Alfalfa - Health Benefits and Side Effects

Botanical Name of Alfalfa: Medicago sativa.

Other Common Names: Chilean clover, buffalo grass, father of all foods, buffalo herb, lucerne, purple medic, Spanish clover, California clover, purple medick, medicago, fuelle de luzerna (French), holy hay, trefoil.

Habitat: Alfalfa is believed to be native to Central Asia (Transcaucasia, Armenia, Persia, etc.). Wild types are found in the Caucasus, and in the mountainous regions of Afghanistan, Iran and surrounding regions. Medicago sativa favors temperate-warm or subtropical semi-dry climates. It adapts well to soil that is deep, permeable and rich in calcium and phosphorus.

Plant Description: Alfalfa is a perennial herb that is widely cultivated as feed for livestock. It has been cultivated for at least 15,000 years for both livestock forage and as food and medicine for humans. The taproot of the alfalfa plant reaches deep into the soil, allowing the plant to extract a wide range of nutrients from deeper substrate even when the superficial soil is exhausted. Medicago sativa is a valuable plant for the improvement of poor and depleted soil.

The short, erect stems grow directly from the taproot. The stems are scarcely pubescent, growing to a height of 30-90 cm or more. The stems are 3-5 cm in diameter and form a perennial crown superficially buried with many short rhizomes and renewal buds.

Alfalfa leaves are alternate and trifoliate; the interior third fuses with the base of the petiole. The petiole is grooved, 1-6 mm long. The three leaflets are denticulate in the apical half or third; the lower leaflets are obovate or orbicular. The upper leaves are oblanceolate to oblong, 1.5-3.5 cm long by 0.5-2.2 cm wide. The flowers are blue to purple in color, arranged in short axillary clusters 3-10 cm long, with a short lateral bract and short pedicel. The flowers are zygomorphic, small, and papilionate (butterfly-like). The calyx is green, campanulate, and pentadentate. One petal is free standing, two are free wings, and two petals join to form a carina or keel. The fruit pod rolls in a tight spiral from one to four turns. It is black or brown when ripe; each spire is approximately 5-6 mm in diameter with a central orifice. The fruit has several yellow seeds that are kidney shaped or irregular in shape, 2-3.2 mm long.

Plant Part Used: Whole plant; leaves, sprouts, seeds, roots, and fruit.

The Alfalfa Plant (Medicago sativa)
(Click on image to enlarge)
Attribution: Victor M. Vicente Selvas

Alfalfa Herb

Alfalfa Leaf Capsules by Starwest Botanicals Alfalfa (550 mg) by Vitabase

Therapeutic Uses, Benefits, and Claims of Alfalfa

• Medicago sativa is alterative, antipyretic, anti-scorbutic, aperient, diuretic, oxytocic, nutritive, stimulant and tonic.
• The active components include up to 50% protein, beta carotene, chlorophyll, octacosanol, saponins, sterols, flavonoids, coumarins, alkaloids, acids, vitamins (A, B, B6, B12, C, D, E, K, niacin, pantothenic acid, biotin, folic acid), amino acids, sugars, minerals (Ca, K,P, Ma, Fe, Zn, Cu), and trace elements.
• Alfalfa is one of the oldest cultivated plants. Its name comes from the Arabic, al-fac-facah, “father of all foods”.

