Red Clover Herbarium
Latin Name: Trifolium pratense
Family: Fabaceae (formerly Leguminosae)
Descriptive Characteristics:
Part of the plant used: Flower
Texture: smooth
Color:
Aroma:
Flavor: sweet bitter
Constituents: Isoflavones (biochanin A, Saidzein, formononetin, genistein, pratensein, trifoside); flavonoids (pectolinarin, kaempferol); volatile oil (furfural); clovamides (L-dopa-caffeic acid conjugates); coumarins (coumestrol, medicagol, coumarin); Miscellaneous: a galactomannan, resins, minerals (iron, phosphorus, calcium, magnesium, copper, molybdenum), vitamins (A and B), phytoalexins. (Hoffman, 2003, p. 590) (Mineral and vitamin data comes from the class monograph but I didn’t save the link)
Therapeutic Actions: Alterative, antineoplastic, antispasmodic, detergent, deobstruent, depurative, diuretic, expectorant, galactagogue, nutritive, phytoestrogenic, and sedative (Class lesson Herb 502). Hoffman, 2003, just lists alterative, expectorant, and antispasmodic (p. 590).
Indications: Remedy for children with skin problems such as eczema and psoriasis. Useful for coughs, especially whooping cough. Great for sore throats and swollen glands (Hoffman, 2003, p. 590).
Formulary:
Class lesson (Herb 502)
Cleansing Formula: For this cleansing formula, you can prepare an infusion from dried or fresh herbs. Alternatively, combine fluid extracts. 1-oz burdock Arctium lappa, ½-oz dandelion Taraxacum officinale, ½-oz licoriceGlycyrrhiza glabra, 1-oz red clover Trifolium pratense flowers, ½-oz spearmint Mentha spicata, Mix the dried or fresh herbs or extracts. Use one cup of infusion four times a day or 60 drops of extract four times a day.
Dosage:
From Class Lesson (Herb 502) Adult: All doses 3-4 times a day unless stated otherwise:
Decoction: 2-4-T
Fluid extract: ¼-½ t, or 1½-3-ml
Infusion: 4-6-T
Powder: ¼-½-t
1:5 30% Tincture: ¼-t, or 1-2-ml
Hoffman (2010, p, 590)
1:5 40% Tincture: 2-4ml 3/day
Infusion: 1 cup boiling water over 1-3 teaspoons dried herb (10-15 minutes) 3/day
BHP:
Dried: 4g
1:10 45% Tincture: 1-2 ml 3/day
Safety: May potentiate anticoagulant drugs (Hoffman, 2003, p. 590)
Lab, Notes And Media:
I have a notebook where I keep my tincture notes o this is a transcription of that. My first attempt at a tincture with this herb was using the 30% alcohol recipe from the class lesson. I used 24g of herb. The menstruum worked out to 120ml. Using 80 proof alcohol, this meant 90ml of alcohol, 30ml of distilled water. I started it on 12 January 2019. On 26 January, it was done. The yield was about 55ml, about 2 ounces.
Family: Fabaceae (formerly Leguminosae)
Descriptive Characteristics:
Part of the plant used: Flower
Texture: smooth
Color:
Aroma:
Flavor: sweet bitter
Constituents: Isoflavones (biochanin A, Saidzein, formononetin, genistein, pratensein, trifoside); flavonoids (pectolinarin, kaempferol); volatile oil (furfural); clovamides (L-dopa-caffeic acid conjugates); coumarins (coumestrol, medicagol, coumarin); Miscellaneous: a galactomannan, resins, minerals (iron, phosphorus, calcium, magnesium, copper, molybdenum), vitamins (A and B), phytoalexins. (Hoffman, 2003, p. 590) (Mineral and vitamin data comes from the class monograph but I didn’t save the link)
Therapeutic Actions: Alterative, antineoplastic, antispasmodic, detergent, deobstruent, depurative, diuretic, expectorant, galactagogue, nutritive, phytoestrogenic, and sedative (Class lesson Herb 502). Hoffman, 2003, just lists alterative, expectorant, and antispasmodic (p. 590).
