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Herbs & Spices · Spices

Cloves: Benefits, Uses, Clove Tea, Nutrition & Recipes

What cloves are, how Chinese medicine and Ayurveda use this warming spice for the mouth and digestion, what the research shows for tooth pain, gum health, blood sugar and inflammation, how to make clove tea, holiday recipes and how much to use.

By Dr. Josh Axe, DC, DNM, CNS·Medically reviewed by the DrAxe.com Medical Advisory Board·23-min read
Meet the Medical Advisory Board
Evidence-based43 sources citedUpdated October 28, 2026
Published Oct 28, 2026Last updated Oct 28, 2026Editorial policyMedical review policyFact-checking policy
A small white bowl of ground cloves surrounded by whole dried cloves on burlap
Ground and whole cloves, the dried flower buds of the clove tree.
The Dr. Axe Score™
6.6/10
Overall Dr. Axe Score · Cloves

Cloves score 6.6.

Scientific Evidence
4.4/10
A randomized trial of 168 ventilated patients in which a clove mouthwash beat chlorhexidine; a placebo-controlled trial of 73 adults in which a clove gel matched benzocaine; small trials on blood sugar, inflammation markers and mouth sores; a deep record of lab and animal studies.
Traditional Medicine
8.8/10
A warm herb in Chinese medicine for digestion, hiccups and vitality; a digestive, cough and mouth-freshening herb in Ayurveda's classical texts; used in Unani medicine and for toothache for centuries.
Clinical Effectiveness
6.6/10
Our judgment: a defined kill-phase role in Dr. Axe's Heal From Parasites Protocol (the 6.0 starting point), a mouthwash that beat the hospital standard, a gel that matched a numbing drug, and the pumpkin pie spice he has had patients take for years.
Safety
7.2/10
No harm reported at kitchen amounts; deductions for clove oil swallowed by small children and for a modest daily ceiling on the spice.
Why this score?
Why Cloves scores 6.6 / 10

    Chinese medicine and Ayurveda have used them for centuries as a warming herb for the mouth and digestion, and in mouth-care trials with people, clove matched or beat standard treatments. It also has a defined job in Dr. Axe's parasite protocol. Weighting: Evidence 30% · Traditional Medicine 25% · Clinical Effectiveness 25% · Safety 20% (4.4×0.30 + 8.8×0.25 + 6.6×0.25 + 7.2×0.20 = 1.32 + 2.20 + 1.65 + 1.44 = 6.61, shown as 6.6). How we score

    A transparent, weighted index built for foods. See how it’s calculated →

    Interaction check: Low for cloves in food; Moderate for clove oil and clove extracts with blood thinners. Interactions are rated separately and don't change the score.

    Blood thinners, such as warfarin: eugenol slowed platelet clumping in lab tests,40 and I advise against clove oil if you take one.13 Keep cloves to kitchen amounts and skip clove oil and extracts.

    SSRI antidepressants, such as sertraline: I also advise against clove oil if you take one of these.13 Cloves in food are fine.

    Diabetes medicines, such as metformin: if you add a clove extract, check your blood sugar more often, since your doctor may need to adjust your dose as your numbers improve.6

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    Cloves at a glance

    Cloves are the dried flower buds of an evergreen tree, a warming spice that Chinese medicine and Ayurveda have used for the mouth and digestion for centuries. In a study of more than 3,100 foods, they had the highest antioxidant content of any spice or herb tested.123

    • What they do: eugenol, clove's main compound, numbs tooth and gum pain.4 And in a randomized trial of 168 ventilated hospital patients, a clove mouthwash prevented pneumonia better than the standard rinse5
    • More support: steadier blood sugar after meals, calmer markers of inflammation, a warmer and steadier digestion, and the herb I use for the eggs in my parasite protocol6718
    • How much: 1/4 to 1/2 teaspoon of ground clove a day, or a few whole cloves in a pot of tea, broth or cider910
    • How to use them: pumpkin pie spice, hot spiced cider, chai with coconut milk, a clove-studded onion in bone broth and a cup of clove tea after a holiday meal
    • Keep clove oil, the concentrated essential oil, out of children's reach: 10 mL or less swallowed has caused liver failure in babies and toddlers1112

    Cloves are the dried, unopened flower buds of an evergreen tree native to Indonesia's Maluku islands, and gram for gram they carry more antioxidants than any other spice or herb tested.103 In kitchen amounts they're good for you: their main compound, eugenol, numbs tooth pain and helps keep the microbes in your mouth in balance.45 Some of clove's best evidence comes from a hospital, where a clove mouthwash cut pneumonia by about half compared with the standard rinse in a randomized trial of 168 patients on ventilators.5 And in a pilot study of 13 adults with no comparison group, a clove extract lowered blood sugar after meals.6

    If you live with tooth pain, tender gums, a sour or sluggish stomach or blood sugar that swings after meals, what's behind it is often a place where your body meets the outside world, your mouth or your gut, that has fallen out of balance. If you think of your mouth as the front door and your gut as the hallway right behind it, cloves do their work right there, which is why Chinese medicine and Ayurveda have relied on them for the mouth and digestion for centuries.12 On my show, I've named cloves among the herbs and spices in your own medicine cabinet that do the most to reduce inflammation:

    Turmeric, ginger, garlic, cinnamon, rosemary, oregano and cloves all have powerful anti-inflammatory benefits.Dr. Josh Axe, DC, DNM, CNSFrom 7 Foods That Quiet Inflammation Better Than Supplements, The Dr. Josh Axe Show (2026), at 22:43

    This is clove's season, when it's the warm note in pumpkin pie, hot spiced cider and chai. The same months that bring those foods also bring colds and heavy holiday meals, two of the jobs traditional medicine gave this spice, so let's look at what cloves do in your body, what the studies found and how to use them well all season.

