What Is Burdock Root?
Burdock root is a plant that is found around the world, in Asia, Europe and North America. It is an alternative herb, meaning that it helps to restore normal functioning to the body when systems get out of balance. It is a blood purifier, digestive bitter, antimicrobial, blood sugar regulator, and anti-cancer agent. Burdock is often recommended by healthcare practitioners to treat a variety of conditions including boils, eczema, cancer, diabetes, heavy metal toxicity, liver conditions, gallbladder dysfunction and gout.
4 Top Health Benefits of Burdock Root
Blood Purifying Properties
Burdock root is particularly known in the herbal medicine community for its ability to remove toxins from the body by cleaning the blood. Because of this, Burdock is used for skin conditions, like acne, and gout that are considered to result from toxin accumulation. Burdock can also be used to cleanse toxins from the intestinal tract. It is a bitter herb that causes the release of digestive juices and bile, thus helping with intestinal cleansing.
Digestive Bitter
Because of its bitter flavour, Burdock can increase appetite and digestion. It does this by stimulating the flow of digestive juices such as stomach acid, digestive enzymes from the pancreas and bile from the liver. Increasing the flow of these juices helps the body to complete proper digestion and will help to reduce the number of symptoms associated with poor digestion such as gas, bloating, diarrhea, constipation and heartburn.
Antimicrobial Properties
Extracts of burdock contain antimicrobial substances that are useful for halting infections anywhere in the body, including the digestive tract. Because of this, Burdock can help to treat diarrhea of infectious origin and can help to improve a poor bacterial balance in the gut.
Blood Sugar Regulation
Studies have shown that burdock contains constituents that resemble insulin, our body's blood sugar-regulating hormone. Because of this, it can be used to help manage high blood sugar, a symptom commonly associated with diabetes. Reducing blood sugar is also helpful in preventing the growth of unhealthy cells. Interestingly, Burdock has also been found to contain several anti-mutagenic components that can help prevent DNA damage that can lead to the formation of unhealthy cells.
How To Take Burdock Root Supplements
Burdock can be used as an encapsulated herb, dried root, tincture or liquid extract. The roots contain the most concentrated medicinal substances: insulin-like compounds, antioxidants and bitters. Burdock can also be used topically to treat skin conditions, just be sure to dilute any alcohol-based formulas to avoid skin irritation. It is found as a component of many cleansing and detoxification formulas. It is also a part of the "Essiac" formula, which has traditionally been used for cancer and detoxifying. To help with digestion, bitter herbs must be tasted, so using a tincture or tea form is often best. Encapsulated herbs are swallowed, thus bypassing the taste buds, and will not stimulate digestion.
