Dandelion plant. Description, features, medicinal properties and use of dandelion

From time immemorial, dandelion is a medicinal folk healers, healers have been used to treat various diseases. It is known that all parts of a dandelion (roots, stems, flowers) have medicinal properties. However, today we will discuss in detail the topic - dandelion flowers, useful properties and contraindications

Traditional medicine recommends collecting dandelion flowers in the months of April and May. You just need to harvest raw materials in ecologically clean areas, but not near roads, highways, garbage dumps, industrial zones, agricultural land, which spray plants with all kinds of poisons, pesticides, chemicals.

Botanical description

Medicinal dandelion is a perennial herb up to 30 cm high, with a slightly branched taproot about 2 cm thick and about 60 cm long, in the upper part turning into a short multi-headed rhizome.

Dandelion leaves glabrous, pinnately incised or whole, lanceolate or oblong-lanceolate, dentate, 10-25 cm long, 1.5-5 cm wide, collected in a basal rosette.

The flowering arrow is juicy, cylindrical, hollow inside, ending in a single basket of reed bisexual bright yellow flowers up to 5 cm in diameter. The receptacle is glabrous, flat, pitted.

Flower formula: \ uparrow K_ \ infty \; C _ {(5)} \; A _ {(5)} \; G _ {(\ overline2)} [3].

The fruit is a grayish-brown fusiform achene with a tuft of white unbranched hairs. Achenes are not firmly attached to the receptacle and are easily carried by the wind.

All parts of the plant contain a thick white milky sap that tastes bitter.

Dandelion blooms in May-June, sometimes autumn bloom is observed, fruiting - from late May to July.


General view of flowering plants, leaves, inflorescence, seeds

Dandelion properties

Nutritional value | Vitamins | Minerals

How much does Dandelion cost (average price per pack)?

Moscow and Moscow region

40 p.

Dandelion is a well-known plant for our latitudes. However, in most cases, dandelion or Taraxacum is considered a weedy and useless species and they try to uproot the plant as soon as possible. Meanwhile, dandelion belongs to the genus of herbaceous plants that belong to the Astrov family and have long been used in the pharmaceutical industry for the production of a number of medicines. In addition, dandelion is eaten. Dandelion can be safely called an amazing plant.

Area

The medicinal dandelion is one of the most widespread plants, especially in the forest-steppe zone. It grows in meadows, glades, near roads, on pastures and near dwellings, often like a weed in fields, orchards, vegetable gardens and parks in the European part of Russia, in Ukraine, in Belarus, in the Caucasus, in Moldova, Transnistria in Central Asia, Siberia, in the Far East, Sakhalin, Kamchatka.

Dandelion species

In nature, there are more than a thousand species of dandelion, and only 70 of them are classified as "large" or the most common plant subspecies. Dandelion is one of the few plants that grow throughout the planet Earth, with the exception, perhaps, of the harsh Arctic latitudes. Dandelion species differ in appearance, distribution area, as well as in their properties and chemical composition. In the pharmaceutical and food industries, all the constituent parts of the plant are used.

Chemical composition

The milky sap of the plant contains taraxacin and taraxacerol, 2-3% of rubber substances, and dandelion inflorescences and leaves - taraxanthin, flavoxanthin, vitamins,,,,, choline, saponins, resins, salts of manganese, iron, calcium, phosphorus, up to 5% protein making them nutritious. Dandelion roots contain [4] [5] [6] [7] triterpene compounds: taraxasterol, taraxerol, pseudotaraxasterol, β-amyrin; sterols: β-sitosterol, stigmasterol, taraxol; carbohydrates: up to 40% inulin; fatty oil, which contains glycerides of palmitic, lemon balm, linoleic, oleic, cerotinic acids; rubber, proteins, mucus, resins, etc. Taraxanthin, flavoxanthin, lutein, triterpene alcohols, arnidiol, faradiol were found in flower baskets and leaves.

