Alfalfa
HerbalAlso called · 3 names▾▴
alfalfa sprouts, alfalfa leaf, Medicago sativa
Herbal supplement (milk supply)
Herbs and supplements are not FDA-approved before sale. About these sources
- Food / spice
- Other
Research strength: 1 / 5
MotherToBaby's general herbal-products sheet says many supplements lack pregnancy research, but it does not discuss alfalfa. A 1998 EMEA veterinary committee report states that alfalfa is contraindicated during pregnancy and lactation, while providing no pregnancy outcome study. FDA and ACOG advise pregnant people to avoid raw alfalfa sprouts because of bacterial contamination concerns. ACOG and a 2025 Spanish hospital study describe serious pregnancy outcomes from diagnosed listeriosis, but that evidence is about infection, not alfalfa supplement use. LactMed's food statement does not establish effects of concentrated products. Ask your provider about your situation.
Last reviewed: 2026-10-14
Sources
- MotherToBaby: Herbal Products fact sheetTeratology service
- EMEA Committee for Veterinary Medicinal Products: Medicago sativa extractum Summary ReportEU agencyEuropean guidance
- FDA: Selecting and serving produce safelyUS government
- ACOG: The Top 6 Pregnancy Questions I Hear From First-Time MomsProfessional society
- ACOG: Listeria and PregnancyProfessional society
- Vázquez et al.: Pregnancy-related listeriosis in SpainUS government
- LactMed (NIH): AlfalfaUS government
Research strength: 1 / 5
MotherToBaby's general herbal-products sheet says many supplements lack pregnancy research, but it does not discuss alfalfa. A 1998 EMEA veterinary committee report states that alfalfa is contraindicated during pregnancy and lactation, while providing no pregnancy outcome study. FDA and ACOG advise pregnant people to avoid raw alfalfa sprouts because of bacterial contamination concerns. ACOG and a 2025 Spanish hospital study describe serious pregnancy outcomes from diagnosed listeriosis, but that evidence is about infection, not alfalfa supplement use. LactMed's food statement does not establish effects of concentrated products. Ask your provider about your situation.
Last reviewed: 2026-10-14
Sources
- MotherToBaby: Herbal Products fact sheetTeratology service
- EMEA Committee for Veterinary Medicinal Products: Medicago sativa extractum Summary ReportEU agencyEuropean guidance
- FDA: Selecting and serving produce safelyUS government
- ACOG: The Top 6 Pregnancy Questions I Hear From First-Time MomsProfessional society
- ACOG: Listeria and PregnancyProfessional society
- Vázquez et al.: Pregnancy-related listeriosis in SpainUS government
- LactMed (NIH): AlfalfaUS government
Research strength: 1 / 5
MotherToBaby's general herbal-products sheet says many supplements lack pregnancy research, but it does not discuss alfalfa. A 1998 EMEA veterinary committee report states that alfalfa is contraindicated during pregnancy and lactation, while providing no pregnancy outcome study. FDA and ACOG advise pregnant people to avoid raw alfalfa sprouts because of bacterial contamination concerns. ACOG and a 2025 Spanish hospital study describe serious pregnancy outcomes from diagnosed listeriosis, but that evidence is about infection, not alfalfa supplement use. LactMed's food statement does not establish effects of concentrated products. Ask your provider about your situation.
Last reviewed: 2026-10-14
Sources
- MotherToBaby: Herbal Products fact sheetTeratology service
- EMEA Committee for Veterinary Medicinal Products: Medicago sativa extractum Summary ReportEU agencyEuropean guidance
- FDA: Selecting and serving produce safelyUS government
- ACOG: The Top 6 Pregnancy Questions I Hear From First-Time MomsProfessional society
- ACOG: Listeria and PregnancyProfessional society
- Vázquez et al.: Pregnancy-related listeriosis in SpainUS government
- LactMed (NIH): AlfalfaUS government
Alfalfa — Breastfeeding
Research strength: 1 / 5
LactMed says alfalfa is promoted in some milk-supply mixtures, but no valid clinical trials support this use. It reports no alfalfa-specific data on other components in milk or on effectiveness for nursing parents or infants; primary isoflavone studies measured soy or phytoestrogen exposure, not alfalfa intake or clinical infant outcomes. A 1998 EMEA veterinary committee report states that alfalfa is contraindicated during lactation, but does not provide a human lactation outcome study. LactMed also reports lupus concerns and a vitamin K interaction with warfarin. Ask your provider about your situation.