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    • Ten hidden signs of a parasite, and how to test before you cleanse
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    • The antiparasitic herbs, ranked, with their doses, clove among them
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    Did you know?

    • Charaka Samhita, one of the classical texts of Ayurveda, lists clove among the mouth fresheners.2

    • Clove's main compound, eugenol, is also found in holy basil.13

    • The clove tree is native to Indonesia, and today it's also grown in other parts of the world, including Brazil.10

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    What are cloves?

    Quick answer

    Cloves are the dried, unopened flower buds of Syzygium aromaticum, an evergreen tree native to the Maluku islands of eastern Indonesia.10 You can buy them whole or ground into a warm, sweet and sharply aromatic spice.

    For centuries, clove has been one of the world's most valued spices, used both to keep food from spoiling and as medicine.10 Its power is packed into that tiny bud like oil in a little flask, since clove buds can be up to 18% essential oil, and most of that oil is eugenol.10 Chinese medicine knows clove as ding xiang, Ayurveda as lavanga, and both still use it today.12

    Clove oil is a different product from the spice you cook with. It's the concentrated essential oil of the clove tree, far stronger than the buds, with its own uses and its own guide on clove oil, so this page sticks to the cloves in your spice cupboard.

    Are cloves good for you?

    Quick answer

    Yes. In kitchen amounts, about 1/4 to 1/2 teaspoon of ground clove a day or a few whole cloves in a pot, cloves are a warming digestive herb with centuries of use. They're also a natural antimicrobial for your mouth and one of the richest antioxidant foods you can eat.153

    You eat cloves by the pinch, so their value comes not from bulk but from eugenol and polyphenols, along with a good share of the day's manganese.14 In your mouth, clove has held its own in trials against standard dental and hospital treatments, and for digestion, coughs and parasites, it carries centuries of traditional use, with lab studies pointing the same way.

    Cloves belong with ginger, cinnamon and nutmeg among the healing herbs and spices I encourage you to cook with every day.15 That's food as medicine in its simplest form: small amounts, often, in meals you already eat.

    How do cloves work in your body?

    Clove's warmth and its effects come from two families of compounds, and they work like a two-part team. The first is its aromatic oil, mostly eugenol, which runs from 9,382 to 14,650 mg per 100 grams of plant material.10 Eugenol gives clove its warm bite and its numbing effect, so if a clove has ever left your tongue tingling, you've felt it at work. The second is its polyphenols, the plant compounds behind its antioxidant power,16 and the steps below follow that team from the spice jar to your mouth and beyond.

    1The warmth is eugenol

    Clove buds can be up to 18% essential oil, and most of it is eugenol, the compound behind that warm bite on your tongue.10

    2Packed with polyphenols

    Out of the 100 richest food sources of polyphenols in one database, cloves come in first, at about 15,000 mg per 100 grams.16

    3Quiets pain in the mouth

    Clove works a bit like a dentist's numbing gel from your spice rack: in a randomized trial, a clove gel on the gum eased the pain of needle sticks as much as a benzocaine gel did, and more than a placebo.4

    4Keeps mouth microbes in check

    Clove compounds stopped two gum-disease bacteria in lab tests.17 In the randomized hospital trial, a clove mouthwash protected ventilated patients from pneumonia better than chlorhexidine.5

    5Steadier blood sugar

    In liver cells, clove extract turned down the genes for making new glucose the way insulin does.18 In the uncontrolled pilot study, a clove extract lowered blood sugar after meals.6

    Step after step, the same pattern shows up: a spice rich in protective compounds eases pain, keeps microbes in balance and steadies blood sugar, starting at your body's front door. Take good care of that front door and the hallway behind it, and a sore tooth or a sour stomach has less reason to show up.

    Cloves benefits

    Your mouth and your digestion are where clove has worked longest, and your mouth is where most of the human trials are, so we've ranked the benefits below by how much research in people backs each one, from the most to the least.

    1

    Numbs tooth and gum pain

    Emerging evidence (randomized trial)Human studyRandomized trial · 73 adults · clove gel vs. 20% benzocaine gel and look-alike placebos; review of 62 trials of herbal extracts for mouth and jaw pain

    Easing a toothache is one of clove's best-known uses, in Chinese medicine and in dental care.119 For a toothache, I recommend clove oil, because its eugenol temporarily numbs the nerves in your mouth.20 My rinse is 1 or 2 drops of clove oil in a few tablespoons of olive oil, swished for 30 seconds and spit out.20

    The old remedy holds up when it's tested, too. In a randomized trial of 73 adults, a homemade clove gel on the gum eased the pain of two needle sticks as much as 20% benzocaine gel, the standard numbing gel. Both did better than look-alike placebos, and the volunteers didn't know which gel they got, so a spice from your kitchen held its own against a numbing drug.4 A 2024 review of 62 trials of herbal extracts for mouth and jaw pain counted clove among the herbs that eased pain.21

    Our toothache guide covers the rest of a plan, but for a sore tooth tonight, your first step is already in the spice cupboard: hold a whole clove against it, or swish the rinse above.