The nutritional value

Vitamins

A (RE) Vitamin A (RE) 508 μg
Beta carotene 5854 mg
E (TE) Vitamin E (TE) 3.44 mg
K Vitamin K 778.4 μg
C Vitamin C 35 mg
B1 Vitamin B1 0.19 mg
B2 Vitamin B2 0.26 mg
B5 Vitamin B5 0.08 mg
B6 Vitamin B6 0.25 mg
B9 Vitamin B9 27 μg
PP Vitamin PP (NE) 0.81 mg
Choline 35.3 mg

Trace elements

K Potassium 397 mg
Ca Calcium 187 mg
Mg Magnesium 36 mg
Na Sodium 76 mg
P Phosphorus 66 mg

Using

For medicinal purposes, use the root (lat. Radix Taraxaci

), leaves, grass, juice. Leaves, grass and sap are harvested in June, roots - in early spring or late autumn at the stage of leaf wilting, dried in dryers at a temperature of 40-50 ° C.

In spring, during flowering, it gives honey bees a large amount of pollen-pollen, containing a lot of sugar, proteins and fats. Bees collect nectar from dandelion in small quantities and not always [8].

Impact

The plant has a choleretic, antipyretic, laxative, expectorant, sedative, antispasmodic and mild hypnotic effect.

An aqueous infusion of roots and leaves improves digestion, appetite and general metabolism, enhances milk production in lactating women, and increases the overall tone of the body.

Due to the presence of biologically active substances, food gruel from dandelion passes the intestines faster, and this helps to reduce fermentation processes in colitis.

Experimentally, during the chemical-pharmacological study of dandelion, anti-tuberculosis, antiviral, fungicidal, anthelmintic, anticarcinogenic and antidiabetic properties have been confirmed.

Dandelion is recommended for diabetes, as a tonic for general weakness, for the treatment of anemia.

Powder from dried dandelion roots is used to enhance the excretion of harmful substances from the body with sweat and urine, as an anti-sclerotic agent, for gout, rheumatism.

A decoction, a thick extract is used as bitterness to enhance the secretion of the digestive glands and as a choleretic agent [9].

ethnoscience

Dandelion is used to treat hepatitis, cholecystitis, gallstone disease, jaundice, gastritis, colitis, cystitis, to improve appetite and digestion, with constipation, flatulence, and also as an antihelminthic agent.

Fresh leaves and juice from the leaves are recommended for the treatment of atherosclerosis, skin diseases, vitamin C deficiency, anemia.

The herb infusion together with the roots is used for various diseases of the liver and gallbladder, tumors, dropsy, urolithiasis, hemorrhoids. The herb infusion is used for vitamin deficiencies, as well as for various skin diseases: rashes, acne, furunculosis.

IN Chinese

In folk medicine, all parts of the plant are used as an antipyretic, diaphoretic, fortifying agent, as well as with reduced appetite, snake bites, to increase lactation in nursing mothers, with inflammation of the lymph nodes, furunculosis and other skin diseases.

Dandelion is also used internally and externally for furunculosis, eczema, skin rashes. An oil tincture of dandelion roots is used as a remedy in the treatment of burns, and when removing warts and calluses, the milky sap of the plant is applied topically.

Sometimes for the treatment of eczema, an ointment is prepared from the powder of dandelion roots and honey in a 1: 2 ratio.

In nutrition

Dandelion has long been used as food by various peoples, it was consumed by both the ancient Chinese and the first settlers on the American continent.

Its young leaves are often used for the preparation of a salad, known for sale in Europe under the French name "pisanli" [10] (the leaves are immersed for 30-40 minutes in a saline solution to significantly reduce their bitterness), and borscht, from dandelion flowers they make jam and make wine, make "dandelion honey" from the opened buds, and make a substitute for coffee from the toasted roots. Boiled leaves are used like spinach [10].

In the British Isles, a very popular wine in England has been made from dandelion flowers for a long time. This wine was praised by R. Bradbury in his story "Dandelion Wine".

