Dandelion

Latin: Taraxacum officinale

TCM: Pu Gong Ying

A “relaxing cholagogue and choleretic.” (Menzies-Trull in "The Herbalist's Prescriber")

“Diuretic, cholagogue [stimulating the flow of bile from the liver], anti-rheumatic, laxative, tonic.  Dandelion is a very powerful diuretic … one of the best natural sources of potassium … a most valuable general tonic and perhaps the best widely applicable diuretic and liver tonic.” (David Hoffman in “The New Holistic Herbal”).

Dan Bensky and Andrew Gamble, in “Chinese Herbal Medicine Materia Medica” say, “bitter, sweet, cold … clears heat and toxicity … resolves dampness.”