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TCM Treasures - Dandelion 蒲公英
By Wing Tan |
October 21, 2012, Sunday
|
Print Edition
Print Edition
TRADITIONAL Chinese medicine practitioners have long considered the humble dandelion (pu gong ying) a valuable herb which can be used as both medicine and food.
Rich in beta carotene, Vitamin C and minerals, dandelion is used to treat liver and kidney diseases and spleen and stomach problems, including indigestion.
Its leaves can also improve skin, while the root can reduce inflammation and treat gallstones and rheumatism.
According to the TCM bible "Ben Cao Gang Mu" dandelion is neither "hot" nor "cold." In some folk prescriptions, it is used to treat breast conditions, such as inflammation or milk flow problems.
Legend goes that a young girl suffered a breast abscess. Her mother wrongly accused her of losing her virginity before marriage and the distressed girl left home to drown herself. However, she was rescued by a man and his daughter, Pu Gongying, who were fishing. Hearing the girl's plight, the father asked his daughter to pick a dandelion seed head. The daughter made a paste, applied it to the girl's breast and soon the abscess disappeared. The grateful girl learned to grow the herb and named it after Pu Gongying.
Dandelion porridge
Mix 30g dandelion and 100g rice to make the porridge. Make it a daily meal.
Benefits: Helps clear inner heat and remove toxicity.
Dandelion soup
Boil 50g dandelion, 50g yin che (capillary wormwood), 10 jujubes and 50g sugar.
Benefits: The soup is a very effective medicine to treat acute hepatitis.
Dandelion tea
Boil 75g dried dandelion with 1,000ml water. Simmer another one hour at a lower heat after it gets boiling.
Remove the dregs and drink it after it cools down.
Benefits: The tea has laxative and diuretic effect.
Rich in beta carotene, Vitamin C and minerals, dandelion is used to treat liver and kidney diseases and spleen and stomach problems, including indigestion.
Its leaves can also improve skin, while the root can reduce inflammation and treat gallstones and rheumatism.
According to the TCM bible "Ben Cao Gang Mu" dandelion is neither "hot" nor "cold." In some folk prescriptions, it is used to treat breast conditions, such as inflammation or milk flow problems.
Legend goes that a young girl suffered a breast abscess. Her mother wrongly accused her of losing her virginity before marriage and the distressed girl left home to drown herself. However, she was rescued by a man and his daughter, Pu Gongying, who were fishing. Hearing the girl's plight, the father asked his daughter to pick a dandelion seed head. The daughter made a paste, applied it to the girl's breast and soon the abscess disappeared. The grateful girl learned to grow the herb and named it after Pu Gongying.
Dandelion porridge
Mix 30g dandelion and 100g rice to make the porridge. Make it a daily meal.
Benefits: Helps clear inner heat and remove toxicity.
Dandelion soup
Boil 50g dandelion, 50g yin che (capillary wormwood), 10 jujubes and 50g sugar.
Benefits: The soup is a very effective medicine to treat acute hepatitis.
Dandelion tea
Boil 75g dried dandelion with 1,000ml water. Simmer another one hour at a lower heat after it gets boiling.
Remove the dregs and drink it after it cools down.
Benefits: The tea has laxative and diuretic effect.
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