In some countries, the leaves are fermented like cabbage, spring leaves are pickled.

Cosmetics

Dandelion is also widely popular in folk cosmetics: a mask made from its fresh leaves nourishes, moisturizes and rejuvenates the skin, and the infusion of flowers whitens freckles and age spots.

How to make a magic cocktail

There is nothing tricky here, everything is done very simply and quickly, and for this we need:

- 1 liter of fresh and clean water;

- 200 grams of dates;

- 100 grams of flowers;

- a powerful blender (we have one).

Process description

It is best to pre-soak the dates for a couple of hours, or better at night, in water, this will make them softer and juicier.
Be sure to remove the seeds from them! Otherwise, the blender will be very surprised at such a surprise.
We do not weigh the flowers, but collect them "by eye", but for the accuracy of the recipe we had to get a scale to tell you exactly how many grams you need.
Of course, you do not need to weigh, but simply estimate the required amount by volume! This will be about one regular 300 gram mug.
Tip: do not be greedy and do not try to put many flowers in one portion of the cocktail, it will beat worse, mix and get thicker, like porridge. Personally, I like the lighter and thinner consistency of the drink!
Place all ingredients in a blender jar, close the lid and whisk for one minute.
First at low revs, and then, after 10 seconds, we increase the speed to the maximum. Beat everything until smooth, resulting in an airy cocktail with a thick foam.

Total: in texture, it is a little so velvety, soft, and its taste is similar to milky, with a floral aftertaste, bitterness is practically not felt, and to be honest, it is difficult for me to describe the taste, so you better try it yourself in order to form your own opinion and supplement mine note with your feelings.

Dandelion Jam Recipes

Recipe 1:

Pour yellow dandelion flower petals (400 pcs) with 1 liter of water, add a lemon with a skin previously cut into 4 parts.
Cook for 90 minutes, let cool, strain, squeeze out the vegetable mass, it is no longer needed (discard).
Finely chop the boiled lemon, add 1 kg of sugar.
Boil until the consistency of liquid honey.

Recipe 2:

Separate the stem from the flowers (360 pcs.), Pour 2 cups of cold water, boil for 2 minutes.
Place cheesecloth in a colander in four layers, drain the water into a saucepan, squeeze the vegetable mass.
Add 7 cups of sugar to the water, put the pan on the fire and stir until the sugar is completely dissolved.
Boil for seven minutes from the moment of boiling.

The use of dandelion for the liver, with pancreatitis

Improved appetite, constipation.

Recipe 1:

Brew 2-3c l. dandelion root powder with a liter of boiling water, simmer over low heat for 20 minutes, let cool, drain.

Take half a glass warm before meals three times a day.

Recipe 2:

Insist 1c l overnight. powder of roots in a glass of cold water.

Take 1/4 cup during the day before meals.

Improving digestion. Eat the leaves as salads.The recipes for their preparation are given in the corresponding section (see above).

Dandelion treatment for joint diseases

Salt deposition, gout:

Collect dandelion flowers in May, fill a dark glass jar.
Pour with vodka, leave for two weeks in a cool place.

Rub the joints with tincture and gruel overnight, cover with a woolen scarf.

Arthrosis. Dandelion roots have medicinal properties to restore cartilage tissue, dissolve salts:

Brew at the rate of 1c.l. dried roots in a glass of boiling water, leave for half an hour, drain.

Take 1 s.l.-1/3 cup three times a day half an hour before meals.

