Current Uses - What does the science say?

Nowadays, red clover is used to treat for the same conditions as in the past. Its main uses include improvements in cardiovascular health, relief of menopausal symptoms, cancer prevention, treatment of skin conditions and relief from respiratory distress (National Center for Complementary and Alternative Medicine, 2010.) Most research, however, has focused on the effects of red clover on menopause symptoms management – namely in reducing hot flashes, improving blood lipid composition and production of blood clots, and slowing bone density loss associated with osteoporosis (UMMC, 2006.)

Symptoms of Menopause
http://www.herbs2000.com/herbs/herbs_red_clover.htm

Estrogen is known to have beneficial effects on blood lipid composition by decreasing cholesterol levels, a known risk factor associated with the development of cardiovascular disease (Terzic et al., 2009). In menopause, however, estrogen levels tend to drop, leading to an increased risk of cardiovascular complications (Chedruai et al, 2008.)

http://www.cairm.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/08/Hot-Flashes-Menopause.gif

Isoflavones, which act as alternatives to estrogen, are believed to improve blood lipid composition (Chedraui et al, 2008.) Chedraui et al. (2008) conducted an experiment examining whether red clover isoflavones had statistically significant impacts on the lipid composition in postmenopausal women. The experiment was conducted as a randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled trial consisting of 53 women who were either assigned to the administration of a 40mg isoflavone supplement tablet twice daily or to an identical placebo pill for 90 days. The primary endpoints included total cholesterol (TC), low-density lipoprotein (LDL), high-density lipoprotein (HDL), lipoprotein A and triglycerides. The study also compared women in regards to body mass index (BMI), where a BMI greater than 25 was considered overweight. The results indicate that, for overweight women, the isoflavone supplements significantly decreased the TC, LDL and lipoprotein A levels compared to women with a BMI of under 25. No significant results were found for HDL levels. While these results do seem rather important, there are several methodological flaws in this study, one of which is the lack of dietary restrictions and guidelines. This is a potential confounding variable, particularly if the two groups had statistically significant differences in isoflavone consumption. In addition, the sample size was too small to have generalizeable results. While this study does have potentially important implications, its flaws question the results’ validity.

Bone density loss in osteoporosis

http://www.aclasta.co.nz/osteoporosis/what_is.htm

As was mentioned earlier, one of health implications of menopause is a reduction in bone density and the resulting development of osteoporosis in women (UMMC, 2006.) In a study conducted by Atkinson et al. (2004), 205 women between the ages of 49-65 were enrolled in a randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled study investigating the effects of red clover isoflavone supplements on bone density and composition, and biochemical indicators of bone restructuring. The women were either assigned to the intake of an isoflavone supplement (see Table 1 for isoflavone composition) or a placebo tablet for a period of one year. Urine test, blood test and full body X-ray absorptiometry measurements, as well as diet records, were completed at baseline and at12 months. The results indicated that the isoflavone treatment group had lower levels of bone loss compared to the placebo group for both hip and spinal regions. However, differences in bone composition and density were only statistically significant for the spine. The difference with respect to biochemical markers was also barely significant. This study has quite a sound methodological setup, with no major flaws. Taking everything into consideration, this study suggests that isoflavone consumption may very well have an effect on bone composition in women.

Thus, while there is hopeful evidence for the benefits of isoflavones in improving menopausal symptoms and various health outcomes, significantly more research is needed in order to have a definite answer.

Table 1.

Promensil Tablet – Isoflavone composition
Isoflavone	Amount
Biochanin A	26 mg
Formononetin	16 mg
Genistein	1 mg
Daidzein	0.5 mg

Table 1. The isoflavone composition of Promensil tablets as specified by Atkinson et al, 2004.