Does dandelion root help with anemia? What the research does and doesn't show

The evidence doesn't support dandelion root tea as a way to address anemia or any diagnosed nutrient deficiency. No human trial has given a person with anemia dandelion root and measured blood counts afterward. What exists is one mouse study using an injected extract, and a food-composition analysis of dandelion greens' vitamin and mineral content.

What the evidence doesn't support

It doesn't support dandelion root, in tea, capsule, or extract form, as a way to correct anemia, iron-deficiency anemia, or any deficiency identified by a blood test. No trial has tested whether taking dandelion root by mouth changes hemoglobin, red blood cell count, or iron status in a person, healthy or anemic. A diagnosed deficiency needs blood work and a doctor's evaluation of the cause; dandelion root tea doesn't provide either.

What the trials found

A 2012 study injected dandelion hydroalcoholic extract into the abdomens of mice daily for 20 days, at doses of 50, 100, or 200 mg per kilogram of body weight. Red blood cell counts and hemoglobin rose at the two higher doses compared to untreated mice, while platelet counts fell at all three doses tested. This was an injected dose in mice, not a dose taken by mouth, and it wasn't a study of mice with anemia — the study measured blood cells in otherwise healthy animals.

Separately, a 2022 food-composition analysis measured the vitamin and mineral content of dandelion greens (the plant's leaves, not the root used in most supplements) grown in Brazil, and found them a relatively good source of dietary fiber, iron, and manganese among the nutrients tested. That's a measurement of what's in the plant — it says nothing about how much iron a person actually absorbs from dandelion, or what taking it does to a person's iron levels or red blood cell count.

Questions people ask

Does dandelion root tea help with anemia?

No trial has tested that. The only related research is a mouse study using an injected extract and a food-nutrient analysis of dandelion leaves — neither is a study of a person's anemia, and neither tested dandelion root tea specifically.

Does dandelion root contain iron?

The food-composition study above measured dandelion leaves, not root, and found them a relatively good source of iron and manganese among the minerals tested. There's no published nutrient breakdown specific to dandelion root, and no trial testing whether the iron in dandelion greens or root changes iron levels in a person who eats or drinks it.

Can dandelion root fix or diagnose a nutrient deficiency?

No. A diagnosed deficiency, including anemia, is identified with blood tests ordered by a doctor, not by symptoms or a supplement's marketing claims. No study has tested dandelion root as a way to correct any diagnosed deficiency, and treating a suspected deficiency with dandelion root instead of getting tested only delays finding the actual cause.

When to talk to a doctor

Fatigue, pale skin, shortness of breath, or other symptoms that suggest anemia are reasons to get blood work and see a doctor, not reasons to try dandelion root instead. Dandelion root is not a treatment for anemia or any other diagnosed deficiency. Pregnant, nursing, or considering dandelion for a child with a suspected deficiency? Ask a doctor first — none of the research above was done in those groups. For dandelion's safety and interactions, see dandelion root side effects and dandelion root and medications. For the fuller research picture, see dandelion root: what the research does and doesn't show.