An excerpt characterizing Dandelion officinalis

Having dressed in French greatcoats and shako, Petya and Dolokhov drove to the clearing from which Denisov was looking at the camp, and, leaving the forest in perfect darkness, went down into the hollow. Having driven down, Dolokhov ordered the Cossacks accompanying him to wait here and rode at a large trot along the road to the bridge. Petya, freezing with excitement, rode beside him. “If we get caught, I won’t give myself up alive, I have a gun,” Petya whispered. "Don't speak Russian," Dolokhov said in a quick whisper, and at that very moment in the darkness a call was heard: "Qui vive?" [Who's coming?] And the clang of the gun. The blood rushed to Petya's face, and he grabbed the pistol. - Lanciers du sixieme, [Lancers of the 6th regiment.] - said Dolokhov, not shortening or adding to the horse's speed. The black figure of the sentry stood on the bridge. - Mot d'ordre? [Feedback?] - Dolokhov held the horse back and started walking. - Dites donc, le colonel Gerard est ici? [Tell me, is Colonel Gerard here?] He said. - Mot d'ordre! - Without answering, said the sentry, blocking the road. - Quand un officier fait sa ronde, les sentinelles ne demandent pas le mot d'ordre ... - Dolokhov shouted, suddenly flushing, running over the sentry with his horse. - Je vous demande si le colonel est ici? [When the officer goes around the chain, the sentries do not ask for feedback ... I ask if the colonel is here?] And, without waiting for an answer from the straying sentry, Dolokhov walked up the hill at a step. Noticing the black shadow of a man crossing the road, Dolokhov stopped this man and asked where the commander and officers were? This man, with a sack on his shoulder, a soldier, stopped, approached Dolokhov's horse, touching it with his hand, and simply and amiably told that the commander and officers were higher on the mountain, on the right side, in the yard of the farm (as he called the master's manor). Having passed along the road, on both sides of which the French dialect sounded from the fires, Dolokhov turned into the courtyard of the manor house. Having passed through the gate, he dismounted from his horse and walked over to a large, blazing fire, around which several people were sitting, talking loudly. Something was boiling in a pot on the edge, and a soldier in a cap and a blue greatcoat, kneeling, brightly lit by fire, was stirring in it with a ramrod. - Oh, c'est un dur a cuire, [You can't get along with this devil.] - said one of the officers sitting in the shade on the opposite side of the fire. - Il les fera marcher les lapins ... [He will go through them ...] - another said with a laugh. Both fell silent, peering into the darkness at the sound of Dolokhov and Petya's footsteps approaching the fire with their horses. - Bonjour, messieurs! [Hello, gentlemen!] Dolokhov said loudly, clearly. The officers stirred in the shadow of the fire, and one, a tall officer with a long neck, avoiding the fire, went up to Dolokhov. - C'est vous, Clement? - he said. - D'ou, diable ... [Is that you, Clement? Where the hell ...] - but he did not finish, having learned his mistake, and, slightly frowning, as if he were a stranger, he greeted Dolokhov, asking him how he could serve. Dolokhov said that he and his comrade were catching up with their regiment, and asked, addressing everyone in general, if the officers knew anything about the sixth regiment. Nobody knew anything; and it seemed to Petya that the officers began to examine him and Dolokhov with hostility and suspicion. Everyone was silent for a few seconds. - Si vous comptez sur la soupe du soir, vous venez trop tard, [If you are counting on dinner, then you are late.] - said with a restrained laugh the voice from behind the fire. Dolokhov replied that they were full and that they had to go on at night. He handed the horses over to the soldier in the bowler hat and squatted down by the fire next to the long-necked officer.This officer, without taking his eyes off, looked at Dolokhov and asked him again: what kind of regiment was he? Dolokhov did not answer, as if he had not heard the question, and, lighting a short French pipe, which he took out of his pocket, he asked the officers how safe was the road from the Cossacks ahead of them. - Les brigands sont partout, [These robbers are everywhere.] - the officer answered from behind the fire. Dolokhov said that the Cossacks are terrible only for such backward ones as he and his comrade, but that the Cossacks probably did not dare to attack large detachments, he added inquiringly. Nobody answered anything. "Well, now he will leave," Petya thought every minute, standing in front of the fire and listening to his conversation. But Dolokhov began the conversation that had stopped again and began directly asking how many people they had in the battalion, how many battalions, how many prisoners. Asking about the Russian prisoners who were with their detachment, Dolokhov said: - La vilaine affaire de trainer ces cadavres apres soi. Vaudrait mieux fusiller cette canaille, [It's a bad thing to carry these corpses with you. It would be better to shoot this bastard.] - and laughed loudly with such a strange laugh that it seemed to Petya that the French would now recognize the deception, and he involuntarily stepped back a step from the fire. No one answered Dolokhov's words and laughter, and the French officer, whom he could not see (he was lying wrapped in his greatcoat), got up and whispered something to his comrade. Dolokhov got up and called the soldier with the horses. "Will the horses be served or not?" - thought Petya, involuntarily approaching Dolokhov. The horses were served. - Bonjour, messieurs, [Here: goodbye, gentlemen.] - said Dolokhov. Petya wanted to say bonsoir [good evening] and could not finish the word. The officers were whispering something to each