What Are the Health Benefits of Miner's Lettuce?

October 6, 2025 •

4 min read

Historically eaten by California Gold Rush miners to prevent scurvy, miner's lettuce (Claytonia perfoliata) is a wild, edible green packed with vital nutrients. This article explores what are the health benefits of miner's lettuce and how you can incorporate this nutritious plant into your diet.

Quick Summary

Miner's lettuce is a nutrient-dense leafy green rich in vitamins C and A, iron, and antioxidants. It supports immune function, aids in digestion, and possesses anti-inflammatory properties. This wild edible can be consumed raw or cooked, offering a versatile and healthy addition to a balanced diet.

Key Points

Rich in Vitamin C: Miner's lettuce is an excellent source of vitamin C, historically used to prevent scurvy among miners.
Packed with Antioxidants: It contains flavonoids, phenolic acids, and beta-carotene, which combat free radicals and reduce inflammation.
Digestive and Detox Support: Acts as a mild diuretic and laxative, assisting the body's natural detoxification and promoting digestive health.
Soothing for Skin: The leaves can be used topically as a poultice to soothe skin irritations, burns, and rheumatic pain.
High in Essential Nutrients: Provides significant amounts of Vitamin A, iron, calcium, and potentially Omega-3s with a low-calorie count.
Low Oxalate Alternative: Unlike spinach, miner's lettuce is naturally low in oxalates, making it a gentler choice for those sensitive to these compounds.
Versatile Culinary Ingredient: Can be enjoyed raw in salads for its crisp, succulent texture or blended into smoothies for an easy nutritional boost.

A Wild Green Packed with Vitamins and Minerals

Miner's lettuce, also known as winter purslane or Indian lettuce, is a native North American wild edible that gained prominence during the Gold Rush for its ability to prevent scurvy. This succulent green is a nutritional powerhouse, offering a rich source of essential vitamins and minerals with a mild, fresh flavor. Its unique appearance—a slender stem growing directly through a circular leaf—makes it relatively easy to identify for foragers.

Significant Nutritional Content

Based on a 100-gram serving, miner's lettuce delivers a considerable percentage of the recommended daily intake for several key nutrients:

Vitamin C: Provides a significant portion of the daily requirement, crucial for immune system support and collagen production.
Vitamin A: Delivers a substantial amount, vital for vision, cell growth, and reproductive health.
Iron: Offers a respectable amount of iron, essential for oxygen transport in the blood.
Calcium: Contains calcium, which is necessary for bone health and muscle function.
Omega-3 Fatty Acids: Though not officially tested, some believe it contains beneficial omega-3s, given its relation to the purslane family, which are known for their anti-inflammatory effects.

Powerful Antioxidant and Anti-inflammatory Effects

Miner's lettuce contains a variety of antioxidants, including flavonoids, phenolic acids, and beta-carotene. These compounds help neutralize free radicals in the body, which can damage cells and contribute to chronic diseases. By combating oxidative stress, the antioxidants in miner's lettuce can help reduce inflammation and support overall health.

Aids Digestion and Supports Detoxification

Historically, miner's lettuce has been used by Indigenous peoples and herbalists for its mild diuretic and laxative properties. It is considered a gentle spring tonic that can aid the body's natural detoxification processes, helping to filter the blood and lymph systems. Its high fiber content also promotes healthy digestion and gut microbiome health.

Potential for Topical and Soothing Applications

Beyond its dietary benefits, miner's lettuce has a history of traditional medicinal use. When prepared as a poultice from mashed leaves, it can be applied topically to soothe minor skin irritations, burns, and inflamed joints, offering a cooling and hydrating effect. Its mucilaginous properties are particularly beneficial for soothing dry or itchy skin.

Miner's Lettuce vs. Spinach: A Nutritional Showdown

While often compared to spinach due to its mild flavor, miner's lettuce offers some distinct differences worth noting, particularly regarding oxalate content.