    Study takeaway: in a randomized trial, a homemade clove gel numbed needle-stick pain as well as 20% benzocaine, the standard numbing gel.

    2

    Healthier gums and a cleaner mouth

    Emerging evidence (randomized trials)Human studyRandomized trial · 168 ICU patients · 5 days (clove mouthwash vs. 0.2% chlorhexidine); randomized trial · 40 adults with gingivitis · 21 days; pilot · 14 patients during radiation; lab and rat studies

    Your mouth is the front door to your gut, and gum trouble often means the microbes living there have fallen out of balance. In my book The Biblio Diet, I call clove a natural bacteria fighter, and its eugenol works against the bacteria that cause disease in the mouth.20 In lab tests, clove compounds preferentially stopped Porphyromonas gingivalis and Prevotella intermedia, two of the bacteria behind gum disease, much as a gardener goes after the weeds first.17

    In people, clove's clearest result comes from an intensive care unit. In a randomized trial of 168 patients on ventilators, nurses cleaned each patient's mouth twice a day for 5 days with 15 mL of one of two rinses. Half got a 6.66% clove-extract mouthwash and half got 0.2% chlorhexidine, the hospital standard, and neither the patients, the nurses nor the researchers knew which rinse was used. Pneumonia developed in 17 of 84 patients on the clove rinse (20.2%), against 35 of 84 on chlorhexidine (41.7%), so the clove rinse cut the number of pneumonias by about half, and the pneumonias that did occur were no less severe in one group than the other.5

    Study takeaway: in the randomized ICU trial, 20.2% of ventilated patients on the clove rinse developed pneumonia, against 41.7% on chlorhexidine.

    A clove mouthwash cut ventilator pneumonia by about half compared with the hospital standard

    A clove mouthwash cut ventilator pneumonia by about half compared with the hospital standard168 ICU patients on ventilators, mouth care twice a day for 5 days; randomized, and neither patients, nurses nor researchers knew which rinse was used. Clove-extract mouthwash (6.66%): 20.2 % who developed pneumonia; Chlorhexidine 0.2% mouthwash: 41.7 % who developed pneumonia168 ICU patients on ventilators, mouth care twice a day for5 days; randomized, and neither patients, nurses norresearchers knew which rinse was used
    20.2 % who developed pneumonia
    CLOVE-EXTRACT MOUTHWASH (6.66%)
    41.7 % who developed pneumonia
    CHLORHEXIDINE 0.2% MOUTHWASH
    Source: Jahanshir et al. · Clinical Oral Investigations, 2023 [5]17 of 84 patients on the clove rinse developed pneumonia, against 35 of 84 on chlorhexidine; severity didn't differ.

    Outside the hospital, clove has done well for everyday gum health too. Researchers gave 40 adults with gingivitis a rinse of tea tree oil, clove and basil for 21 days, in a trial in which neither the people nor the researchers knew who got what. The rinse improved plaque and gum scores about as much as a commercial essential-oil mouthwash, and it cut mouth bacteria more.22 Clove has also been tested in a much harder setting: in a randomized pilot of 14 patients getting radiation for head and neck cancer, a clove-based herbal mouthwash shortened the stretch of painful mouth sores to 24.3 days, from 37.1 days with plain water. The patients using it also lost less weight during treatment, 3.1% of body weight against 7.4%, though its other gains, including less pain, were too small to be sure of.23 And in immunosuppressed rats, eugenol cut oral thrush, a yeast overgrowth, about as well as the antifungal drug nystatin.24

    My own routine uses the same idea, as a small daily habit: when I oil pull, I swish a tablespoon of coconut oil with a little clove or myrrh oil for 5 to 20 minutes, then spit it out.25 Our guides to oil pulling and the oral microbiome build out the rest of a daily routine, and if your gums bleed or look puffy, start with our gingivitis guide.

    3

    Calms oxidative stress and inflammation

    Emerging evidence (randomized trial)Human studyLab analysis of more than 3,100 foods; trial · 16 men who each tried both (250 mg clove-bud extract vs. placebo); lab and mouse studies

    Cloves lead the spice cabinet for antioxidants. In my view, gram for gram, dried herbs and spices are the most antioxidant-dense foods on earth,15 and cloves come out on top among them. In a study that measured the antioxidant content of more than 3,100 foods, ground and whole cloves averaged 277.3 mmol per 100 grams, the highest of the 425 spices and herbs tested. Compare that with allspice at 100.4, ground cinnamon at 77.0, nutmeg at 26.4 and dried ginger at 20.3.3 That's a lab measure of the antioxidants in the spice itself, but the gap is wide: gram for gram, cloves carried well over twice the antioxidants of allspice, the runner-up in the pumpkin pie spice cabinet.

