As you know, I’m a huge proponent when it comes to holistic cancer treatments! So I was super excited to stumble across a whole bunch of research on dandelion root extract (DRE) showing how potent it is in treating cancer.
Funnily enough, dandelions are those ‘weeds’ with the yellow flowers that we are always pulling out of our gardens. They grow everywhere! When something like the dandelion keeps popping up around us, I think that can be nature’s way of going “HERE! This is what you need!”. Life is always handing us everything we need. We just need to start taking notice.
Dandelion roots have been boiled up into healing teas and tonics for a very long time. But like many natural remedies they were pushed aside with the advent of synthetic chemical medicines. I love that science is now going back to these natural remedies and taking a deeper look into how they work.
Better Than Chemotherapy?
A big downside of cancer treatments like chemotherapy is that they are non-specific in the way they work. According to the American Cancer Society, they are also proven to be the leading cause of secondary cancer! Non-specific means they cause harm to healthy cells as well as cancerous ones. One of the amazing properties of DRE is that it only affects cancerous cells, and several studies have been able to show this.
A study from PubMed looked at the effect of DRE on autophagy in aggressive and resistant pancreatic cancer. Autophagy means “to break down” and literally rip apart the cancer cells. The study showed that whilst the DRE ripped apart the cancer cells, it had no significant negative effect on non-cancerous cells.
The University of Windsor in Canada (Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry), also showed DRE is specific in autophagy of only the cancer cells and saw effects within 48 hours!
PubMed also published an article about the effects of DRE on a form of Leukaemia that has been highly resistant to other forms of treatment. The researchers remarked in their concluding statement that DRE has great potential as a non-toxic effective alternative to chemotherapy.
Dandelion Root Tea Saved his Life
There are reports of a 72 year old man, who after 3 years of aggressive chemo treatment, was told by doctors there was nothing else they could do. They advised him to go and enjoy his last days with this family. You know what… I love this guy, because he said no to that! He started drinking tea made from dandelion roots as a “last hope”. According to Natural News, after only 4 months this man is in cancer remission.
An Amazing Health Tonic
Not only does DRE rip apart cancer cells but it nourishes the body too. It stimulates bile secretion, cleanses the liver and contains vitamin B6, thiamin, riboflavin, Vitamin C, Vitamin K, Vitamin A plus iron, calcium, potassium, folic acid and magnesium.
When we consider the Doctrine of Signatures, the bright yellow petals of the dandelion represent the liver’s yellow bile and are thereby considered to be a liver remedy. In fact, a little tip, focusing on any yellow foods to assist with liver issues will be of benefit.
Dandelion Root Tea – Easy to Make and Costs Nothing
The best thing about the health benefits that dandelions provide is that they grow everywhere. You just need to dig up the root and make a tea!
After first checking that the soil it’s growing in doesn’t contain any toxic chemicals, dig up the root, peel it and cut it into small pieces. From there you can steep in hot water to make a tea. The roots are best pulled in Autumn or Spring, so collect a heap then dry some to save for later. To dry them out, just keep the cut-up pieces of the root in a cool, well-ventilated spot. Leave it there until it becomes brittle when you touch it. That will probably take around 3-14 days depending on the climate you’re in. Or if you have a dehydrator, that’s a brilliant way to go. Then store the dry root pieces in a glass jar in a cool dark place.
If you don’t have access to any dandelions to make your own tea, check out our Dandelion Spice Tea – it’s delicious!
I am so excited about all the research that is still to come now that people are paying attention to natural remedies again! Remember to share this with your loved ones. ❤️
