Milk Thistle

Milk Thistle Benefits

Milk Thistle, (Silybum marianum - or Carduus marianus) is a liver-supporting plant that should be a part of everyone's medicinal cabinet. The important active ingredients in Milk Thistle are silymarin, a group of plant compounds called flavonolignans, (including silibinin, isosilibinin, silychristin, silidianin, and others), which are thought to be responsible for many of milk thistle’s therapeutic effects, including optimizing liver function, protecting and repairing liver cells, maximizing liver detoxification, stimulating cell growth and reducing inflammation (in the liver). Let's explore milk thistle's full-range of benefits.

Milk thistle is among one of the very few herbals that are revered equally in complementary as well as in conventional medical circles. Milk thistle is also one of the most studied herbs in history. Indeed, science has long-confirmed milk thistle's clinical effects through extensive laboratory testing and copious clinical trials, which have concluded milk thistle's therapeutic benefits for the treatment of a wide range of liver, spleen, and gallbladder conditions, both mild and severe. Not only has milk thistle proven to be hepatoprotective (protecting the liver), but it has also been shown to regenerate liver cells in certain advanced forms of liver disease.

Health Benefits of Milk Thistle

• Helps Reduce Cholesterol
• Promotes healthy Glucose Metabolism
• Protects the Liver
• Stimulates Liver Detoxification

Who Benefits From Milk Thistle?

Practitioners will typically recommend milk thistle to smokers, drinkers, and anyone that is regularly exposed to toxins, as well as to those with a compromised liver, those with symptoms of a sluggish liver (poor digestion, nausea after meals, white-coated tongue, abdominal weight gain, headaches), tenderness in the upper right quadrant of the abdomen after overindulgence in food and drink, as well as to clients wanting to do a thorough detox. Milk thistle is also benefits those that need to reduce blood sugar and aid diabetes management, to help prevent the decline of cognitive function (due to its neuroprotective properties), to prevent bone loss as we age, as well as to boost milk production (by 64%) in lactating mothers.

Milk Thistle Supplements

Potencies

Milk thistle supplements are typically available in 150-250 mg potency. The recommended daily dose will be a function of the intended use, but the typical maintenance dose for optimal liver health is 150 mg, three times daily (TID). Clinical doses for various forms of liver disease will likely be higher. Refer to your health care practitioner for case-specific dosing recommendations.

 Forms

Milk thistle extract, be it in capsule or tincture form, should list the % of silymarin present per dose. This is your guarantee of efficacy. Indeed, your milk thistle supplement offers the most benefit if it's standardized to 60-80%, which corresponds with the percentage of silymarin used in clinical studies and has shown to be most effective.

Formats

Milk thistle supplements are widely available in capsules, tinctures, and liquids. Milk thistle is also frequently added to a wide range of combination supplements to aid with digestion or to bolster detoxification effects.

Final Thoughts

Because of milk thistle's blood-sugar-lowering effects, diabetics, and anyone with uncontrolled glycemia should check their blood sugar more frequently (or have their doctors monitor their blood sugar) to ensure their glycemia does not dip too low (hypoglycemia).

Milk thistle has natural estrogenic properties, meaning that it mimics the effects of estrogen inside the body. Anyone with hormone-sensitive conditions such as uterine fibroids, endometriosis, ovarian cancer, or a family history of hormone-dependent cancer should consult their health care practitioner before starting to supplement with milk thistle.