of spring, they taste fresh and light, not so bitter).

My grandmother told me once that during the depression she and her brother used to wait with bated breath for the first signs of Spring—fresh dandelions coming up through the snow.  They gathered every leaf they could find for their salads, and she said nothing ever tasted so good.  After a winter-long diet of nothing but salt pork and milk, I can imagine they did!