    In people, you can see it in blood markers of inflammation. In a trial of 16 men who each tried both the extract and a placebo, the men took a 250 mg clove-bud polyphenol extract with a heavy night of drinking, and neither they nor the researchers knew which capsule was which. Compared with placebo, the extract lowered C-reactive protein and interleukin-6, two markers of inflammation, along with markers of oxidative stress, and it raised glutathione, one of your body's own antioxidants. The extract's maker ran the study.7 In lab and mouse studies, a clove extract also slowed the growth of human colon cancer cells.26

    Cook with cloves alongside the other anti-inflammatory herbs in your cabinet, a pinch at a time, every day.

    Study takeaway: cloves had the highest antioxidant content of 425 spices and herbs, and a clove extract lowered CRP and IL-6 compared with placebo in men who each tried both.

    Cloves top the pumpkin pie spice cabinet for antioxidants

    Cloves top the pumpkin pie spice cabinet for antioxidantsTotal antioxidant content of dried spices, measured in a lab analysis of foods bought around the world. Cloves: 277.3 mmol per 100 g; Allspice: 100.4 mmol per 100 g; Cinnamon (ground): 77 mmol per 100 g; Nutmeg: 26.4 mmol per 100 g; Ginger (dried): 20.3 mmol per 100 gTotal antioxidant content of dried spices, measured in a labanalysis of foods bought around the worldCloves277.3 mmol per 100 gAllspice100.4 mmol per 100 gCinnamon(ground)77 mmol per 100 gNutmeg26.4 mmol per 100 gGinger (dried)20.3 mmol per 100 g
    Source: Carlsen et al. · Nutrition Journal, 2010 [3]Of the spices in pumpkin pie spice, cloves bring the most antioxidants.
    4

    Steadier blood sugar after meals

    Emerging evidence (pilot study)Human studyPilot study · 13 adults · 30 days (250 mg clove-bud extract after lunch), no comparison group; lab study of liver cells

    Clove helped steady blood sugar after meals in a human pilot study, and lab work shows how. In liver cells, clove extract acted like insulin, turning down the genes for two enzymes the liver uses to make new glucose, much like easing off the gas on the liver's sugar-making.18

    If your numbers tend to climb after meals, this trial speaks to you directly. In a pilot study of 13 adults aged 25 to 35, each took a 250 mg capsule of a clove-bud polyphenol extract after lunch for 30 days, and researchers checked blood sugar two hours after lunch. In the 7 adults whose readings started in the normal range, it fell by 13.29, 17.29 and 27.00 mg/dL at days 12, 24 and 30. In the 6 whose readings started in the prediabetic range, it fell further, by 16.67, 30.50 and 40.33 mg/dL, so in both groups, the longer people took it, the bigger the drop. Pre-lunch readings, taken 4 hours after breakfast, fell 13.67 mg/dL by day 30 in the prediabetic-range group and barely moved in the normal group. Everyone knew what they were taking, there was no comparison group, and the extract's maker ran the study.6

    In your kitchen, cloves usually travel with cinnamon, and for years, I've had my patients take pumpkin pie spice, a blend of cinnamon, clove and ginger.27 (See normal blood sugar levels for the bigger picture.) The easiest way to start is to stir a pinch into oatmeal, a smoothie or applesauce in place of a sugary topping.

    Study takeaway: a clove extract lowered blood sugar two hours after lunch over 30 days, in an uncontrolled pilot study.

    Blood sugar after lunch kept falling over a month of clove extract

    Blood sugar after lunch kept falling over a month of clove extract13 adults, 250 mg clove-bud polyphenol extract after lunch every day for 30 days; drop in blood sugar 2 hours after lunch; pilot study with no comparison group. Day 12: Normal readings at the start (7 adults) 13.29 mg/dL drop from day 1, Prediabetic-range readings (6 adults) 16.67 mg/dL drop from day 1; Day 24: Normal readings at the start (7 adults) 17.29 mg/dL drop from day 1, Prediabetic-range readings (6 adults) 30.5 mg/dL drop from day 1; Day 30: Normal readings at the start (7 adults) 27 mg/dL drop from day 1, Prediabetic-range readings (6 adults) 40.33 mg/dL drop from day 113 adults, 250 mg clove-bud polyphenol extract after lunchevery day for 30 days; drop in blood sugar 2 hours afterlunch; pilot study with no comparison group13.2917.2927Normal readings at the start (7 adults) (mg/dLdrop from day 1)16.6730.540.33Prediabetic-range readings (6 adults) (mg/dLdrop from day 1)Day 12Day 24Day 30
    Source: Mohan et al. · BMC Complementary and Alternative Medicine, 2019 [6]Each group is compared with its own readings on day 1.
    5

    Liver support

    Emerging evidence (randomized trial)Human studyTrial · 16 men who each tried both (250 mg clove-bud extract vs. placebo); review of 21 placebo-controlled hangover trials

    Your liver does the heavy lifting when your body clears alcohol, and clove helped it along in the heavy-drinking trial described above. Acetaldehyde is the mess alcohol leaves behind, the toxic by-product behind liver injury and hangovers. In that trial, the clove-bud extract cleared it from the blood faster than the placebo did, while levels of superoxide dismutase, one of the body's own antioxidant enzymes, rose.7 A review of 21 placebo-controlled hangover trials reported that overall hangover scores fell 42.5% with the clove extract, against 19.0% with placebo, and it rated the evidence for every hangover remedy it reviewed as very low quality.28

    Your liver is one of your main detox organs, and our guide to liver function covers the foods and habits that help it most. The short version is that it works best with steady support from your plate.