Last reviewed: 2026-10-14
Sources
- LactMed (NIH): AlfalfaUS government
- EMEA Committee for Veterinary Medicinal Products: Medicago sativa extractum Summary ReportEU agencyEuropean guidance
- Eriksson et al.: Lucerne, can it influence milk production?US government
- Franke et al.: Isoflavones in human breast milk and other biological fluidsUS government
- Min et al.: Phytoestrogen metabolites in breastfed infants' urine and corresponding breast milkUS government
- NHS: WarfarinUK government
Pregnancy
MotherToBaby's Herbal Products fact sheet describes general gaps in pregnancy research and does not discuss alfalfa specifically. LactMed's alfalfa record is about use during lactation, not pregnancy. The 1998 EMEA Committee for Veterinary Medicinal Products report says, 'Alfalfa is contraindicated for use in humans with a history of systemic lupus erythromatosus and during pregnancy and lactation.' Its veterinary section concerns topical use, and the report does not provide a human pregnancy outcome study or trimester estimate. FDA produce guidance and ACOG identify raw alfalfa sprouts as a food contamination concern; this is a different exposure from an alfalfa supplement or cooked food amount. ACOG and a 2025 Spanish hospital registry study describe miscarriage, fetal loss, stillbirth, and newborn complications among diagnosed listeriosis cases. That study concerns hospitalized cases of infection, not alfalfa exposure, and its absolute rates cannot be applied to alfalfa consumers. No alfalfa-specific human pregnancy outcome study was verified in the reviewed records.
Breastfeeding
LactMed reports that alfalfa is promoted in some proprietary milk-supply mixtures, but no scientifically valid clinical trials support this use. It says daidzein and genistein enter breastmilk in small amounts but have not been measured specifically after alfalfa intake, and that data are lacking for other alfalfa components in milk and for effectiveness or infant outcomes. Primary studies by Franke et al. and Min et al. measured soy isoflavones or phytoestrogen metabolites in milk and infant urine; they did not study alfalfa intake or clinical infant outcomes. ABM Protocol #9 (2018), Cochrane (2020), and Cragg et al. (2025) review galactagogues or herbal interventions, but their listed tested interventions do not establish alfalfa efficacy. The PubMed record for a 1983 Swedish article titled 'Lucerne--can it influence milk production?' has no abstract, so its design, dose, and findings are not verified. The EMEA report also states that alfalfa is contraindicated during lactation, but is a 1998 veterinary committee report and provides no human lactation outcome study.
LactMed says alfalfa leaves and sprouts contain saponins, estrogenic isoflavonoids such as daidzein and genistein, vitamin K, and L-canavanine. LactMed reports worsening systemic lupus symptoms and says the role of L-canavanine is possible, not established as a cause. It also says alfalfa contains vitamin K and advises avoidance for people taking warfarin. The EMEA report distinguishes small quantities used as food flavouring from medicinal use; FDA and ACOG separately address raw sprouts.
What was tested
No alfalfa-specific human pregnancy outcome study was verified. LactMed reports no alfalfa-specific measurement of milk isoflavones after intake. A Swedish 1983 PubMed record is titled 'Lucerne--can it influence milk production?' but has no abstract, leaving its study design, dose, and results unverified. Cochrane's 2020 review included 41 varied galactagogue trials in mothers of healthy term infants; its listed natural interventions did not include alfalfa. Cragg et al.'s 2025 review included 10 randomized trials of different herbal galactagogues or mixtures in mothers of preterm infants; its full text did not identify alfalfa among tested interventions. These reviews concern the interventions they studied and do not establish whether alfalfa increases milk production.
How should the historical EMEA human-use contraindication be applied to a combined food and supplement entry?
