Cancer 2.0: The Sequel

The seed pod of the Burdock plant

inspired the invention of Velcro.

Burdock Root has been recommended to “clean the blood” for centuries, often under the name of Bardona.  I’m adding it my regime to get rid of all after effects of cancer treatments.  The regime so far is to eat healthy foods and take Milk Thistle.

In modern times, the seed pod of the burdock plant gained fame as the inspiration for Velcro.  The seed pod has tiny hooks that latch onto fur of passing animals or clothing of humans.

I’m not seeing a lot of modern research on the effectiveness of Burdock root, like exists for Milk Thistle.  Most research into folk medicine shows that there is truth behind the claims of herbalists.   I’m not seeing any harmful side effects so it seems worth trying.

As a detox agent, Burdock root aids elimination of toxins from the liver, kidneys, and bowels. It can also increase sweating slightly, which is a way to get impurities out of the layers of skin.

Another fine attribute of Burdock root is that it appears to be on the list of anti-cancer herbs. Burdock Root was first used to treat cancerous tumors by a medieval German herbalist, Hildegard of Bingen.     I’m not finding the exact biochemical explanation, but it seems to somehow bind toxins or otherwise prevent them from entering cells.  Once the toxins make it into a cell, they can damage the nucleus, which can lead to cancer. We don’t like cancer. Trust me on this.

Historically, Burdock was used as a poultice for skin problems and wounds. A poltice is a now defunct process of soaking a cloth with a tea or tincture (dissolve in wine or alcohol) , then applying it to the wound.  This has been replaced in modern times with anti-biotic cream under a bandage.   Although in the case of severe radiation burns, the modern treatment reverts to a poultice of sorts – a small cloth embedded with silver which gets soaked in clean water and applied to the burns. They just have given up on the word poultice, since no one knows the word any more.

The other interesting effect of Burdock root is that is has long been used to treat arthritis and damaged joints. It is interesting to me that many of the old herbal remedies work on a number of conditions, while it always appears that modern medicines work only on a single problem.  Why the difference?  Modern pharmacology promotes the premise that there is a special pill for each problem.  This is reinforced, since there needs to be scientific proof of the pharmaceutical claim, that the medicine does better than a placebo in helping healing for one specific condition. Modern western medicine focuses on the body as a machine with replaceable parts and isolated chemistry.

All medicine predating the mid-1800’s  was systemic.  The body was viewed as a whole, that resonated with nature.  When a remedy was offered to a patient, the doctor observed how the body healed, so over the centuries they compiled a list of all the conditions that were improved by each herb.  This reminds us that our bodies are living systems, with an integration between all the parts.  Traditional medicine sees imbalances as the root cause of many disparate symptoms.

I’m liking that there are three reasons that Burdock Root might help me – prevent cancer and help with joint problems, in addition to cleaning up my blood and liver after the harsh cancer therapies.

How much is recommended?

• Tea: 2 – 6 grams steeped in 500 mL water (about 2 cups), 3 times per day
• Capsules: 1 – 2 g of Burdock root,  3 times per day

And for the biochemists: The active ingredients appear to be arcigen, calcium, chlorogenic acid, essential oil, flavonoids, iron, inulin, lactone, mucilage, polyacetylenes, potassium, resin, tannin, and taraxosterol.