    Study takeaway: a clove-bud extract sped the clearance of acetaldehyde after drinking, compared with placebo, in men who each tried both.

    6

    Digestive support for a cold, sluggish stomach

    Traditional use (with animal and lab studies)Traditional useChinese medicine; Ayurveda's classical texts; rat studies of the stomach lining; lab studies of H. pylori

    Warming a cold, sluggish digestion is clove's classic job in Chinese medicine. You know the feeling: a meal that just sits there. Chinese medicine's texts describe clove as warming the middle, meaning your stomach and digestion, and settling a stomach that pushes upward, and they use it for vomiting, hiccups and belly pain that comes with cold.1 Ayurveda uses clove to kindle digestion, the way you'd stoke a fire, and for gas, bloating, hyperacidity, vomiting and hiccups.2

    Researchers have tested clove on the stomach, too. In rats, clove oil and eugenol protected the stomach lining from ulcers by raising its protective mucus, a kind of raincoat for the lining, without changing stomach acid.29 In lab tests, water and alcohol extracts of clove stopped H. pylori, a stomach bacterium linked to a range of stomach diseases, including strains that resist antibiotics, and the bacteria didn't develop resistance to clove.30

    For gas and fullness, see how to get rid of bloating, and for a stubborn bout of hiccups, how to get rid of hiccups. But after a big holiday meal, the traditional move is the simplest one: a warm cup of clove tea.

    Study takeaway: a warming digestive herb in Chinese medicine and Ayurveda that protected the stomach lining in rats.

    7

    Parasite cleanse support

    Preclinical (animal and lab studies), with a role in Dr. Axe's protocolAnimal study30 sheep with gut worms · 7 days (1.8 g ground cloves a day vs. untreated); lab egg-hatch tests; lab studies of Giardia

    In my parasite protocol, clove is the herb I use for the eggs.831 That matters because even as the adults die off, parasites keep laying eggs, and clove is the key herb for that job.31 If you clear out the adults but leave the eggs, you've left the next generation behind. In the 14-day kill phase, I use 500 mg of clove two to three times a day, alongside wormwood and black walnut, so the herbs reach parasites at different stages of life.8

    So far, the studies behind that role come from farm animals and the lab. In 30 sheep with gut worms, the 10 given 1.8 grams of ground cloves a day for 7 days shed 40.7% fewer worm eggs by day 12. Over the same stretch, egg counts in the untreated sheep rose 8.7%, though the clove group's anemia score also worsened.32 In lab egg-hatch tests, eugenol stopped the eggs of a stomach worm of sheep and goats from hatching, which is the egg job seen up close.33 Clove oil and eugenol also stopped Giardia, a common gut parasite, from growing in the lab.34

    I recommend a parasite cleanse only when you have real reason to suspect a parasite,35 and my free Heal From Parasites Protocol walks you through the signs, the testing and each phase.

    Study takeaway: in sheep with gut worms, 1.8 grams of ground cloves a day cut worm-egg counts 40.7% in 12 days.

    8

    Cough and cold-season support

    Traditional useTraditional useAyurveda's classical texts; Chinese medicine

    Ayurveda counts clove among the herbs that relieve cough, and Chinese medicine sends it to the lungs. Ayurveda uses it for cough, breathlessness and hiccups.2 In Chinese medicine, clove enters the lung channel as well as the stomach, spleen and kidney.1 A channel is like a road the herb travels to reach the parts of you it works on. If you've been around someone with a cold or the flu, I suggest putting a few drops of clove oil in a diffuser and breathing in the scent, or mixing a few drops with 1 tablespoon of coconut oil and rubbing it on your neck and chest.13

    Our guide to natural cold remedies lays out a full cold-season plan, but you can start in the kitchen tonight: simmer a few whole cloves with fresh ginger and a cinnamon stick, and sweeten the cup with a little raw honey.

    Study takeaway: a traditional cough herb in Ayurveda that Chinese medicine directs to the lungs.

    Cloves in Chinese medicine and Ayurveda

    Quick answer

    In Chinese medicine, clove is a warm, pungent herb that strengthens digestion, settles nausea and hiccups and supports vitality. Ayurveda uses it to kindle digestion, ease coughs and freshen the mouth.12

    Traditional Chinese medicine describes clove as warm in nature and pungent in flavor, and it directs clove to the spleen and stomach, the lungs and the kidneys.1 It gives clove four core jobs, and the first is warming the middle, which in plain English means warming and strengthening your digestion, the way a woodstove heats the center of a house. The others are settling a stomach that pushes upward, easing pain that comes with cold, and warming the kidneys, which supports vitality and sexual energy.1

    Traditional Energetic Profile
    Taste
    Pungent
    Its flavor in Chinese medicine
    Temperature
    Warm
    Warms a digestion that runs cold
    Organs
    Stomach, spleen, lungs, kidneys
    Digestion, breathing and vitality
    Best for
    A cold, sluggish stomach
    Nausea, hiccups and cold-type belly pain
    Classic use
    Warming the kidneys
    Supports vitality and sexual energy
    In Ayurveda
    Lavanga
    Kindles digestion and relieves cough

