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Red Clover (Trifolium pratense)

Specific Recommendations:

• Red clover at Amazon.com
• Trinovin (for men), Promensil (for women) at Amazon.com

General Information:

• Red Clover (Trifolium pratense) - M. D. Anderson Cancer Center

News & Research:

• Red clover may counter depressive symptoms in older women - Nutra USA, 3/4/10 - "Symptoms of depression and anxiety were reduced by about 80 per cent following 90 days of supplements containing 80 milligrams of red clover isoflavones" - [Abstract]
• New Lab Evidence Suggests Preventive Effect Of Herbal Supplement In Prostate Cancer - Science Daily, 2/23/09 - "Combining DHEA with transforming growth factor beta-1 increased testosterone production in the stromal cells and prostate specific antigen protein secretion two to four-fold and gene expression up to 50-fold in the cancer cells. When these cell cultures were treated with red clover isoflavones, the androgenic effects of DHEA were reversed"
• Sizing Up Alternatives to Hormones - Intelihealth, 3/30/05 - "Red clover leaf: Supplements Promensil and Rimostil contain estrogens from this plant. Although it's rich in estrogens, it appears to be no more effective than placebo in reducing hot flashes"
• Red Clover May Prevent Bone Loss in Spine - WebMD, 4/16/04 - "women who took a red clover-derived dietary supplement containing substances called isoflavones (Promensil) experienced significantly slower bone loss in the spine compared with women who took a placebo".
• Red Clover Isoflavone Reduces Loss of Lumbar Spine Bone Density - Medscape, 2/11/04 - "After one year, women receiving the isoflavone supplement lost significantly less lumbar spine bone mineral content and bone mineral density than those receiving placebo"
• New Study Questions Effectiveness of Red Clover Extract for Hot Flashes - Healthwell Exchange Daily News, 9/18/03
• Red Clover Extract Helps Vaginal Dryness - WebMD, 7/9/03
• Promensil, Rimostil, And Placebo Result In Similar Reductions In Hot Flashes Frequency - Doctor's Guide, 7/9/03
• Herbal Remedies Can Aid Prostate Health - WebMD, 2/4/03 - "Not only is this believed to help inhibit prostate and other cancer tumors, it could help treat BPH. A product commercially sold as Trinovin (and whose manufacturer paid for Katz's study) has been found in several trials to improve urine flow and decrease symptoms by as much as 23%"
• Red Clover Extract Reduces Hot Flashes in Menopausal Women - New Hope Natural Media, 10/10/02
• Red Clover Can Help Hot Flashes - USA Today,  9/13/02 - "The study found that 40 milligrams a day of Promensil reduced hot flashes by 48.5 percent, while a placebo offered a 10.5 percent reduction" -  See Promensil at Amazon.com.
• Red Clover May Tame Hot Flashes - WebMD, 8/16/02 - "Promensil is an isoflavone supplement produced from red clover and contains the same key isoflavones commonly found in soy foods. Isoflavones are plant compounds -- found commonly in soy -- that act like weak form of the female sex hormone estrogen ... Only red clover contains all four isoflavones that women need ... 30 women were given either 40 mg of Promensil or a placebo for 16 weeks. The group taking Promensil reported a 48% reduction in frequency of hot flashes, whereas the control group had an 11% decrease" - See Promensil at Amazon.com.
• Phytoestrogen review - ConsumerLab.com, 7/16/02
• Red Clover Supplement Eases Monthly Breast Pain - WebMD, 11/26/01 - "A supplement containing red clover isoflavones reduced breast pain by 44% ... The red clover isoflavones are believed to act as a weak estrogen, which reduces the amount of estrogen produced in breast cells, thereby reducing pain ... 44% taking the 40 mg treatment had relief, compared with 31% taking 80 mg and 13% taking placebo ... The supplement used in the study -- sold under the brand name Promensil -- has been used in clinical trials involving more than 1,000 women" -  See Promensil at Amazon.com.
• Rimostil May Increase Bone Density While Raising Good Cholesterol - Doctor's Guide, 9/27/99 - "The second effect was on HDL cholesterol levels. Falling HDL levels after menopause is one of the main reasons that older women suffer heart disease and stroke. P-081 caused an average 28% rise in HDL levels, essentially restoring their HDL levels to pre-menopausal levels" -  See Promensil at Amazon.com.
• Isoflavones May Cut Menopausal Cardiovascular Risk - Nutrition Science News, 7/99 - "An important cardiovascular risk factor, artery elasticity, which diminishes with menopause, was significantly improved with red clover isoflavones"
• Great Expectations: Hot Herbs in '99 - Nutrition Science News, 1/99