other. Dolokhov sat for a long time on a horse that did not stand; then he walked out of the gate at a step. Petya rode beside him, wanting and not daring to look back to see whether the French were running or not running after them. Having left on the road, Dolokhov drove not back into the field, but along the village. At one point he stopped, listening. - Do you hear? - he said. Petya recognized the sounds of Russian voices, saw the dark figures of Russian prisoners by the fires. Going down to the bridge, Petya and Dolokhov passed the sentry, who, without saying a word, walked gloomily across the bridge, and drove into a hollow where the Cossacks were waiting. - Well, now goodbye. Tell Denisov that at dawn, at the first shot, ”Dolokhov said and wanted to drive, but Petya grabbed him with his hand. - Not! - he cried, - you are such a hero. Oh, how good! How wonderful! How I love you. - Good, good, - said Dolokhov, but Petya did not let him go, and in the darkness Dolokhov saw that Petya was bending over to him. He wanted to kiss. Dolokhov kissed him, laughed and, turning his horse, disappeared into the darkness. X Returning to the guardhouse, Petya found Denisov in the entryway. Denisov, agitated, worried and annoyed with himself that he had let Petya go, was expecting him. - Thank God! He shouted. - Well, thank God! - he repeated, listening to Petya's enthusiastic story. - And why take you, because of you I didn’t sleep! - said Denisov. - Well, thank God, now go to bed. We'll go up to utg again. - Yes ... No, - said Petya. “I don’t feel like sleeping yet. Yes, I know myself, if I fall asleep, it’s over. And then I got used to not sleeping before the battle. Petya sat for a while in the hut, joyfully recalling the details of his trip and vividly imagining what would happen tomorrow. Then, noticing that Denisov fell asleep, he got up and went into the yard. It was still completely dark outside. The rain had passed, but drops were still falling from the trees. Close to the guardhouse, the black figures of Cossack huts and horses tied together were visible. Behind the hut were two wagons with horses, and a dying fire blushed in the ravine. The Cossacks and hussars were not all asleep: in some places one could hear, together with the sound of falling drops and the close sound of horses chewing, quiet, as if whispering voices. Petya came out of the entryway, looked around in the darkness and went up to the wagons. Someone was snoring under the wagons, and around them were saddled horses, chewing oats.In the dark, Petya recognized his horse, which he called Karabakh, although it was a Little Russian horse, and approached her. “Well, Karabakh, we'll serve tomorrow,” he said, sniffing her nostrils and kissing her. - What, sir, are you awake? - said the Cossack, who was sitting under the wagon. - Not; and ... Likhachev, it seems, is your name? After all, I have just arrived. We went to see the French. - And Petya told the Cossack in detail not only his trip, but also why he went and why he believes that it is better to risk his life than to do Lazarus at random. - Well, they should have nap, - said the Cossack. - No, I'm used to it, - Petya answered. - And what, you have no flints in your pistols? I brought with me. Isn't it necessary? Take it. The Cossack leaned out from under the wagon to take a closer look at Petya. “Because I'm used to doing everything neatly,” said Petya. - Others will not get ready, then they regret it. I don't like that. “That's for sure,” said the Cossack. - And what's more, please, my dear, sharpen my saber; blunt ... (but Petya was afraid to lie) she was never honed. Can I do this? - Why, you can. Likhachev got up, rummaged in his packs, and Petya soon heard the warlike sound of steel on a block. He climbed onto the wagon and sat on the edge of it. The Cossack was sharpening his saber under the wagon. - Well, well fellows are sleeping? - said Petya. - Who is asleep and who is like that. - Well, what about the boy? - Spring then? He collapsed there, in senets. Sleeping with fear. I was glad that I was. For a long time after that, Petya was silent, listening to the sounds. Footsteps were heard in the darkness and a black figure appeared. - What are you sharpening? - asked the man, going up to the wagon. - And here's the master to sharpen his saber. “It's a good thing,” said the man who seemed to Petya to be a hussar. - Do you have a cup left? - And over there by the wheel. The hussar took the cup. “It’s probably light soon,” he said, yawning, and walked somewhere. Petya should have known that he was in the forest, in Denisov’s party, a mile from the road, that he was sitting on a wagon, beaten off from the French, near which horses were tied, that Cossack Likhachev was sitting under him and sharpening his saber, that a big black spot to the right - a guardhouse, and a red bright spot below to the left - a burning fire, that the person who came for a cup is a hussar who wanted to drink; but he knew nothing and did not want to know it. He was in a magical realm in which there was nothing like reality. A big black spot, maybe there was a guardhouse, or maybe there was a cave that led into the very depths of the earth. The red spot may have been fire, or perhaps the eye of a huge monster. Maybe he is as if sitting on a wagon now, but it may very well be that he is not sitting on a wagon, but on a terribly high tower, from which if he fell, he would fly to the ground all day, a whole month - all fly and never reach ... It may be that just a Cossack Likhachev is sitting under the truck, but it may very well be that this is the kindest, bravest, most wonderful, most excellent person in the world, whom no one knows. Maybe it was as if the hussar was passing by to fetch water and went into the hollow, or maybe he had just disappeared from sight and completely disappeared, and he was not there.