    That warmth is why clove feels right when the weather turns. Chinese medicine teaches that coldness can enter your body, and the answer is warming herbs and spices,36 clove among them. You can taste it in the blend in your pumpkin pie:

    Pumpkin pie spice has ginger, cinnamon and clove, all of which are very warming spices.Dr. Josh Axe, DC, DNM, CNSFrom How to Prevent & Heal Cold & Flu Naturally (Foods, Supplements, & Herbs for Rapid Recovery), The Dr. Josh Axe Show (2024), at 19:14

    In Ayurvedic medicine, clove goes by lavanga, and its classical texts describe it as pungent and bitter, light and sharp. They use it to kindle digestion, relieve cough and calm kapha and pitta, two of the three doshas, Ayurveda's mind-body energies.2 Ayurveda's texts do class clove's potency as cooling, while Chinese medicine calls it warm, but the two traditions still reach for it for the same jobs: the mouth, digestion and coughs. Unani medicine has used it too, for men's sexual health.37

    Healers in China and India, working in separate traditions for centuries, came back to the same small bud for the same problems, and the mouth trials on this page are starting to show what they saw in it. Scripture gives herbs that same place in daily life: "He causeth the grass to grow for the cattle, and herb for the service of man: that he may bring forth food out of the earth" (Psalm 104:14).

    Cloves nutrition facts

    Quick answer

    A teaspoon of ground cloves (2.1 grams) has 5.8 calories, 1.4 grams of carbohydrate and 0.71 grams of fiber, and it supplies 1.26 mg of manganese, 55% of the daily value.1438

    Ground cloves per 1 teaspoon (2.1 g) and per 100 g. Source: USDA FoodData Central, SR Legacy FDC ID 171321; % Daily Value is figured from FDA's reference amounts.1438

    Nutrient1 teaspoon (2.1 g)% Daily ValuePer 100 g
    Calories5.8n/a274
    Carbohydrate1.4 g<1%65.5 g
    Fiber0.71 g3%33.9 g
    Fat0.27 g<1%13.0 g
    Protein0.13 g<1%5.97 g
    Manganese1.26 mg55%60.1 mg
    Vitamin K2.98 µg2%142 µg
    Calcium13.3 mg1%632 mg
    Iron0.25 mg1%11.8 mg
    Magnesium5.4 mg1%259 mg
    Vitamin E0.19 mg1%8.82 mg
    Potassium21.4 mg<1%1,020 mg

    What stands out in that table is manganese: just one teaspoon gives you more than half the daily value, and the manganese guide linked above explains what it does in your body. Beyond that one mineral, clove's value is the eugenol and polyphenols you met in the section on how cloves work.

    Whole vs. ground cloves: which should you buy?

    Quick answer

    Buy whole cloves for simmering and for grinding fresh, and keep a jar of ground cloves for baking. Whole cloves keep their aroma longer, and ground cloves blend evenly into batters and spice mixes.

    Grind whole cloves in a spice grinder or with a mortar and pestle as you need them. In broths, rice, cider and tea, use them whole and pick them out before serving, because they're woody and very strong to bite into, and nobody wants to find one in a spoonful of soup. Store both in tightly closed jars in a cool, dark cupboard, away from the heat of the stove.

    Clove tea and clove water: benefits and how to make them

    Quick answer

    Clove tea is whole cloves simmered in water, and it's the traditional way to use clove for digestion, coughs and the mouth.12 Clove water is the same idea served cool: whole cloves soaked in water overnight, then strained.

    Clove tea does two jobs: a cup after dinner fits the Chinese medicine use for a cold, heavy stomach, and a cup with ginger and honey fits the cold-season use. Either way, all it takes is a pot and a few cloves, and our guide to herbal tea benefits has more cups like it.

    Clove tea recipe

    • 1 cup water
    • 3 or 4 whole cloves
    • 1 slice fresh ginger
    • 1 cinnamon stick
    • 1 teaspoon raw honey, if you like it sweet

    Simmer the cloves, ginger and cinnamon in the water for 5 minutes. Strain it into a mug, let it cool until it's comfortable to sip, then stir in the honey. For clove water, drop 3 or 4 whole cloves into a glass of water, leave it overnight, and strain it in the morning.

    How to use cloves

    Food comes first with any healing spice, and you don't need a special recipe, because cloves slip easily into meals you already make. Pumpkin pie spice, cinnamon blended with clove, nutmeg and ginger, is one of the ways I get cinnamon around the holidays, and it's great in a morning smoothie.39 If you're having a little applesauce for breakfast, I suggest stirring in a full teaspoon of cinnamon or pumpkin pie spice.36

    Baking. Pies, muffins, cookies and quick breads all take ground cloves, usually a pinch beside cinnamon, ginger and nutmeg.
    Hot drinks. Simmer whole cloves in apple cider, or add ground cloves to chai tea made with coconut milk or goat milk.
    Broth. Push 3 or 4 whole cloves into an onion half and drop it into a pot of bone broth as it simmers.
    Curries and Indian dishes. Cloves are one of the spices in garam masala, and whole cloves go into biryani and chutneys.
    Rice. Cook rice with 3 or 4 whole cloves and a cinnamon stick for a warm, fragrant pilaf, then pick the cloves out.
    Poultry. Rub a holiday turkey or a roast chicken with ground cloves, cinnamon, salt and pepper before it goes into the oven.

