Calendula for Anti-Inflammatory

Research suggests that Calendula officinalis has meaningful anti-inflammatory properties, with the evidence base spanning in vitro studies, animal models, a small number of human clinical trials, and multiple narrative reviews, the large majority of which point in a supportive direction. Studies indicate that specific compounds in calendula — particularly C16-hydroxylated triterpenoids, triterpene glycosides, flavonoids, and prenylated acetophenones — appear to drive these effects by suppressing pro-inflammatory signaling molecules such as TNF-alpha, IL-1beta, IL-6, and COX-2, with two 2025 studies notably mapping the precise biosynthetic pathway responsible for triterpenoid production and demonstrating the mechanism by which these compounds reduce interleukin-6 release. Animal studies have shown reductions in paw swelling and inflammatory bone loss in periodontitis models, while a six-month clinical trial found that calendula mouthwash reduced plaque and gingival inflammation in adults with gingivitis, and a two-year double-blind trial using a multi-herb supplement containing calendula reported slowed arterial wall thickening. The overall body of evidence is encouraging but limited by a relative scarcity of large, well-controlled human trials, meaning that while the biological plausibility of calendula's anti-inflammatory effects is increasingly well-supported at the mechanistic level, broader clinical confirmation is still needed before firm conclusions can be drawn about its effectiveness in people.