Abstracts:

• Antiproliferative Effect of Trifolium Pratens L. Extract in Human Breast Cancer Cells - Nutr Cancer. 2018 Dec 29:1-13 - "Trifolium pratense L. has been suggested for cancer treatment in traditional medicine. The effect of T. pratense extract on breast cell lines (MCF-7 and MDA-MB-231) was investigated here ... T. pratense as a dietary supplement can be beneficial for some patients with breast cancer who receive conventional chemotherapy" - See Trifolium pratense at Amazon.com.
• Improvement of postmenopausal depressive and anxiety symptoms after treatment with isoflavones derived from red clover extracts - Maturitas. 2010 Mar;65(3):258-61 - "assigned to receive two daily capsules of MF11RCE (80mg red clover isoflavones, Group A) or placebo of equal appearance (Group B) for a 90-day period ... After receiving the MF11RCE compound the total HADS (anxiety and depression subscale scores also) and the total SDS scores decreased significantly. This effect was equivalent to a 76.9% reduction in the total HADS score (76% for anxiety and 78.3% for depression) and an 80.6% reduction in the total SDS score. After placebo, total HADS (anxiety and depression subscale also) and total SDS scores also decreased significantly in comparison to baseline but only equivalent to an average 21.7% decline. CONCLUSION: Red clover derived isoflavones (MF11RCE) were effective in reducing depressive and anxiety symptoms among postmenopausal women"
• Red clover extract: a source for substances that activate peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor alpha and ameliorate the cytokine secretion profile of lipopolysaccharide-stimulated macrophages - Menopause. 2010 Feb 5 - "In lipopolysaccharide-stimulated macrophages, red clover extract and its compounds reduced the secretion of proinflammatory cytokines, interleukin-6 and tumor necrosis factor alpha, increased the secretion of the anti-inflammatory interleukin-10, and/or reduced the expression of nuclear factor-kappaB, inducible nitric oxide synthase, and/or cyclooxygenase 2. Tumor necrosis factor alpha production was most efficiently reduced by biochanin A and genistein. Interleukin-6 levels were most efficiently reduced by genistein and equol. CONCLUSIONS:: Owing to its PPARalpha activation and modulation of the secreted cytokine profile, red clover extract is a putative candidate for preventing atherosclerosis and, thus, cardiovascular disease"
• Absorption of red clover isoflavones in human subjects: results from a pilot study - Br J Nutr. 2010 Jan 13:1-4
• Effects of One-Year Treatment with Isoflavone Extract from Red Clover on Prostate, Liver Function, Sexual Function, and Quality of Life in Men with Elevated PSA Levels and Negative Prostate Biopsy Findings - Urology. 2008 Feb;71(2):185-90 - "isoflavonoid extract from red clover ... daily 60-mg dose of an isoflavone extract for 1 year ... The average PSA level was 10.16 ng/mL at baseline versus 7.15 ng/mL after 12 months, for a statistically significant reduction of 33% ... The sexual hormone levels did not change throughout the study. We registered a significant increase in all three liver transaminases after 3 months"
• The red clover (Trifolium pratense) isoflavone biochanin A inhibits aromatase activity and expression - Br J Nutr. 2007 Aug 29;:1-8 - "Biochanin A is an isoflavone isolated from red clover (Trifolium pratense) ... Isoflavones resemble the structure of oestrogen, and display agonistic and antagonistic interactions with the oestrogen receptor. Overexposure of oestrogen is a major contributing factor in the development of breast cancer ... In the present study the effect of biochanin A on the gene regulation and enzyme activity of aromatase was investigated. By assaying MCF-7 cells stably transfected with CYP19, biochanin A inhibited aromatase activity and hampered cell growth attributing to the enzyme activity"