Dandelion treatment of diseases of the heart, blood vessels

Hypertension:

Brew 1-2c l. chopped leaves or roots with a glass of boiling water, simmer over low heat for 10 minutes, strain.

Take 1 s.l. three times per day.

Recovery after a heart attack, stroke.

Recipe 1:

Prepare dandelion juice (see above).

Take 50 ml 20 minutes before meals, twice a day.

Recipe 2:

Brew 1c l. dried leaves with a glass of boiling water, leave for two hours, drain.

Take up to a quarter cup three times daily before meals.

Recipe 3:

Grind the dried root into powder.

Hold half a teaspoon in your mouth for a while, wash it down with a sip of water. Take three times daily before meals.

Atherosclerosis.

Recipe 1. To lower cholesterol levels:

Take 1 s. L. crushed dandelion root powder just before meals.

Improvement occurs after six months.

Recipe 2. For the treatment and prevention of atherosclerosis:

Take dandelion juice, gradually increase the intake from 1c. L. a day to a glass.
Then reduce the rate, return to the original.

Phlebeurysm:

Brew 500 ml of boiling water 1 tsp. dandelion roots, simmer for 10 minutes, leave for 10 minutes, drain.

Take 2/3 cup 2-3 times a day.

What is the root system of a dandelion? Why are they fighting this plant in Russia?

Dandelion leaves appear in the first year in the form of a rosette, while a very developed, branched root system is formed. It can be up to 50 centimeters long.

It is for this reason that if this happens at a summer cottage, then the gardener gets more work. Since the plant interferes with the growth of cultural plantings. Where dandelions grow, if you do not get rid of them completely, garden crops will die. Even if the weed is cut or dug up, it can reappear. This is due to the fact that even when mown and dug up, seeds can ripen and spread by the wind. In addition, the shoots from the root are also capable of giving new shoots.

