Comments on: Is clary sage oil estrogenic?

By: Robert Tisserand

Robert Tisserand — Sat, 02 Jul 2011 19:23:29 +0000

Sabine, to quote Dene Godfrey: “Having estrogenic activity is not the same as being an estrogen mimic. Estrogenic activity is measured purely by the ability of a substance to bind to an estrogen binding site. What it does when it is there is another matter. If it then behaves in the same way as estrogen, then it is an estrogen mimic, and there is possible cause for concern. If it does not behave in the same way as estrogen, then this is a totally different situation.” Clary sage oil is not an estrogen mimic, though it quite probably does bind with estrogen receptor sites. In doing so, it could block activity from the body’s own estrogens, the net result of which would be a reduction in estrogenic action, not an increase.

By: Sabine Haller

Sabine Haller — Sat, 02 Jul 2011 18:42:41 +0000

If Clary Sage is used to treat PMS symptoms doesn’t that mean that it is the opposite of an oestrogen? I am having some major issues with excessive oestrogen production at the moment and was looking into something more natural before the doc prescribes progesterone creams and came across Clary Sage. It seemed to be good for all the problems I am having (water retention, snappy-ness, massive fibroids and now cysts as well), but if it mimics oestrogen and would cause me to produce even more I wouldn’t touch it with a barge pole!!

By: Green

Green — Tue, 08 Mar 2011 21:17:10 +0000

The way I’m seeing it – everything is good in moderation. If you don’t have enough oestrogen, problems occur. If you have too much, similarly, problems occur. In love, life and health, moderation is key.

Thanks for a great article.

By: nancy brilllault

nancy brilllault — Mon, 16 Aug 2010 19:21:26 +0000

We can all agree clary sage contains sclareol which may mimic natural estrogens. As a clinical herbalist and aromatherapist, I use clary sage in my Women’s Alchemy blend for hormonal balance, PMS through menopause. My training has been that plants containing constituents with hormone balancing effects assist the body in conjugating and eliminating the xeno estrogens which are the endocrine disruptors causing the reproductive cancers in the first place. Is this not the case? When should we, if at all, be cautious with using this lovely oil? I have read in the literature not to use in easy stages of pregnancy.
Thanks for your wisdom, Robert. We are so blessed to have you in our world.

By: Stephanie Greenwood

Stephanie Greenwood — Thu, 29 Jul 2010 23:13:30 +0000

Great article! There is so much rumor and misinformation out there regarding essential oils. It’s so refreshing to find someone who doesn’t just cut-and-paste conjecture from other sites. Well done!

By: eliane

eliane — Fri, 07 May 2010 20:15:19 +0000

from a study of an agricultural institute in austria i learned that the sclareol content of clary sage oil depends on the time of distillation as it is only found in relatively long distilled oils (as quite a heavy molecule it would only pass after an hour or so of steam distillation). thank you so much for that information as i had a young woman with agrressive breast cancer in one of my recent workshops and wasn’t sure whether to recommend the oil for realaxing and upliftig reasons.

By: Robert Tisserand

Robert Tisserand — Tue, 04 May 2010 02:52:05 +0000

Marcia, the sclareol content of clary sage oil is 4%, ie greater than the 0.25% that shows on gc analysis, not greater than the 70% in clary sage absolute. I’m sure you know that essential oils and absolutes from the the same plant are often compositionally very different. The absolute is solid because it contains much more sclareol, compared to the liquid essential oil.

By: Allison Stillman

Allison Stillman — Sun, 02 May 2010 15:26:10 +0000

Excellent article Robert, thank you for clarifying this issue with clary sage. While I have had great results with clary sage over the years in controlling PMS symptoms, there is nothing like hard evidence and the voice of reason.

By: Marcia Elston

Marcia Elston — Sat, 01 May 2010 00:57:08 +0000

As usual, you continue to peel the onion for us. However, the increased amount of sclareol in Clary Sage absolute raised my curious eyebrows, Robert. In the absolute, you say the 70% sclarol content is solid. The sclareol content in essential oil is possibly greater, but misread because of the volatility issue, but wouldn’t it appear as bits of solid in the eo perhaps (not exactly, but similar) like Citrus peel oils? This disparaging wide range between the two products doesn’t quite make sense to me. Any further thoughts? Thanks.

By: Cindy Jones

Cindy Jones — Wed, 28 Apr 2010 01:34:03 +0000

It’s interesting that there has been such an ‘estrogen scare’ lately. Estrogen like compounds can have various effects on the body from promoting growth to inhibiting growth depending upon how these compounds interact with the estrogen receptor. A little bit of estrogen-like compounds in the right place can do a world of good. Vegetable oils that are high in estrogen-like sterols can be used on the skin to keep it healthy and many studies have found that diets high in these sterol rich oils like olive oil have health benefits as well. thanks for your always wise posts.