Red Clover Flower

New Zealand Herb Federation

Red Clover Fact Sheet
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Constituents
Including vitamins A, B complex, and P (when fresh), high in minerals, magnesium, calcium, copper, with some selenium, cobalt, nickel, manganese, sodium, tin, and iron. Flavonoids which act as antioxidants, isoflavones (including genestein, biochanin A, diadzen, isotrifolin, isorhamnetin, pratol, pratensol, trifolin and trifolirhizin), trifoliin, glycitein, calycosin, trifoside, pratensein, prunetin, pseudobaptigenin, phenolic glycosides, coumarins (including coumarin, coumestrol and medicagol), hentriacontane, heptacosane, myricyl alcohol, and bsitosterol, isorhamnetin glucosides, cyanogenic glycosides, procyanidin polymers, cis-clovamide, trans-caffeic and cis-caffeic acids, phaselic acid, fats, galactoglucomannan, furfural, resins and mineral salts.
Therapeutic actions:
Skin healing agent, expectorant, mild anti-spasmodic, mild anti-inflammatory, antineoplastic (anti cancer), diuretic, mild sedative, alterative (balances metabolism, blood cleanser) its oestrogenic activity may help women with hormonal imbalances.

Medicinal uses:
Respiratory system, coughs (inc. whooping cough, bronchitis). Red clover assists with treating skin conditions such as eczema, psoriasis and other chronic problems. It is considered a blood tonic, cleansing the body when taken internally. Your skin is the largest organ of elimination in your body and if you are not processing wastes well via the digestive system and liver your skin may develop rashes, itching and scaly patches. Red Clover assists with improving metabolic functions. Topically the freshly crushed flowers can be used on stings and insect bites. Assists soothing coughs, bronchitis and whooping cough. For this the flowers are made into a syrup.

They can be used topically for relief, as a wash, compress or a cream. Use a compress for arthritic pains, gout and athlete’s foot.

Taken internally it soothes the nerves and promotes calm sleep. It is considered to assist with the treatment for infertility. Traditionally, Red Clover has been used as a treatment for cancer, especially breast, ovarian and lymphatic. Recent research is supporting the traditional uses for cancer, ah; science is validating ‘old wives’! (*See Caution) Red Clover Trifolium pratense.

Take as a tincture, infusion or syrup (esp. for colds). Infusion as an eye bath for conjunctivitis.

Fermented Stops Osteoporosis

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Jeppesen and colleagues tested treatment with fermented red clover on 78 post-menopausal women with early stage osteoporosis.

The women were split into two groups: One received treatment with 60 millilitres of fermented red clover extract, while the other received a placebo.

After 12 months, the scientists scanned the women’s hips and backs to measure their bone density. The placebo group had lost around five per cent of their bone mass, while the women who took fermented red clover maintained their bone density.

In other words, osteoporosis and bone wasting stopped.

The review published in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition is a summary of five previous studies, which indicate that the positive effect only occurs with the ingestion of fermented red clover, which has been treated with lactic acid bacteria or something similar.

Sugar molecules in the plant oestrogen prevent it from breaching the intestinal wall. But the lactic acid bacteria remove these sugar molecules, allowing the oestrogen to enter the blood stream.

“The lactic acid bacteria make plant oestrogen more potent and active. At the same time they are generally healthy for the gut since they improve digestion,” says Jeppesen.

So here's where the caveat lies. In regards to Red Clover and cancer, through all of the information we've seen, it shouldn't be used for certain kinds of "hormonal" cancers, due to the phytoestrogens in the plant. Now I'm no doctor, and clearly you would want to run that through your doctor beforehand, but it is something to note.

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