09/24/2026
There are thousands of naturally occurring compounds in the plants God gave us, and sometimes the more we learn about them, the more fascinating they become.
One of those compounds is apigenin. A flavonoid naturally occurring in many herbs, fruits and vegetables.
And it’s one of the reasons I love looking beyond isolated “supplements” and back toward whole plants, herbs and traditional foods.
Where do we find apigenin?
Some of the richest familiar sources include:
• Chamomile
• Parsley
• Celery
• Onions
• Oranges
• Lemon balm
• Thyme
• Certain teas and herbs
• Some fruits, vegetables and spices
So this isn't some exotic substance manufactured in a laboratory. It's a naturally occurring plant flavonoid that has been part of the human food supply for a very long time.
Why I’m interested in it for tea…
Apigenin has been studied for its antioxidant and anti-inflammatory properties, and chamomile is one of the traditional herbal sources.
It has also been studied for its effects on the nervous system and sleep. That makes an apigenin-containing herbal tea particularly interesting as part of an evening routine.
And there is another really interesting area of research:
NAD+ and cellular aging
NAD+ is essential for energy metabolism and for enzymes involved in cellular maintenance.
One of the things that happens with aging is that NAD+ availability tends to decline.
Research has found that apigenin can inhibit an enzyme called CD38, which is one of the enzymes that consumes NAD+.
In animal and cellular research, inhibiting CD38 with apigenin increased available NAD+ and influenced NAD+-dependent enzymes such as the sirtuins.
That is a VERY interesting piece of the aging puzzle.
It doesn't mean that drinking chamomile tea has been proven to “boost NAD+” in humans to a clinically meaningful degree.
But it gives us a fascinating reason to pay attention to the plants we're consuming.
And then there’s the cancer research…
Apigenin has been extensively studied in cancer research.
Laboratory and animal studies have found effects involving:
• cell-cycle regulation
• apoptosis — programmed cell death
• autophagy
• inflammation
• oxidative stress
• angiogenesis
• cellular signaling pathways including PI3K/Akt, MAPK, NF-κB and STAT3
• processes involved in invasion and metastasis
Researchers have studied apigenin in models of breast, prostate, colon, lung, skin, pancreatic, liver, stomach and other cancers.
Skin care:
I don't only think about apigenin internally.
Apigenin has also been studied for skin health.
Research has found antioxidant and anti-inflammatory effects in skin models, including effects involving UV-induced inflammation. Topical apigenin has also been investigated for dermatitis, skin barrier function, hydration and signs of skin aging.
That's one reason I love the idea of incorporating plant compounds into skincare rather than thinking of skincare as completely separate from what we put into our bodies.
Apigenin has been studied for its effects on mast cells and histamine release. Since I have MCAS, this is one of the reasons I use chamomile in our teas and skincare.
Food. Herbs. Tea. Plants. Skin.
It's all connected.
Maybe that's one of the beautiful things about creation:
Whole foods, herbs, traditional preparations and the natural compounds God put there in the first place.
Have you heard of apigenin?
