Burdock (Arctium lappa L.) is more than just a weed – it has been used in traditional Chinese medicine for thousands of years and new research suggests it could be beneficial for reducing inflammation.
Burdock has a long history of use as a common vegetable and more recently has been reported to have therapeutic activity with a variety of biological activities reported.
One phytochemical from burdock, Arctiin, has been reported to increase superoxide dismutase (SOD), anti-oxidant enzyme. Under conditions of chronic inflammation it is common to have low levels of SOD so anything that can help increase SOD to protect against inflammation is desirable.
Here is how to make burdock tea easily.
Arctiin has also been shown to reduce levels of MDA, inflammatory cytokines (e.g. IL-6 and TNF-alpha). 
Arctiin can also decrease nuclear factor – kappa B (NF-kB) which tends to be high in inflammatory conditions.
Osteoarthritis is the most common form of arthritis and is more common in older indvidiuals.
A clinical trial was recently completed that tested the benefits of burdock root tea in patients with osteoarthritis. The results were published in the International Journal of Rheumatic Disease.
Here are the study details:
– Study design: Double blind randomized placebo controlled
– Patients: Thirty-six patients (10 men and 26 women) aged 50-70 years old with knee osteoarthritis were enrolled in the clinical trial
– Burdock root: The Burdock (A. lappa) root tea was supplied in small tea bags. Each bag contained 2 g of annual root powder of Arctium lappa L
– Treatment groups: The intervention group received daily three cups of Burdock root tea (each cup containing 2 g/150 mL boiled water) half-hour after the meal. The control group received three cups containing 150 cc boiled water daily.
– Inflammatory and antioxidant markers were analyzed including: high sensitivity C-reactive protein (hs-CRP) and interleukin-6 (IL-6), total antioxidants capacity (TAC), glutathione peroxidase (GPX), superoxide dismutase (SOD) and thiobarbituric acid reactive substances before and after the intervention.
Here are the main results:
– Burdock tea decreased MDA by 17% *
– Burdock tea increased GPX by 3% *
– Burdock tea increased totally antioxidant capacity (TAC) by 12% *
– Burdock tea decreased IL-6 by 43% *
– Burdock tea decreased hs-CRP by 10%*
– No changes were observed in patients who only drank water.
*Statistically significant changes were observed.
Here are comments by the author of the study:
The results from this study showed that consumption of 6 g/day Burdock root for 42 days caused significant decreases in serum levels of hs-CRP, IL-6 and MDA and significant increases in TAC, SOD and non-significantly increase in GPX only in the intervention group. In addition there were significant differences in inflammatory parameters, TAC, MDA and GPX after supplementation between the two groups.
And
This supports the hypothesis that Burdock may have anti-inflammatory and anti-oxidative effects. So our findings may be relevant for future dietary interventions in patients with OA or other inflammatory disorders.
Take away message:
This study was the first controlled clinical trial to assess the potential of burdock root tea in patients with osteoarthritis. The results of this study suggest burdock tea taken daily for 42 days can reduce inflammation including levels of CRP, IL-6 and MDA. In osteoarthritis these inflammatory levels tend to be high so the goal should be to reduce them. In fact, this is how some anti-inflammatory drugs would work. By reducing inflammatory markers benefits to arthritis symptoms can be improved.
Also, the protective antioxidant levels in patients were increased which tend to be low in people suffering from arthritis. More specifically increases in antioxidant protection were seen with SOD (superoxide dismutase), total antioxidant capacity (TAC), and GPX (glutathione peroxidase).
Reference:
International Journal of Rheumatic Disease. 2016; Volume 19 (Issue 3): Pages 255-61.
His research on plant medicine has led to more than 45 publications and abstracts.This research has been presented at international meetings in the USA, France, Turkey, Peru, Israel, Austria, and Italy.
Categories: Antioxidant, Arthritis, Clinical Trials, Inflammation, Plant Medicine