Duck Flower Detox Review: Harmful to Kidneys?

Duck Flower Detox Review: Harmful to Kidneys?


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Disclaimer: None of the information in this article constitutes medical advice. All statements are merely the opinion of the writer(s). We recommend that patients follow their doctor’s guidance in regard to detoxification.

Duck Flower Detox is an herbal tea that “cleanses” the body according to the product’s manufacturer, and is used for weight loss. It’s quite expensive for an herbal tea ($49.99), and the product’s manufacturer makes a wide range of health claims about this product.

But is duck flower shown in medical studies to have health benefits when consumed as a tea, or are these just marketing claims? Are there any risks or dangers to completing a duck flower detox? Who’s the real manufacturer of this product? And what retailer sells it for the best price?

In this article we’ll answer all of these questions and more as we analyze medical studies on duck flower to give our take on whether it’s actually likely to “detox” the body or if it’s dangerous.

We’ll feature real customer reviews of Duck Flower detox, share our concerns about the manufacturer and explain what retailer sells it for the best price.

Is Duck Flower Actually Healthy?

Aristolochia grandiflora is the botanical name for duck flower, and this plant has been studied in clinical trials.

A medical review published in the RSC Advances journal suggests that duck flower has been used to help patients recover from sexually transmitted diseases and gut issues.

A 2022 medical review suggests that the active chemical compound in duck flower can help protect against memory loss, diabetes, and has anti-inflammatory properties

We cannot find any evidence that duck flower “detoxes” the body or causes weight loss, nor does the manufacturer’s website cite any studies proving such.

Overall, duck flower may have some health benefits if used appropriately, but the risks outweigh the benefits as we’ll discuss potential dangers and side effects in the next section.

Is Duck Flower Dangerous?

There is some concerning research regarding potential negative health outcomes of duck flower ingestion.

A 2016 medical review reported that aristolochic acids (AA), which are some of the core chemical compounds in duck flower, “contributes significantly to the overall incidence of [kidney cancer] and chronic kidney disease in Taiwan.”

A medical review published in the Nature Reviews Cancer journal describes aristolochic acid-associated cancers as “a public health risk in need of global action.”

A medical review published in the Phytomedicine journal described the following after analyzing data from a large-scale study on diabetic patients:

“The use of AA-containing herbal products was associated with a significantly higher risk of liver, colorectum, kidney, bladder, prostate, pelvis, and ureter cancer in a dose-dependent manner.”

This suggests that higher doses of duck flower may pose greater cancer risks, at least in diabetic patients.

We consider this data to be concerning, and we’d certainly recommend that patients speak with their doctor prior to using duck flower detox in light of this information.

Questionable Health Claims on Duck Flower Detox Website

There are a number of questionable and uncited health claims on the Duck Flower Detox website, which can be accessed at this link.

As shown below, the brand claims that this detox “gets rid of parasites:”

Duck Flower Detox questionable health claim 1

There is no citation or proof provided for this claim, nor is there any evidence provided that regular, healthy adults have parasites in their intestines that need to be removed.

We certainly haven’t come across any medical evidence that otherwise healthy adults have parasites that need to be removed with tea.

The brand also claims that their product can treat irregular heartbeat and cause weight loss:

Duck Flower Detox questionable health claim 2

Again, there is no proof provided for either claim, and these are specific health claims made without any research backing that we urge both the FDA and FTC to investigate. 

We recommend that consumers exercise extreme caution when considering health products sold by companies that make unproven health claims, and we’re also concerned about the lack of a clear manufacturer/owner of this brand.

There are many different companies selling products called “Duck Flower Detox,” and while it seems to us that the brand linked above is the main seller, we consider it a red flag when a company fails to secure a trademark to protect their product and brand.

This may signal a brand that doesn’t plan to be around long-term.

But how do real users describe the effects of Duck Flower detox? We’ll share some videos in the next section.

Real Users Review Duck Flower Detox

A YouTube creator named “Devonnie B.” shared her experience completing the Duck Flower Detox:

A YouTube creator named Brandon Ahmaud discusses why he will never use Duck Flower Detox:

Can Tea Support Natural Detox Processes?

We don't recommend the use of food products or supplements to "cleanse" or "remove toxins" from the body.

However, there are compounds which can naturally support the body's own detoxification processes for consumers intent on doing so.

Rooibos tea was shown to support optimal liver function in a clinical trial published in the Oxidative Medicine and Cellular Longevity journal.

The study authors concluded the following:

"Results from this study suggest that the daily intake of unfermented rooibos herbal tea or a derived commercial rooibos supplement may benefit human health by providing the liver with an enhanced antioxidant capacity to reduce damage induced by toxicants."

Pique Rooibos Tea is our top rooibos tea pick, because it's conveniently in crystallized form and only hot water (no teapot) is needed to make it. The only ingredient in this product is organic rooibos.

Interested consumers can check out Pique Rooibos Tea at this link to the product page on the brand's official website.

We are not suggesting that rooibos tea should be used to treat any specific health condition.

Where to Get the Best Price

We want to clarify, as we have throughout this article, that we do not recommend using duck flower to detox.

For consumers who are intent on trying this product, here is a cost breakdown:

Brand website: $49.99 (free shipping, link)

Alkaline Electrics: $39.99 (plus shipping, link)

Amazon: $29.95 (free shippinglink to official Amazon listing)

It’s important to note that all duck flower is not the same, and it appears to be sourced differently, but we can’t find independent tests on any of the products listed above so it’s hard to differentiate by product quality.

Pros and Cons of Duck Flower Detox

Here are the pros and cons of Duck Flower Detox in our opinion:

Pros:

  • Naturally derived
  • Free of unhealthy additive ingredients

Cons:

  • Expensive for a tea
  • We can’t find any clinical evidence that it “detoxes” the body
  • We can’t find any clinical evidence that it causes weight loss
  • Aristocholic acids are listed by the WHO as a probable carcinogen
  • May be harmful to the kidneys
  • None of the brands seem to publish product testing
  • Companies selling this product make questionable health claims
  • “Detox” teas generally may be a waste of money
Stay up-to-date on our research reviews

Conclusion

Duck Flower Detox is an underwhelming health product, like most “detox” products we’ve reviewed on Illuminate Health.

We haven’t come across any convincing medical evidence that otherwise healthy consumers require “detoxification” from over-the-counter (OTC) products like tea. When patients do require external detoxification, it is done in a clinical setting and not using tea.

We can’t find any evidence that the plant in this tea detoxes the body or causes weight loss. We did find some medical studies suggesting it may be harmful to the kidneys.

Some doctors suggest that all detox teas are a waste of money, but even for consumers searching for products in this category, there are likely better options than this one from a safety perspective.

The main retailer of Duck Flower Detox makes a number of questionable and unproven health claims on their website.