    One more use is for your mouth, and it couldn't be simpler: people in China have long held a whole clove in the mouth to freshen the breath.1 (For a fuller routine, see how to get rid of bad breath.) Try it after your next meal: hold one in your mouth for a few minutes, then discard it.

    What to use instead of cloves

    Out of cloves? Reach for allspice, the closest match in flavor. Nutmeg, cinnamon or homemade pumpkin pie spice also bring the same warm, sweet note to baking and hot drinks.

    Holiday clove recipes

    These recipes put cloves to work all season, in drinks, breads and broths. Pick one this week and let your kitchen smell like the holidays.

    • Homemade pumpkin pie spice. Cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg, allspice and 1 1/2 teaspoons of ground cloves, mixed into a jar you'll use all season.

    • Apple cider recipe. Apples and orange simmered with ground clove and cinnamon into a hot holiday cider.

    • Cranberry apple cider. Whole cloves simmered with cranberries, apples, ginger and cardamom.

    • Frothy chai tea latte. Coconut milk warmed with ground cloves, cinnamon, ginger, cardamom and nutmeg.

    • Thai iced tea. Black tea steeped with 4 whole cloves, cardamom and star anise, finished with coconut milk.

    • Slow cooker apple butter. Apples cooked down with ground clove and cinnamon.

    • Pumpkin spice latte. Coconut milk, pumpkin and pumpkin pie spice, cloves included.

    • Gluten-free pumpkin bread. Almond and coconut flour bread spiced with cinnamon and pumpkin pie spice.

    • Chicken bone broth. Push 3 or 4 whole cloves into one of the onion halves before it goes into the pot.

    • Clove rice pilaf. Cook rice in broth with whole cloves, a cinnamon stick and a bay leaf.

    • Clove tea. The recipe above, with ginger, cinnamon and a little raw honey.

    Questions about cloves?

    Ask Dr. Axe AI. Answers are grounded in this library, with sources shown.

    Who should be careful with cloves?

    Cloves in food are safe for nearly everyone, and eugenol at normal doses hasn't been linked to liver injury.19 The steps below are mostly about clove oil, because it's far more concentrated than the spice.

    Clove oil and children. If you have little ones at home, read this one twice, because swallowed clove oil has caused liver failure in young children: a 15-month-old after 10 mL and a 3-month-old after less than 8 mL, and both recovered with hospital treatment.1112 Over four years of calls to an Australian poisons center, clove was the fourth most common essential oil, with 179 of 4,412 exposures. Children under 15 made up nearly two-thirds of all the calls, and 13% of the calls were mix-ups, typically an oil mistaken for a liquid medicine.41 Store clove oil like a medicine, out of reach and away from liquid medicines. If a child swallows any, call Poison Control (1-800-222-1222 in the U.S.) right away.

    Clove oil by mouth. My advice is not to swallow clove oil.2013 Use the spice or the tea by mouth, and keep the oil for rinses you spit out, diluted rubs and a diffuser.

    Undiluted oil. Dilute clove oil before it touches your gums or skin, as in the rinse and the chest rub above.2013 If your mouth or skin reacts, stop.

    A toothache with swelling or fever. Clove eases tooth pain while you get care, but if your face swells or you run a fever, see a dentist promptly.

    How much of the spice. Food-safety experts from the WHO and FAO set the acceptable daily intake of eugenol at up to 2.5 mg per kilogram of body weight, which for a 154-pound adult is about 175 mg.9 A teaspoon of ground cloves carries roughly 200 to 300 mg,10 so keep everyday use to 1/4 to 1/2 teaspoon a day. The limit is a lifetime daily average, so don't worry if a holiday baking day goes over.

    Pregnancy and breastfeeding. Cloves in food are fine. During pregnancy or breastfeeding, my answer on a parasite cleanse is absolutely not: no wormwood, no black walnut and no clove.35 Skip clove oil by mouth and clove extracts then too.

    The bottom line

    Should you use cloves?

    Yes. For centuries, traditional medicine has trusted this warming spice to care for the mouth and settle digestion, and the newer studies point the same way: in randomized trials, a clove gel numbed pain as well as benzocaine, and a clove mouthwash protected ventilated hospital patients from pneumonia better than the standard rinse.

    Use 1/4 to 1/2 teaspoon of ground clove a day, or a few whole cloves in a pot, in warm food and drink, such as pumpkin pie, hot spiced cider, chai, a pot of broth and a cup of clove tea after a holiday meal.

    Healing starts in the kitchen, and a spice that keeps your mouth in balance and warms your digestion is an easy daily habit to build, so start tonight with a few whole cloves simmering in a cup of tea.

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    Cloves: frequently asked questions

    Do cloves have sexual benefits?

