What is Calendula Officinalis Flower Extract?

This is part of our ongoing series helping consumers better understand chemicals, chemistry, and product formulations. We translate the science, bust the myths, and give you an honest assessment, so you can make informed choices for your family!

Ingredient:

Calendula Flower Extract

Botanical name:

Calendula Officinalis

• Calendula = Of Latin origin referring to the calendar (specifically, the first day of every month) because of this plant’s long flowering period.
• Officinalis = Latin adjective meaning it was an official medicinal herb.

What it is:

Just like the name says, this is an extract of Calendula flowers (also known as marigold flowers). The fresh petals are soaked in water like a giant cup of tea, and then the herb extract concentrate is filtered out.

What it does:

Calendula flowers have many uses, from making natural dyes to adding color to salads. They’ve also been used in traditional and folk medicines for many centuries. You’ll often find them used in teas and tinctures, but we’re more interested in the extract’s benefits for skin. Studies are still underway, but the current body of research has found that calendula extract can help:

• Support skin  (1,2,3,4, 5,6)
• Calm and soothe (1,7)
• Nourish the skin (3,8)

Why we use it:

With such a long and impressive history of use, choosing Calendula extract for our body care products was almost a no-brainer. In addition to its supportive and nourishing qualities, it’s a natural, renewable resource. We love finding gifts from nature that are not only effective and safe (9), but also easy to source and take relatively little effort to process into a raw ingredient for commercial use. And, as far as natural resources go, they’re a great choice because they’re so easy to grow. They tolerate most soils and many climates — and, once they get going, they offer bounteous blooms for months on end!

Why we’re featuring it today:

When choosing ingredients for our products we take everything into account to ensure a safe, effective, responsible, and delightful product. You’ll find calendula in our Organic Healing Balm and in our Hand Sanitizer Spray.

References:

1. Preethi, K. C., & Kuttan, R. (2009). Wound healing activity of flower extract of Calendula offlcinalis. Journal of basic and clinical physiology and pharmacology, 20(1), 73-80.
2. Calendula. Retrieved September 4, 2015, from http://umm.edu/health/medical/altmed/herb/calendula
3. Kemper K. Calendula (Calendula officinalis). The Longwood Herbal Task Force and The Center for Holistic Pediatric Education and Research. Retrieved September 4, 2015, from http://umm.edu/health/medical/altmed/herb/calendula
4. Klouchek-Popova E., et al. Influence of the physiological regeneration and epithelization using fractions isolated from Calendula officinalis. Acta Physiol Pharmacol Bulg. 1982; 8(4):63-7.
5. Pazyar, N., Yaghoobi, R., Rafiee, E., Mehrabian, A., & Feily, A. (2014). Skin wound healing and phytomedicine: a review. Skin pharmacology and physiology, 27(6), 303-310.
6. Nayeem, N. (2010). Wound healing: A review.
7. Brown, D. J., & Dattner, A. M. (1998). Phytotherapeutic approaches to common dermatologic conditions. Archives of dermatology, 134(11), 1401-1404.
8. Akhtar, N., Zaman, S. U., Khan, B. A., Haji, M., Khan, S., Ahmad, M., ... & Rasul, A. (2011). Evaluation of various functional skin parameters using a topical cream of Calendula officinalis extract. Afr. J. Pharm. Pharmacol, 5(2), 199-206.
9. Andersen, F. A., Bergfeld, W. F., Belsito, D. V., Hill, R. A., Klaassen, C. D., Liebler, D. C., ... & Snyder, P. W. (2010). Final report of the Cosmetic Ingredient Review Expert Panel amended safety assessment of Calendula officinalis–derived cosmetic ingredients. International journal of toxicology, 29(6 suppl), 221S-243S.