Red Clover Oil & Acne : A Controversy Explained

    Red Clover Oil is a controversial herb.  That’s hard to do.  Not many herbs cause controversy, but somehow Red Clover Oil managed.  The controversy around Red Clover Oil is it’s purported benefits versus the evidence.  So, we’ll tell you straight out the scientific evidence for many Red Clover Oil benefits, as of this writing, is thin.  With that said, there is some evidence to support the topical use of Red Clover Oil for skin.

Origins:    

    Let’s start at the beginning.  Red Clover Oil is derived from a flowering plant known as Trifolium pratense.  This plant grows in much of the world from Africa to Europe to the Americas.  While not native to the Americas, it was brought here for its herbal value.  Oddly enough, Trillium pratense actually belongs to the legume family similar to peas and beans.  The oil comes from the flower of this plant and is packed with the nutrients.

The Value:

     In addition to minerals such as calcium, niacin and potassium, Red Clover Oil contains a good dose of Vitamin C.  It’s been used for internal ailments such as difficulty with menopause.  The thinking among herbalists is that the phytoestrogen content of Red Clover Oil would help with hormonal balance, but the evidence for internal benefits are not consistently well supported.  It has been found to be helpful in reducing hot flashes, night sweats and other symptoms of menopause. It can also be taken as a daily antioxidant to help reduce the risk of heart disease and other ailments. Red clover also has a significant amount of iron. Iron is important to our health as it is a key component in a protein called hemoglobin. Hemoglobin delivers oxygen to our body’s cells, which is super important since our bodies cannot live without oxygen. Iron can be hard to get from your diet, especially for females who have trouble with iron deficiency. Red Clover Oil is a great source of iron and can be taken as a supplement. When it comes to acne, we're encouraged by the results of recent research. In one study, researchers found that applying red clover oil to the skin daily for 8 weeks significantly improved acne severity compared with a control product. Red clover oil was found to be as effective as topically applied tretinoin (Retin-A).

The Verdict:

     We know from the mineral and vitamin content of Red Clover Oil that it has some anti-bacterial properties as well as antiseptic properties.  We know that vitamins and minerals are good for your skin.  We know that Ayurvedic medicine uses this type of Clove oil for ailments such as acne and dark spots from blemishes.  So, we included it in our blissani Natural Clear Face Wash.  

    From our perspective, the antiseptic and antibacterial aspects of Red Clover Oil fit right into our blissani mission of clean, vegan-friendly skincare products which harness the power of nature to fight blemishes.  The vitamins and minerals align with our philosophy of natural healing to cool inflammation and even skin tone.  Despite the fact Red Clover Oil still requires more study, we feel its chemical composition and profile make it a solid contributor to our acne fighting line.

Final Thoughts:

    If you’re planning on taking Red Clover Oil internally, we recommend doing research and speaking with a physician.  You’ll want to make sure any herbs you ingest do not interfere with medication prescribed by your doctor.  For external use, you can try applying a few drops of undiluted Red Clover Oil directly to a blemish a couple of times a day.  Drop us a note to let us know of your results.  Of course, we prefer the easy way of applying Red Clover Oil and use it daily along with a variety of botanical extracts to cleanse and exfoliate our skin with our blissani Naturals Anti-Acne Clear Face Wash.  

Our blissani Naturals Face Wash Contains a Healthy Dose of Red Clover Oil:

For Further Reading on Natural Acne Ingredients we Recommend:

For Further Reading on Red Clover Oil we Recommend:  https://www.nccih.nih.gov/health/red-clover

For Further Reading on Acne in General we Recommend:

https://blissani.com/blogs/blissani-breeze/acne-the-hard-truth