Sesbania grandiflora leaf extract

About

What it is and where it shows up.

Sesbania grandiflora (family Fabaceae), native to India and Indonesia, is a perennial legume tree whose leaves have been consumed as food and used in traditional medicine across South and Southeast Asia for centuries. The leaf extract is rich in bioactive phytochemicals — including flavonoids (quercetin, kaempferol), alkaloids, saponins, tannins, phenolic acids, and biotin — and is used in dietary supplements and functional-food formulations for its antioxidant, anti-fibrotic, and antimicrobial properties.

Safety summary

The regulatory and scientific consensus.

Available preclinical and limited clinical evidence indicates that S. grandiflora leaf extract is well tolerated in healthy adults at typical supplemental doses; a 90-day randomised, double-blind, placebo-controlled trial reported no adverse safety signals in participants receiving 1.25 mg biotin-standardised extract orally. No Acceptable Daily Intake (ADI) has been formally established by EFSA, FDA, or FSSAI, and no IARC classification exists. The presence of tannins, saponins, and oxalates in the leaf matrix warrants caution at very high extract doses, particularly in individuals with kidney or liver conditions.

Regulatory landscape

What food-safety regulators have decided.

Jurisdiction	Status	Note
FSSAI (Food Safety and Standards Authority of India) (India)	Approved	Under the Food Safety and Standards (Health Supplements, Nutraceuticals, Food for Special Dietary Use, Food for Special Medical Purpose, Functional Food and Novel Food) Regulations, 2016, legumes and botanical plants listed in the Indian Food Composition Tables — which includes S. grandiflora — may be used as ingredients in supplements and nutraceuticals either as-is or as extracts obtained via water, ethyl alcohol, or hydro-alcoholic extraction. Specific health claims require prior approval from the Food Authority.source
EFSA (European Food Safety Authority) (European Union)	Under_review	Sesbania grandiflora is not listed as an approved food additive in the EU. EFSA's Compendium of Botanicals is an open-source reference database of plant species that contain substances of potential concern for safety assessment purposes; the Compendium has no legal force and inclusion or absence does not constitute a safety ruling. No dedicated EFSA opinion on S. grandiflora leaf extract as a food ingredient has been published as of 2025.source
FDA (Food and Drug Administration) (United States)	Under_review	Sesbania grandiflora leaf extract is present in marketed dietary supplement products tracked in the NIH Dietary Supplement Label Database. No FDA GRAS (Generally Recognized As Safe) affirmation or food additive petition specific to S. grandiflora leaf extract has been identified. The extract is not listed in FDA's Substance Registration System (GSRS) as a food additive; its use in dietary supplements falls under 21 CFR Part 111 GMPs but does not require pre-market approval.source

Who should approach with care

Whose guidance would steer them away.

Pregnancy — No controlled safety data exist for S. grandiflora leaf extract during pregnancy; the plant's saponin and alkaloid content warrants medical guidance before supplemental use.

Lactation — Absence of clinical safety data for the extract during breastfeeding means supplemental doses beyond traditional culinary use should only be taken on medical advice.

Kidney Disease — S. grandiflora leaves contain oxalate-type compounds; while antiurolithiatic activity has been reported for some preparations, high-dose extract intake could potentially aggravate calcium oxalate stone formation in susceptible individuals.

Liver Disease — Although preclinical studies suggest anti-fibrotic hepatoprotective effects, the pharmacological activity of the extract on hepatic stellate cells means high-dose supplementation in patients with active liver disease should be medically supervised.

Infants — FSSAI regulations specify that nutraceutical products intended for children aged 2–5 years must be given under medical advice; no safety data exist for infants consuming concentrated S. grandiflora leaf extract.

Research citations

The sources behind this verdict.

1PubMed. Distribution, Phytochemical Insights, and Cytotoxic Potential of the Sesbania Genus: A Comprehensive Review of Sesbania grandiflora, Sesbania sesban, and Sesbania cannabina, 2025. pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov
2PubMed. The Role of Sesbania grandiflora-Derived Biotin and Bambusa arundinacea-Derived Silica Extracts in Promoting Hair, Skin, and Nail Health: A Randomized, Double-Blind, Placebo-Controlled Clinical Study, 2025. pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov
3PubMed. Phenolic composition, antioxidant and anti-fibrotic effects of Sesbania grandiflora L. (Agastya) – An edible medicinal plant, 2022. pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov
4FSSAI. Food Safety and Standards (Health Supplements, Nutraceuticals, Food for Special Dietary Use, Food for Special Medical Purpose, Functional Food and Novel Food) Regulations, 2016 — Compendium (2021 edition), 2021. fssai.gov.in
5PubMed. Antioxidant, Antibacterial, and Cytoprotective Activity of Agathi Leaf Protein, 2014. ncbi.nlm.nih.gov

Independently researched7 citations