Milk Thistle

Research shows that milk thistles can potentially help with supporting the liver and aid digestion.

Interestingly, milk thistle’s botanical, Grecian name is ‘Silybum marianum’. The herb is native to the Mediterranean region and is an upright plant that grows to 2 meters tall with a grooved stem, often covered in a light cottony fuzz. The leaves are long, spiny and hairless with milk-white veins. The centre of the plant is a distinct, pink, thistle.

Milk thistle is most commonly used for detoxification programmes around the festive period and many other conditions.

Health giving benefits:  Pedanius Dioscorides, who as a botanist as well as a Greek physician, was the first to describe milk thistle’s healing properties around 50AD, but extracts are thought to been used a few hundred years before, around 400BC. Today, the western energetic system uses milk thistle to support the liver, head, womb, and stomach. The herb is described as hot and dry which strengthens the heart and liver, purges choler, and reduces fevers. John Gerard, a 16^th century English herbalist, noted in his 1597 book ‘Generall Historie of Plantes’ that milk thistle was “the best remedy against melancholy diseases”. Additionally, milk thistle has been used as a bitter to aid digestion.

Interest in the herb was revitalised in the mid-19^th century and later in the 1930’s in Germany, where it was prescribed as a stimulant, used for functional disorders of the liver and gallbladder, and diseases of the spleen. Milk thistle is also used to relieve symptoms associated with overindulgence of food and drink such as indigestion and upset stomach. Milk thistle is a choleretic, meaning that it helps support the production of bile. Today, people commonly take milk thistle as part of a detoxification programme around the festive period, and to support diabetes, liver disorders, and many other conditions.

What does the research show?

Silymarin are the group of flavonoids found in milk thistle which are well documented for their potential health supporting effects in humans. A scientific review reported that silymarin aids with stimulating liver regeneration and reduces oxidative stress as it is a powerful antioxidant. Silymarin has been found to reduce free radical production and lipid peroxidation in cells. Silymarin protects cells by preventing free radical producing enzymes or improving the integrity of mitochondria in studies in human cells.

Studies have revealed that milk thistle has been found to support non-alcoholic fatty liver disease; a condition caused by a buildup of fat in the liver which can lead to liver damage if left untreated. It’s usually seen in obese or overweight individuals. In a clinical trial, participants with nonalcoholic fatty liver disease were supplemented with either 560mg of milk thistle or placebo for 8 weeks. The results found that the milk thistle group had improved liver function and increased liver enzymes compared to the placebo group.

A systematic review reported that the individuals who supplemented with milk thistle found that as well as supporting the liver, it may support the cardiovascular system, diabetes, and have neuroprotective effects. It was suggested that milk thistle could be used as a complementary therapy in the treatment of many diseases.

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