Home / Ingredients / Dandelion (Taraxacum officinale)
Evidence reviewed: 2026-10-02
Traditional-use support exists for urinary and gastrointestinal indications, but direct human efficacy evidence is sparse and plant-part specific.
EMA maintains herbal monographs for dandelion root and other preparations. A small 17-person human pilot reported short-term diuretic signals after a fresh dandelion leaf extract, but this does not establish efficacy for dandelion root or for chronic use.
The cited human diuretic pilot used fresh leaf hydroethanolic extract over one day. V-ITAREN lists dandelion root, which is a different plant part and should not inherit the leaf-extract result.
EMA's dandelion-root monograph includes use restrictions and contraindications, including hypersensitivity to Asteraceae, and notes that adequate fluid intake is required for urinary-use preparations. Clinical evidence is too sparse to define safety for all concentrated extracts.
V-ITAREN lists dandelion root. The direct human diuretic pilot reviewed here studied leaf extract, not root, and V-ITAREN does not disclose dose or extraction details. Product-level efficacy is therefore unverified.
Important: Ingredient-level evidence is not proof that a finished product has the same effect. Dose, form, population, duration, and formulation must match.
For informational purposes only; not individualized medical advice.