ShopSilybum marianum, the antioxidant commonly found in the milk thistle . Milk thistle is a plant that is in the flowering plant family of the daisy, the major components that are used are the leaves and the seeds. The seeds are what are historically used for tonics for the liver.
Commonly reported to be beneficial in alleviating or lessening liver diseases. These diseases include the following: liver poisoning, cirrhosis, hepatitis, and fatty liver.
Other common uses include taking milk thistle before exposure to toxins, and during times of stress, travel, or over-consumption of alcohol or drugs. It is an excellent wat to detoxify the liver and prevent it from further damage. In animal studies, one of the plant’s constituents, silymarin, has been found to lower blood glucose levels and to decrease the need for exogenous insulin. Silymarin also strengthens liver cell membranes, helping them resist damage from chemicals such as drugs, poisons, and insecticides.
Silymarin works through several different mechanisms, first, as an antioxidant it quenches cell-damaging free radicals. Second, it suppresses the activity of tumor necrosis factor-alpha and interleukin-6, and therefore has anti-inflammatory properties. Third, it has cytoprotective (cell-protecting) benefits that have been demonstrated specifically in liver, pancreas, kidney, and brain cells.
Silymarin has frequently been used to treat the liver complications of alcoholism, including cirrhosis. Excessive intake of alcohol or pharmaceutical drugs (including acetaminophen) injures liver cells and impairs liver function. In addition, obesity increases the risk of steatosis (fatty liver), which can impair this organ’s ability to break down chemicals. Chronic liver infections, such as hepatitis, also reduce liver function. Silymarin protects the liver by reducing inflammation, enhancing production of glutathione (an antioxidant), and stimulating the production of new liver cells by accelerating protein and DNA synthesis. Note: When liver cells are damaged, certain enzymes can leak out and enter the bloodstream. Elevated levels of these enzymes usually indicate liver damage.
Silymarin may enhance the effectiveness of conventional cancer therapies while also lowering their toxicity. Human, animal, and cell studies have found that Silymarin may be particularly helpful during the treatment of breast, ovarian, liver, and prostate cancers, according to reports in Integrative Cancer Therapies and other journals.
Silymarin can reduce the toxic effects of chemical exposures, possibly by enhancing the liver’s ability to break down these chemicals. So far, researchers have found that Silymarin can protect against carbon tetrachloride, toluene, and xylene.
Burt Berkson, MD, a nutritionally oriented physician in Las Cruces, N.M., developed a triple oxidant treatment of hepatitis C that includes Silymarin, selenium, and alpha-lipoic acid. With this combination he has been able to consistently normalize liver enzymes in patients with the disease.
A recent study in Italy found that a combination of Silymarin and vitamin E led to significant improvements in two groups of patients, those with hepatitis C infections and those with fatty liver. Silymarin reduced hepatitis C virus concentrations and liver enzymes in patients with hepatitis C. Meanwhile, patients with fatty liver had a decrease in liver enzymes, as well as In cholesterol, blood sugar, and inflammation,
- Tamayo C, Diamond S. (2007). Review of clinical trials evaluating safety and efficacy of milk thistle (Silybum marianum [L.] Gaertn.). Integrative Cancer Therapies.6:146-157.