    They have a long traditional reputation for men's sexual health. Unani medicine has used clove for male sexual problems, and Chinese medicine uses it to warm the kidneys for impotence.371 In male rats, a clove extract increased mating behavior over 7 days.37 In mice, a low dose of clove supported testosterone-making activity, while higher doses did the opposite, so in that study, more wasn't better.42 Our guide to aphrodisiac foods covers more foods with the same traditional use.

    What are the benefits of clove water?

    Clove water brings clove's traditional uses for digestion, coughs and fresher breath into a simple, cool drink.12 To make a glass, drop 3 or 4 whole cloves into water, leave it overnight and strain it in the morning.

    Is it good to eat cloves at night?

    A cup of clove tea after dinner fits clove's traditional role as a warming digestive herb.12 No study has shown that nighttime timing adds anything, so enjoy it whenever it suits you.

    Do cloves help with weight loss?

    Possibly. In mice fed a high-fat diet, a clove extract limited weight gain, belly fat and fat in the liver, and lowered triglycerides and LDL cholesterol.43

    How do you use cloves for a toothache?

    Rinse with diluted clove oil or hold a whole clove against the sore tooth. My rinse is 1 or 2 drops of clove oil in a few tablespoons of olive oil, swished for 30 seconds and spit out.20 Our guide to toothache relief covers the rest.

    Can you eat whole cloves?

    Yes, but they're woody and very strong. Most people chew or hold one briefly for fresher breath and pick whole cloves out of dishes before serving.1 Ground cloves are the easier way to eat them.

    How much clove is safe a day?

    Kitchen amounts, 1/4 to 1/2 teaspoon of ground clove a day, sit inside the acceptable daily intake WHO and FAO experts set for eugenol. A teaspoon every day would go over it for most adults.910 Clove oil is a different matter, and the safety section covers it.

    Is clove oil the same as cloves?

    No. Clove oil is the concentrated essential oil of the clove tree, far stronger than the spice. It's diluted before it touches gums or skin, and it isn't swallowed. See our guide to clove oil and the safety section above.

    What do cloves taste like?

    Warm, sweet and sharply aromatic, with a slightly bitter edge and a mild numbing tingle on the tongue from eugenol.10 A little goes a long way in a recipe.

    Can you put cloves in coffee?

    Yes. A whole clove in the grounds or a pinch of ground clove with cinnamon makes a classic spiced coffee, and the same 1/4 to 1/2 teaspoon a day guide applies.

    Are cloves safe during pregnancy?

    In food amounts, yes. During pregnancy or breastfeeding, though, skip clove oil by mouth, clove extracts and any parasite cleanse. Clove is one of the herbs I rule out for a cleanse at those times.35

    Freshness & update log

    October 28, 2026 — Rebuilt the page under Dr. Axe's byline around what cloves do in your body: the mouth and the gut, the places your body first meets the outside world. Added the Dr. Axe Score with its math; Dr. Axe's own words on cloves, warming spices, the pumpkin pie spice he has had patients take for years, his toothache rinse, his oil-pulling routine and clove's role in his parasite protocol; how cloves work, with a step diagram; cloves in Chinese medicine and Ayurveda; the randomized trial of a clove mouthwash against chlorhexidine in ventilated patients and the clove-versus-benzocaine trial; a 30-day blood sugar pilot and an inflammation trial in people, each with its numbers and design; three charts; whole vs. ground cloves; clove tea and clove water with a recipe; and one safety section built on poison-center, liver-safety and food-safety data. Kept from the earlier page, each now sourced at its level of evidence: infections and immunity, now the mouth and gum card; pain relief; blood sugar; digestion and stomach lining; antioxidants; liver health, now a human trial; cancer research, now one labeled line; oral health and gum disease; manganese, now in nutrition facts; obesity, now an FAQ at the animal level; breathing and cough, now at their traditional level; aging, folded into antioxidants; the aphrodisiac use, now an FAQ; the uses and recipe ideas, rebuilt with live recipes; substitutes; whole vs. ground; storage; and the nutrition table. Corrected: cloves are native to Indonesia's Maluku islands, not the Middle East; fiber per teaspoon is 0.71 g, not 1 g; manganese is 55% of the current daily value; the earlier "up to one teaspoon a day" guide is replaced, since a daily teaspoon is above the acceptable daily intake for eugenol for most adults; and the earlier advice on swallowing diluted clove oil now follows Dr. Axe's written guidance not to ingest it. Removed after a search found no support: benzene and methylene chloride as clove compounds (both are lab solvents), the unsourced eugenol percentages, headaches and skin breakouts (the evidence is for clove oil, covered on the clove oil page), itchy skin (a clove oil trial whose difference from the comparison cream wasn't clear), water retention and weight-loss tea claims, the whole-to-ground conversion, the 1% to 5% clove oil product claim, the India and Madagascar production line, and the rat anti-ulcer drug comparison. Mulled wine and pot roast became hot spiced cider, broth and poultry ideas.

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    Dr. Josh Axe

    Dr. Josh Axe, DC, DNM, CNS

    Doctor of Natural Medicine · Founder, DrAxe.com

    Dr. Axe is a certified doctor of natural medicine, clinical nutritionist, and multiple New York Times bestselling author. He has spent 20+ years in clinical practice helping people heal at the root cause and founded one of the most-visited natural-health platforms in the world.

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