Burdock

	alternative medicine	Norman Allan www.normanallan.com	consultations 416 928 9272	email
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Burdock root tea, infusion, using the fresh root, for detox

Burdock	named for the burs, and the similarity to dock, as in yellow dock,which is so common in England, Rumex ?, another powerful hepatic (liver) Arctium minor (Common Burdock) and A. lappa (Greater Burdock) (a.k.a. A.majus)
	Burdock makes an amazing tea! The fresh root tea tastes like an elixir of life! (The dried root can taste like old carpet!) It is a an hepatic (a liver tonic and cholagogue - stimulates the release of bile), a lymphatic, an anti-cancer agent (the primary ingrediant in Essiac, for example)
	a simple method for brewing Burdock Cut off about a 2 inch segment of the root. Slice it in half (or possibly quarters). Cover with water (2 to 6 cups, half a pint, half a liter - approximately). Bring to a boil, then let it steep. As it cools off the tea will turn blue. You can add more water and brew a second, a third batch, till it loses that color...	caveats *warnings* *conditions* if you are drinking burdock particularly if you ail you should see a doctor or herbalist. anyone could be allergic to anything and as Dr. Duckworth says anything can cause anything
	you can find Burdock root amongst the produce in some health food stores, in some Korean (and Japanese) store where it is known as Gobo Or you can harvest the root of this common plant, which takes much digging. Burdock is a biennial. The first year it grows a large, but low to the ground, set, rosette of leaves. In the second year it grows tail, goes to flower and seed. You need to harvest, ideally, the first year plant in the autumn or the second year plant in the spring, when the root is ripest.	Judith writes that there are other dangers... click here! To detox we stimulate the organs of excretion, the liver, the kidneys, the lymphatics. Burdock is a hepatic and a lymphatic, so it is also, reputedly, good to the skin. (It also, reputedly, stimulates the appetite.)

This picture is probably late summer towards towards autumn. In the bottom right there are some first year plants, and behind to the left several sprouted to flower towards seed. I think Burdock makes wonderful tea, like an elixir of life, a detoxing agent which can quite a profound therapy: so you should be supervised, particularly if you are ailing. (I had a patient whose tongue turned brown with the detox!}



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sources several of the images on this page are from www.ontariowildflower.com/ purple sage's page is wonderful. a great herbal resource.	In fact it was when dogs' fur and plants like the burdock were studied more closely that Velcro was invented. http://www.jochenlueg.freeuk.com/ english/wildflowers_5.htm	as usual wikipedia has a wicked article on Burdock

Janice writes that there are dangers... source http://www. safealternativemedicine.co.uk/ BurdockHealth.html	"Caution; burdock root interferes with iron absorption when taken internally. Because of its diuretic actions, burdock should not be taken during pregnancy or lactation. Burdock has been shown to interact with hypoglycaemic drugs, anti-inflammatory medications and lithium therapy, when taken internally."	However, in Korea and Japan Burdock/Gobo is a root vegetable eaten without precaution.

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