- Source A says
- The 1998 EMEA veterinary committee report explicitly says alfalfa is contraindicated during pregnancy and lactation. (EMEA Committee for Veterinary Medicinal Products: Medicago sativa extractum Summary Report)
- Source B says
- LactMed's alfalfa page focuses on lactation, describes food use as GRAS, and reports no data for alfalfa-specific human pregnancy outcomes or valid milk-supply trials; it does not assess the EMEA contraindication. (LactMed (NIH): Alfalfa)
- Why they differ
- The EMEA statement is direct but comes from a 1998 veterinary medicinal product report whose extract is listed for topical use. LactMed is a later lactation review that discusses food and supplement use but does not address the EMEA statement. The catalog item combines food forms, sprouts, and supplements, which makes a single rating difficult to map to the report's wording.
- Other sources
- FDA and ACOG identify raw alfalfa sprouts as a distinct foodborne contamination concern; this does not settle the EMEA statement about pregnancy and lactation or supplement use. (FDA: Selecting and serving produce safely, ACOG: The Top 6 Pregnancy Questions I Hear From First-Time Moms)
- What the evidence shows overall
- Preserve the full EMEA contraindication and its date and veterinary context. The source provides no human outcome study, while LactMed's food statement is not pregnancy evidence for supplements. The proposed guidance rating is escalated for a decision about how to handle this conflict and the combined item scope.
- MotherToBaby says product labels can be read and each ingredient discussed with a healthcare provider because herbal products may contain ingredients of concern. (MotherToBaby)
- ACOG lists raw alfalfa sprouts among foods to avoid during pregnancy and explains that the growing conditions can support bacterial growth. (ACOG)
General research, not specific to pregnancy.
LactMed reports a lupus symptom concern and a warfarin interaction related to alfalfa. NHS guidance says foods high in vitamin K can affect warfarin, but its page does not discuss alfalfa specifically.
- LactMed reports that worsening of systemic lupus erythematosus has been reported, possibly involving immune stimulation by L-canavanine. (LactMed (NIH): Alfalfa, EMEA Committee for Veterinary Medicinal Products: Medicago sativa extractum Summary Report)
- LactMed links alfalfa's vitamin K content with warfarin, while NHS says foods high in vitamin K can affect how warfarin works and refers readers to their warfarin clinic. (LactMed (NIH): Alfalfa, NHS: Warfarin)
- MotherToBaby: Herbal Products fact sheetTeratology serviceSecondary
- LactMed (NIH): AlfalfaUS governmentSecondaryPage dated 2021-06-21
- EMEA Committee for Veterinary Medicinal Products: Medicago sativa extractum Summary ReportEU agencySecondaryIndependent checkEuropean guidance
- FDA: Selecting and serving produce safelyUS governmentSecondary
- FDA-hosted recall announcement: Jack and the Green SproutsUS governmentSecondaryPage dated 2024-10-04
- ACOG: The Top 6 Pregnancy Questions I Hear From First-Time MomsProfessional societySecondaryIndependent check
- ACOG: Listeria and PregnancyProfessional societySecondaryIndependent check
- Vázquez et al.: Pregnancy-related listeriosis in SpainUS governmentPrimaryPage dated 2025-02-18Independent check
- Academy of Breastfeeding Medicine: Clinical Protocol #9, Second Revision 2018Professional societySecondaryIndependent check
- Cochrane: Milk boosters for mothers breastfeeding healthy term infantsResearch reviewPrimaryPage dated 2020-05-18Independent check
- Cragg et al.: Herbal galactagogues in mothers of preterm infantsUS governmentPrimaryPage dated 2025-12-05Independent check
- Franke et al.: Isoflavones in human breast milk and other biological fluidsUS governmentPrimaryIndependent check
- Min et al.: Phytoestrogen metabolites in breastfed infants' urine and corresponding breast milkUS governmentPrimaryPage dated 2020-03-09Independent check
- NHS: WarfarinUK governmentSecondaryIndependent check
- Eriksson et al.: Lucerne, can it influence milk production?US governmentPrimary
Last reviewed 2026-10-14
Independent check 2026-10-14
Not yet clinician-reviewed
Ask your provider about your situation.