Gardeners, gardeners and field growers have developed a whole system of dandelion and other weeds control. Some field growers fight them with stubble cultivation. Others use the early fall plowing method. Still others turn to the early clean vapor method. Perennial forage grasses such as clover are sometimes specially planted.

Gardeners are advised to weed in a timely manner and cut the roots deeply, immediately throwing out the remains away from the garden plot.

Urban planters must cut roots or reseed the entire lawn in a timely manner. In some places, the grass is simply cut regularly. In cities, dandelions are constantly mowed because in some people fluffy seeds cause allergic reactions.

Medicinal raw materials

The roots are dug up in early spring (April - early May) or in autumn, when the leaves wither (September - October). The plants are dug up with shovels. The dug roots are shaken off the ground, the aerial parts, root necks and thin lateral roots are cut off at the roots with knives. Then immediately washed in cold water. The washed roots are laid out on a cloth for drying. After drying in the open air for several days, until the milky juice ceases to emerge from the root incisions, the roots are dried in attics under an iron, slate or tile roof or under canopies with good ventilation, spreading a thin layer (3-5 cm) on a cloth or paper, stirring occasionally. Dandelion roots can be dried in ovens or dryers at 40-50 ° C.

Raw materials should consist of dried, whole, dense, washed from the ground, simple or slightly branched taproots with the root neck removed. The roots are wrinkled, sometimes spirally twisted, fragile, breaking with a crack. Root length about 10-15 cm, thickness 0.3-1.5 cm. Roots outside are brown or dark brown, inside in a break grayish-white or pure white, with yellow and yellowish-brown wood in the center. The smell is absent, the taste is bitter with a sweet aftertaste.

You can not harvest flowers from roads, as the plant accumulates lead and other toxic substances.

Teberda reserve. On grassy slopes, forest glades, weedy places, in estates, along roadsides, 1300-1900 m above sea level. Usually.
The yield of dry raw materials is approximately 33-35%. Store in dry rooms with good ventilation on racks; in pharmacies - in boxes with lids, in cans and cans, in warehouses - in bales; cut raw materials - in bags.

Shelf life. 5 years.

Dandelion Benefits for Diabetes

The plant's leaf salads are rich in inulin. It is useful to use them with parsley, dill, tops, radishes or young turnips.

Recipes for diabetes.

Recipe 1:

Brew 1 tsp. finely chopped washed roots with a glass of boiling water, leave for 20 minutes, drain.

Take 1/4 cup 3-4 times a day.

Recipe 2:

Brew 1 tsp. chopped dandelion root and 3 tsp. mint leaves with a glass of boiling water, simmer over low heat for 5 minutes, cover, let cool, drain.

Take 1/4 cup 2-3 times daily before meals.

Q&A: "Are Mother and Stepmother and Dandelion the same thing?"

Many people confuse these plants. Mother-and-stepmother is an early flowering plant smaller than Taraxacum in size. Flowers on scaly peduncles (in dandelions they are hollow and smooth) appear before the leaves (in taraxacum, on the contrary). They also differ in the shape of the leaf.

Another plant that is often mistaken for a dandelion is the kulbaba. White crests of achenes appear on the kulbab in autumn: this flower differs from the dandelion in a long flowering period, in smaller flowers and a stem (in taraxakum, it is also a peduncle).

Dandelion is often confused with other plants.

Dandelion as one of the "bitter herbs" has become a symbol of the Passion of the Lord in Christianity. At the same time, he also symbolizes the power of light and the sun, is identified with fidelity and happiness. An ambiguous weed plant is fraught with many healing possibilities that were revered by ancient ancestors.

Interesting Facts

On the territory of the Soviet Union in 1964, 203 species of wild medicinal plants were counted, and in 1973 another 27 species were found.
At the beginning of autumn, the content of inulin in the rhizomes of the plant is approximately 32%, and in the spring it is only 2%.
The white-tongued dandelion growing on the Kola Peninsula is listed in the Red Book as an endangered species.
This plant is considered a vegetable in China and a medicinal weed in other countries.