Indications: Remedy for children with skin problems such as eczema and psoriasis. Useful for coughs, especially whooping cough. Great for sore throats and swollen glands (Hoffman, 2003, p. 590).
Formulary:
Class lesson (Herb 502)
Cleansing Formula: For this cleansing formula, you can prepare an infusion from dried or fresh herbs. Alternatively, combine fluid extracts. 1-oz burdock Arctium lappa, ½-oz dandelion Taraxacum officinale, ½-oz licoriceGlycyrrhiza glabra, 1-oz red clover Trifolium pratense flowers, ½-oz spearmint Mentha spicata, Mix the dried or fresh herbs or extracts. Use one cup of infusion four times a day or 60 drops of extract four times a day.
Dosage:
From Class Lesson (Herb 502) Adult: All doses 3-4 times a day unless stated otherwise:
Decoction: 2-4-T
Fluid extract: ¼-½ t, or 1½-3-ml
Infusion: 4-6-T
Powder: ¼-½-t
1:5 30% Tincture: ¼-t, or 1-2-ml
Hoffman (2010, p, 590)
1:5 40% Tincture: 2-4ml 3/day
Infusion: 1 cup boiling water over 1-3 teaspoons dried herb (10-15 minutes) 3/day
BHP:
Dried: 4g
1:10 45% Tincture: 1-2 ml 3/day
Safety: May potentiate anticoagulant drugs (Hoffman, 2003, p. 590)
Lab, Notes And Media:
I have a notebook where I keep my tincture notes o this is a transcription of that. My first attempt at a tincture with this herb was using the 30% alcohol recipe from the class lesson. I used 24g of herb. The menstruum worked out to 120ml. Using 80 proof alcohol, this meant 90ml of alcohol, 30ml of distilled water. I started it on 12 January 2019. On 26 January, it was done. The yield was about 55ml, about 2 ounces.
Research:
Myers and Vigar found evidence 80mg of red clover helps with menopausal hot flashes. This is a sticky point because many studies say the opposite. These studies all look at difference dosages and frequency of use so it’s important to look at each of the studies to understand how the study was done. In this case, they looked through 20 studies with specific criteria in mind and selected only 5 of them. Of these, 3 showed the result that it’s beneficial over a 3-month period.
References
Herb 502 Class Lesson Monograph – I forgot to save the URL and I no longer have access to it. This information is from me saving the data in a word document at the time I took the class.
Hoffman, David. (2003). Medical Herbalism: The Science and Practice of Herbal Medicine. Rochester, VT: Healing Arts Press. P. 590.
Myers, S. P. and Vigar, V. (2016). Effects of a standardised extract of Trifolium pratense (Promensil) at a dosage of 80 mg in the treatment of menopausal hot flushes: A systematic review and meta-analysis. Pytomedicine. 24 (2017) 141–147.
Myers and Vigar found evidence 80mg of red clover helps with menopausal hot flashes. This is a sticky point because many studies say the opposite. These studies all look at difference dosages and frequency of use so it’s important to look at each of the studies to understand how the study was done. In this case, they looked through 20 studies with specific criteria in mind and selected only 5 of them. Of these, 3 showed the result that it’s beneficial over a 3-month period.
References
Herb 502 Class Lesson Monograph – I forgot to save the URL and I no longer have access to it. This information is from me saving the data in a word document at the time I took the class.
Hoffman, David. (2003). Medical Herbalism: The Science and Practice of Herbal Medicine. Rochester, VT: Healing Arts Press. P. 590.
Myers, S. P. and Vigar, V. (2016). Effects of a standardised extract of Trifolium pratense (Promensil) at a dosage of 80 mg in the treatment of menopausal hot flushes: A systematic review and meta-analysis. Pytomedicine. 24 (2017) 141–147.
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