What Is Chlorophyll And Is It Really Beneficial?

A surprising new TikTok trend involving chlorophyll has been getting a lot of attention from the health and wellness world and has some people rushing out to buy bottles of the green liquid (via Shape). The influencers recommending the supplement are reporting a host of health and beauty benefits from ingesting chlorophyll regularly. However, before you use your hard-earned money to test it out for yourself, let's see what the experts have to say about the benefits of using liquid chlorophyll.

You might remember from science class that chlorophyll is the green pigment that allows plants to photosynthesize (via Cleveland Clinic). Photosynthesis is the process of taking in sunlight, water, and carbon dioxide and turning it into sugar and oxygen. Plants definitely need chlorophyll, but humans don't photosynthesize. We get our energy from eating and drinking. So why would someone drink chlorophyll? Well, technically liquid chlorophyll supplements contain a substance called chlorophyllin, and this substance is more easily absorbed by the body (via Healthline). Companies advertise that chlorophyllin can help strengthen the immune system, detoxify blood, give you energy, and even prevent cancer (via The Washington Post).

TikTok influencers also claim that liquid chlorophyll helps reduce redness in their skin and that it gives them a healthy glow. The videos show people mixing drops of liquid chlorophyll into glasses of water and drinking it (via Verywell Health). Before and after pictures seem to show dramatic improvements in skin health and appearance, but experts warn that if it sounds too good to be true, it probably is.

Chlorophyll treatments have been around for decades, but scientists are still unsure about just how safe they are. It's possible that ingesting liquid chlorophyll could increase your photosensitivity, making you more prone to sunburn. 

Additionally, it hasn't been tested on those under 18 or pregnant individuals. Plenty of studies have been done to try to prove the effectiveness of chlorophyll, but most of these studies have either been done in vitro, meaning tested on cells only, or done on animals (via The Washington Post). Studies on humans simply have not had enough participants to determine conclusive results. As of yet, there just hasn't been enough concrete evidence to support that chlorophyll has any of the benefits TikTok influencers are claiming. So if you're looking for a way to kick your health up a notch, try sticking to an original source of chlorophyll, rather than supplements, which has the added benefit of additional vitamins and minerals, or just eat your greens.