For many centuries, people have identified this flower with the sun. In the old centuries, shamans used it during rituals, adding it to their infusions, making charms for people that help them achieve success.

A wonderful jam is made from its flowers, which was previously considered a love potion. Girls on the holiday of Ivan Kupala divined with the help of wreaths, including dandelions, if the wreath floats on the water, she will soon get married.

In China, emperors drank infusions of flowers, believing that this would give them masculine strength for a long time.

Contraindications for use

In general, dandelion is a fairly harmless plant that cannot harm. In everything, however, there are exceptions. The most common contraindication is allergy, that is, individual intolerance. Allergies are most likely in people who already have it to chamomile, calendula, chrysanthemum and yarrow.

Bulky leaf intake is not recommended if you are taking potassium-sparing diuretics. Do not abuse this herbal medicine for people with liver and gallbladder problems.

The product stimulates the production of gastric juice. Therefore, with caution, you need to use funds based on this plant for people with stomach ulcers and gastritis with high acidity, as well as colon ulcers during an exacerbation.

Diseases of the pancreas, cancer of the biliary tract, cholangitis (inflammation of the bile ducts) and intestinal obstruction are also contraindications. Also, if you are taking any medications, you need to consult with a specialist about the possibility of using decoctions and infusions of any medicinal plants.

Elimination of insomnia, overexertion, depression

Increased nervousness associated with overwork (fatigue):

Prepare a tincture at the rate of 1c. L. powder of roots in a glass of vodka.
Insist in a cool dark place for 10 days, drain.

Take 30 drops with water half an hour before each meal for 14 days.

Insomnia:

Brew 2c l. dandelion flowers with a glass of boiling water, simmer over low heat for 15 minutes, insist in a sealed container for half an hour, strain.

Take 1 s. L. 3-4 times daily before meals.

How to harvest dandelion and store it

The best time to harvest dandelions is spring! The older the dandelions are, the more bitter they taste, so if you can pick them young, you will experience a softer and sweeter aroma.

Herbalists consider dandelion to be the safest plant among other wild plants. It is distinguished by serrated leaves and a bright yellow flower.

Commercially cultivated dandelions can have whitish, greenish, or red stems. The leaves are perishable.

Can be stored in the refrigerator in a large plastic mold with a piece of paper towel to absorb excess moisture and condensation. If you store wet leaves in bags, they will most likely only last for a few days.

Never harvest dandelions close to a road or near a yard where pesticides or fertilizers are used.

It is best to harvest wild dandelions in a natural setting, such as an open meadow. Alternatively, you can even sow dandelion seeds in your garden or vegetable garden (as long as you don't use toxic pesticides yourself).

It is best to harvest the dandelion in the morning when the sun is weak, as the greens tend to weaken when the sun is too intense. The new leaves are sweet; old leaves, veins, and leaves next to growing flowers are bitter.

For men

According to the beliefs of alternative medicine, the herb accumulates male energy in the inflorescences, which makes them extremely beneficial for male health. Restoration of potency is provided by:

Decrease in estrogen levels.
Increasing conductivity and improving the condition of blood vessels.
Normalization of the functioning of the endocrine system.
Strengthening the nervous system.
Elimination of atherosclerotic lesions of capillaries and arteries.
Strengthening testosterone production.
Relief from prolonged stress and chronic fatigue.

Herbal remedies enhance the effect of the active substance in the treatment of anemia and diabetes mellitus. The systematic intake of the decoction will help protect the liver from complex lesions, prevent the formation of kidney stones and gall bladder. The multivitamin composition helps to lower cholesterol levels, prevents excess weight gain and excessive production of female sex hormones. An excess of estrogen in a man's body leads to a decrease in sexual desire and a lack of interest in the opposite sex.