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Alfalfa

Supplement botanical general nutrition
Aka: Medicago sativa
Brands seen in Singapore: Micro Ingredients, NOW Foods, Nature's Way, Frontier Co-op, Amazing Grass
Not medical advice. Check with your doctor or pharmacist before you start, stop or change the timing of anything you take.
How to use
What it’s for
A greens supplement; two small cholesterol trials only
Pros & cons
Pros
  • Two small trials lowered cholesterol in adults
Cons
  • Larger controlled trials are still needed
  • Seeds carry L-canavanine, a toxic amino acid
  • Sprouts linked to E. coli and Salmonella outbreaks
Sources
  1. Memorial Sloan Kettering — About Herbs: Alfalfa (L-canavanine and lupus) · read 2026-08-27
    what it says
    “Alfalfa seeds also contain a toxic amino acid, L-canavanine … this amino acid may be responsible for alfalfa's ability to cause a relapse of lupus symptoms in patients who are in remission”
  2. Memorial Sloan Kettering — About Herbs: Alfalfa (cholesterol evidence) · read 2026-08-27
    what it says
    “Two small trials have shown that alfalfa supplements lower cholesterol levels in people with high cholesterol, but larger, controlled trials are necessary to confirm these results.”
  3. Memorial Sloan Kettering — About Herbs: Alfalfa (contamination and gout) · read 2026-08-27
    what it says
    “Alfalfa sprouts have been linked to a number of food poisoning (E. coli and Salmonella infection) outbreaks … Due to the high content of purines, alfalfa should be avoided in patients with gout”
  4. HSA — Guidelines on prohibited and restricted ingredients in health supplements and traditional medicines (Oct 2025), Annex A/B · read 2026-08-27
    what it says
    “This list is not exhaustive. Dealers should continue to: Conduct thorough safety assessments of their products”
  5. iHerb Singapore — category listing, default order · read 2026-08-27
    what it says
    “Micro Ingredients · NOW Foods · Nature's Way · Frontier Co-op · Amazing Grass”
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Updated 2026-08-29. Every line above traces to a numbered source. Kozen-X is not a medical device and does not give medical advice. It lists what published sources have written down — nothing more. A pair not listed is unrecorded, not cleared. Before you start, stop or re-time anything, talk to your doctor or pharmacist.