Sarah EatonIf the notion of drinking dandelion tea sounds bizarre to you, we hope we can change your mind! Now, we know, dandelions might drive you nuts. Maybe the mere sight of them you march right to your tool shed for the lawn mower. But the truth is, dandelions have gotten a bad rap. These little yellow flowers, commonly referred to as weeds, come packed with a good amount of nutrients. These nutrients pack a wallop where your health is concerned, and yet so many people hack dandelions to death without a second thought. Bonus…? They can be turned into a nutritious tea! Dandelion tea health benefits include protecting your bones, cleansing your liver, and preventing UTIs, to name a few. Read below to learn more about what this little yellow flower can do for your health!
Here are 10 amazing dandelion tea health benefits:
1. Protects Bones
Dandelion tea health benefits start with the ability to protect your bones. This is due to the calcium present in dandelions—they contain 10 percent of your daily recommended intake.
Calcium is stored in the structure of your bones and teeth and plays a number of important roles regarding your health. For example, it’s used for nerve transmission, blood clotting, hormone secretion and muscle contraction.
Drink dandelion tea (or eat the greens!) to help avoid tooth decay, muscle tension, high blood pressure, and calcium deficiency.
2. High in Vitamin K
Vitamin K is also important when it comes to bone health. In fact, there is evidence that suggests it can reduce risk of bone fractures in postmenopausal women who are at risk for osteoporosis. (1) It’s also great for your heart and brain. And this is where dandelion tea health benefits continue. Dandelions contain more than 500 percent of your daily value of vitamin K.
Moreover, the vitamin K in dandelions helps with blood clotting, helps maintain brain function, as well as promotes a healthy metabolism. Plus, it’s been shown to be a great natural cancer treatment. It also can reduce the risk of prostate, colon, stomach, nasal and oral cancers. (2)
3. Cleanses Liver
Dandelion tea health benefits extend to your liver, too! The liver produces bile, which helps enzymes in your body break down fats into fatty acids. It also filters and detoxifies your blood, stores glucose, and synthesizes and metabolizes fats and cholesterol.
Dandelions, then, maintain the proper flow of bile. Furthermore, they help your body absorb minerals. They also reduce inflammation and prevent diseases from developing. (3)
For being “just a weed,” it seems dandelions have an impressive resume!
4. Fights Diabetes
As dandelions can stimulate the production of insulin, dandelion tea health benefits extend to diabetics, as well. The tea or juice of dandelions helps keep blood sugar levels low.
Moreover, dandelion tea is a diuretic. That means it can help remove excess sugar in the body, which is another way it helps fight diabetes naturally.
5. Fights Skin Infections
Have you ever torn open a dandelion stem? If so, you may have noticed there’s a milky white substance inside. This stuff is great for your skin! It’s dandelion stem sap, and it’s highly alkaline. Furthermore, it has germicidal, insecticidal, and fungicidal properties.
Use dandelion sap to relieve itching and irritation from various skin infections. For example, you can use it for eczema, ringworm, as well as psoriasis.
6. High in Antioxidants
Dandelion tea health benefits also include a high amount of antioxidants. This means dandelions can help fight free radical damage, which can help prevent certain diseases. (4)
In fact, researchers from the University of Windsor in Canada found that dandelion root extract was effective in killing different cancers. This was due to its free radical-fighting ability. (5)
7. Rich in Fiber
Due to the high amount of fiber, dandelion tea health benefits continue with the digestive system. Fiber works by adding bulk to the stool, which helps your digestive tract quickly move food. This helps it function properly.
Furthermore, high-fiber diets reduce obesity and lower the risk of heart disease and diabetes. They also can lower the risk of some cancers as well as prevent irritable bowel syndrome and kidney stones. And some studies show fiber can help women who suffer with PMS or menopausal symptoms.
Drink the tea and consume the greens to add a good dose of healthy fiber to your diet.
8. Good Source of Vitamin A
Dandelion tea health benefits also include the ability to promote healthy vision. This is possible through the vitamin A content within dandelions. Because of this, dandelions are also great for healthy neurological function as well as promoting healthy skin.
Vitamin A is an antioxidant. That being the case, it has the power to reduce inflammation and reduce free radial damage. In fact, just one cup of dandelion greens has more than 100 percent of your recommended daily intake of vitamin A. That equates to one cup of dandelion tea.
Keep this in mind if you’re pregnant or planning to become pregnant, as it’s easy to become vitamin A deficient when you’re expecting. If you’re pregnant, you can suffer from night blindness if your vitamin A intake isn’t adequate.
9. Serves as Diuretic
Dandelion tea health benefits include the ability to act as a diuretic. This means it can help your body remove toxins, as well as fight bacterial infections within the digestive tract and reproductive organs. It can also strengthen the immune system, relieve heartburn, and help correct digestive issues.
10. Prevents Urinary Tract Infections
As stated above, dandelion tea can help fight infections. That includes urinary tract infections, as well as bladder disorders, kidney issues and maybe even cysts on reproductive organs, as well. (6, 7)
Furthermore, there is a particular combination of dandelion root and extracts from another herb called uva ursi that helps reduce UTIs in women. In this case, uva ursi kills bacteria while dandelion increases urine flow and fights infection.
Incorporate dandelion tea into your diet today and start reaping its many health benefits! You can purchase dandelion tea in the store, such as a health food market, but you can also make your own right at home. Simmer dandelion roots on the stove in water for roughly 15 minutes. Allow it to cool, then strain into a tea cup.