From Play to Poison: How We Forgot About Dandelion
Before you sprayed her, you used to paint your arms with her pollen.
Dandelion was one of the first flowers I ever interacted with, and one of the first flowers I was told to hate.
That shift is not random.
It mirrors a larger agenda:
Eliminate what’s wild.
What’s free.
What heals without permission.
I loved dandelions as a child. I would rub them on my arms until my skin turned gold. I’d hold the stem like a paintbrush and color myself with sunlight. I made chain crowns, necklaces, little bouquets I'd proudly hand to my mom.
She didn’t call them weeds when I gave them to her.
We called them beautiful.
No one taught me to do any of that. It just made sense. Something in me knew, before the world tried to educate it out of us, that this golden little flower was good. Then one day, I was told they were weeds.
Suddenly, dandelions became the enemy of the “perfect yard.”
Lawn culture.
Weed killers.
Manicured uniformity.
And let’s be honest: control disguised as beauty.
We stopped seeing dandelion as a healer and started seeing it as a problem.
They didn’t just kill the weeds.
They taught us to cheer for their death.
The herbicide industry is worth billions. Take RoundUp, for example, this single product has turned Monsanto (now Bayer) into a household name, not because we asked for poison, but because we were taught to fear what was never a threat.
And somewhere in the mix of marketing, monoculture, and man-made pride, we forgot the truth.
But the overlap between weed killer and pharmaceutical “solutions” is too revealing to ignore…
Here's the part no one talks about:
The same parent company that manufactures RoundUp, which is designed to wipe out plants like dandelions, also produces cholesterol-lowering drugs like Lipitor and Crestor…
Let that really sink in.
They sell the poison that kills the plant.
Then sell the pill that mimics what the plant would’ve done for free.
All while telling you to mow it down.
Dandelion supports the liver. It helps regulate cholesterol. It tones the heart.
But it can’t be patented. It won’t make them money.
Dandelions are medicinal by design:
- The roots stimulate bile and help the liver process fats.
- The leaves are rich in bitter compounds that prime digestion, support detox, act as a diuretic, and reduce water retention and blood pressure.
- Dandelion supports cholesterol balance through the liver and gallbladder, and acts as a lymph mover, clearing stagnation and gently supporting release.
- The flowers are rich in antioxidants and known to uplift the spirit.
The roots are grounding.
The leaves are cleansing.
And the whole plant works in harmony… without harming soil, pollinators, or gut microbiomes.
And none of it was made in a lab.
But don’t just take my word for it…
1) A 2010 peer-reviewed study published in the International Journal of Molecular Sciences tested the effects of dandelion root and leaf on rabbits fed a high-cholesterol diet. The result? Both parts improved lipid profiles, boosted antioxidant enzyme activity, and reduced risk factors associated with heart disease.
Dandelion may naturally support cholesterol balance, oxidative stress reduction, and cardiovascular health, all without a prescription.
2) In 2022, a review published in Nutrients found that dandelion’s rich phenolic content (like chicoric acid) gives it antiplatelet, anticoagulant, and antioxidant effects; the very things drugs aim to mimic.
The authors referenced the European Society of Cardiology’s recommendation to use plants (like dandelion) in a preventative approach to heart health.
So again, it is worth asking: Why have we been taught to destroy the very plant that supports the heart?
3) And if you still think dandelions are just weeds, get this:
A 2021 review published in Plants found that natural products from dandelion leaves and root extracts can:
- Suppress the development of liver cancer
- Decrease insulin resistance
- Lower triglyceride and cholesterol levels
The researchers went on to say that dandelion, chicory, and mulberry (all wild plants) carry hypolipidemic, hypoglycemic, anti-inflammatory, and hepatoprotective properties.
So, let’s circle back to glyphosate (the active ingredient in RoundUp); it destroys dandelions and damages the very systems that pharmaceutical statins are prescribed to support (liver, gut, heart).
But, dandelions do not die easily.
That taproot runs deep.
And no matter how many times they’re cut down, they return.
Kind of like joy.
Kind of like faith.
Kind of like the part of us that still remembers we are capable of healing.
Dandelions even grow where the soil is disturbed, depleted, or in need of clearing.
And isn’t that how God works?
The same God who clothed the lilies of the field in Matthew 6, gave us dandelions.
Not to mow down, but to remember.
How I Use Dandelion Today
This year, I’ve been harvesting dandelion heads to infuse into a seasonal serum for Pink Cloud. The bright yellow flowers soak beautifully into oil, creating a golden serum that feels like bottled sunshine for the skin.
I dry the leaves for tea and toss the roots into my crockpot when making bone broth. Layla’s chicken foot broth always includes a handful, because yes, dandelion is safe and nourishing for dogs. She knows it’s good for her too.
But sometimes, it’s okay to do nothing with them. Just let them be. Lay in the grass beside them. Let your feet touch the soil.
Let that wild yellow joy remind you that you do not have to earn healing.
You just have to stop erasing it.
A Final Thought…
Maybe that little girl who painted herself yellow knew something.
Maybe she wasn’t playing.
Maybe she was remembering.
What Did You Used to Love?
What plant did you love before you were told it didn’t belong?
What keeps showing up in your yard, or in your life, that you’ve been trying to get rid of?
Could it be that it’s not there to burden you, but to nourish you?
Let’s stop spraying the messengers.
Let’s start listening to them.
I’d love to hear what keeps popping up in your world.
Send me a photo. Share your memory. Tell me what the land is trying to remind you of.
Because healing doesn’t have to be chased down.
Sometimes, it’s right outside your door.
Sources
Hypolipidemic and Antioxidant Effects of Dandelion (Taraxacum officinale) Root and Leaf on Cholesterol-Fed Rabbits - PMC – Int J Mol Sci. 2010 Jan 6;11(1):67–78.
New Perspectives on the Effect of Dandelion, Its Food Products and Other Preparations on the Cardiovascular System and Its Diseases - PMC – Nutrients. 2022 Mar 24;14(7):1350.
Plants of the Spontaneous Flora with Beneficial Action in the Management of Diabetes, Hepatic Disorders, and Cardiovascular Disease - PMC – Plants (Basel). 2021 Jan 23;10(2):216.