Alfalfa
(Medicago sativa)
Atlas des plantes de France - 1891.
• It has been used as livestock forage, as a highly nutritious food for humans, and as an herbal medicine for at least 1500 years. It is considered to have the highest nutritive value of all fodder plants.
• Alfalfa has a long history of use in China as an appetite stimulant, and as an herbal treatment for digestive disorders, especially ulcers.
• Ayurvedic medicine used medicago sativa as an herbal treatment for ulcers, to alleviate the pain of arthritis, and as a treatment for fluid retention.
• Early American herbalists used alfalfa herb as a treatment for arthritis, boils, cancer, scurvy, and for diseases of the urinary and digestive systems.
• Pioneer women in America used alfalfa as an herbal remedy for menstrual disorders.
• Modern herbalists use medicago sativa to help women with disorders related to hormonal imbalance. Due to its alterative qualities (ability to maintain normal hormonal levels), alfalfa is used as a natural treatment for disorders such as hot flashes during menopause, fibrocystic breasts, osteoporosis, polycystic ovaries, fibroids, and premenstrual tension.
• Alfalfa may be used to treat both hypoestrogenism (insufficient estrogen and hyperesterogenism (excessive estrogen).
• Scientific research confirms the effectiveness of medicago sativa as a natural treatment for high cholesterol. It is known to reduce low density lipoprotiens (LDL) without reducing high density lipoproteins (HDL).
• Alfalfa has been used as a traditional herbal treatment for debility during convalescence or in cases of anemia.
• Alfalfa has been used as a natural treatment for infections from surgical incisions, bed sores, and as an external poultice for the treatment of earache.
• Studies have shown that alfalfa may reduce blood sugar levels due to its high manganese content. Clinical studies have shown that medicago sativa with a high level of manganese improved the condition of diabetic patients who do not respond to insulin.
• Alfalfa contains a molecule analogue to the thyrotropin-releasing hormone or TRH. Thyrotropin-releasing hormone is common in the animal kingdom but unknown in the vegetable kingdom. The thyrotropin-releasing hormone analogue found in alfalfa has been found to be biologically active in animals, suggesting that medicago sativa may be an effective natural therapy for treating secondary hypothyroidism as well as diseases caused by an excess of prolactin, as in polycystic ovaries.
• Scientific studies indicate that medicago sativa may have a stimulating effect on the immune system.
• Alfalfa has been shown to inhibit the development of certain viruses, including herpes simplex virus.
• Some in vitro studies have shown that L-canaverina present in alfalfa has anti tumor actions against certain types of leukemia in mice and a selective toxicity against cancer cells in dogs.
• Traditional herbalists use Medicago sativa to dilute the strength of digitalis.
• In Columbia, the mucilaginous fruits are used as an herbal treatment for cough.
• Alfalfa is one of the best natural sources of vitamin K. Vitamin K helps bones to knit by working with vitamin D and glutamic acid to activate osteocalcin. The combination of these three nutrients is essential for building bone; the body cannot use calcium without all three.
• Alfalfa helps to keep calcium out of the linings of arteries. Atherosclerosis, or “hardening of the arteries” is a result of calcium replacing cholesterol in the lining of the blood vessels. This happens when a microscopically small amount of cholesterol becomes lodged in the arterial wall. These can form a mass that can be replaced by artery-hardening calcium. Alfalfa may help prevent the formation of calcium deposits on the arterial wall.

Dosage and Administration

The usual dose of alfalfa leaves for tea is 1-2 teaspoons per cup, steeped for 10-20 minutes. Powdered alfalfa may be taken in capsule form according to the manufacturer's recommendations. For cholesterol reduction, the recommended dosage is 5-10 grams of dried alfalfa leaves, taken three times a day.

Side Effects and Possible Interactions of Alfalfa

The biggest risk in using alfalfa is eating sprouts grown in contaminated water, or sprouts which have gone bad and are decomposing. For most people, alfalfa is safe, but it may interact with certain medications. If you are taking anti-rejection drugs for transplant, do not use any form of alfalfa. If you take Coumadin or other anti-coagulant drugs, consult with your physician concerning what amounts of green vegetables (which contain high amounts of vitamin K) are safe to consume. Eating alfalfa sprouts has been linked to systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE). Those diagnosed with SLE should avoid alfalfa products. Consuming large amounts of the seeds has also caused reversible blood abnormalities. In rare instances of excessive consumption of alfalfa herb or sprouts, abnormal red blood cell counts, enlargement of the spleen or relapses of lupus may occur.

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