Feature	Miner's Lettuce	Spinach
Flavor	Mild, slightly sweet, juicy	Earthy, sometimes metallic	n	Texture	Succulent, crisp	Softer, less crisp	n	Vitamin C Content	Excellent source (Historically prized)	Good source, but less potent raw	n	Oxalate Content	Naturally low in oxalates	High in oxalates, which can interfere with calcium absorption	n	Best Culinary Use	Best raw in salads or smoothies	Versatile, but often cooked to reduce oxalate content	n	Foraging/Growing	Easy to forage, prolific self-seeder	Primarily a cultivated crop	n

A Versatile Addition to Your Diet

Incorporating miner's lettuce into your meals is simple, thanks to its versatility. All above-ground parts, including leaves, stems, and flowers, are edible.

Raw in Salads: Its mild, sweet flavor and crisp, juicy texture make it a superb base for fresh salads. It pairs beautifully with a simple vinaigrette, nuts, and a sharp cheese.
Added to Smoothies: Blend fresh leaves into smoothies for a powerful nutrient boost, especially if juiced.
Cooked as a Green: It can be cooked like spinach by lightly sautéing or steaming, though it is best enjoyed raw to preserve its delicate texture and high Vitamin C content.
Garnish or Pesto: Use it as a garnish to add a fresh, wild touch to any dish, or make a vibrant pesto by blending it with nuts, olive oil, and herbs.

For those interested in foraging, remember to harvest responsibly, taking only a few leaves from each plant to ensure it can reseed. Always ensure you are identifying the plant correctly and that you are foraging from a clean, pesticide-free area. Seeds can also be purchased and easily grown in a garden, as it's a hardy, low-maintenance plant that thrives in cool, moist, and shady conditions. You can learn more about its history and characteristics from the Slow Food Foundation's Arca del Gusto entry.

Conclusion

Beyond its compelling history and unique name, the health benefits of miner's lettuce are a compelling reason to seek out this nutritious wild edible. From its high vitamin C content that once prevented a terrible disease to its rich antioxidant profile and soothing topical applications, this succulent green offers a wide array of health-promoting properties. Whether foraged from a forest floor or grown in a backyard garden, miner's lettuce is a simple yet powerful way to add valuable nutrients, flavor, and a touch of the wild to your diet.

Frequently Asked Questions

Miner's lettuce (Claytonia perfoliata) is a wild, edible, herbaceous annual flowering plant native to western North America. It is known for its distinctive round, flat leaves and mild, fresh flavor.

Yes, miner's lettuce is safe to eat. All above-ground parts—leaves, stems, and flowers—are edible. Like any wild green, it should be properly identified and foraged from a clean area away from pollutants.

It has a mild, fresh, and slightly sweet flavor, often compared to spinach, but with a more succulent and juicy texture. It is generally not bitter, especially when harvested from shady, moist areas.

Miner's lettuce is best enjoyed raw in salads to preserve its nutrients and texture. It can also be blended into smoothies or used as a garnish. While it can be cooked, it wilts quickly, so minimal cooking is recommended.

Yes, it is easy to grow in a garden. Miner's lettuce thrives in cool, moist, and shady conditions. It is a prolific self-seeder, meaning once planted, it will often return year after year.

Miner's lettuce contains low levels of oxalates, a natural plant compound also found in spinach and rhubarb. Individuals with a history of kidney stones or sensitivities should consume it in moderation.

The plant gets its name from the California Gold Rush miners who ate it regularly as a preventative measure against scurvy, a disease caused by a severe Vitamin C deficiency.

Miner's lettuce is generally considered more nutrient-dense than common store-bought lettuces like iceberg, providing higher levels of vitamins A and C, and essential minerals.

Yes, it has been used topically in traditional herbal medicine. A poultice made from the leaves can be applied to the skin to provide a cooling, soothing effect for minor burns, insect bites, and other irritations.