May offer antioxidant effects

Some of the substances included in vanilla beans and extract have antioxidant properties, which means they aid in cell protection. For instance, the antioxidant capacity of vanillin and vanillic acid, two phenolic plant components found in vanilla, has been studied. A test-tube investigation conducted in 2020 discovered that both vanillin and vanillic acid protected brain cells from oxidative damage. Vanillin was discovered to be the more potent of the two.

Additionally, vanillin was found to protect against liver damage and age-related oxidative damage in 2021 research on aged rats. Further rat research from 2011 showed that pretreatment with vanillin shielded against induced liver damage. Although it is obvious that both vanilla extract and vanilla beans contain ingredients that may provide antioxidant protection, it is still unclear if ingesting regular doses of vanilla would provide people with any antioxidant advantages.