Milk thistle is commonly found growing wild in a variety of settings, including roadsides. The Latin name is Silybum marianum. The seeds of the dried flower are used. The active ingredient in the plant is a flavonoid called silymarin, an antioxidant said to protect liver cells from toxins. Silymarin apparently promotes liver cell protein synthesis and decreases the oxidation of glutathione. The plant's flowers and seeds have been used for more than 2,000 years to treat disorders of the liver and gallbladder.

buy Milk Thistle Extract supplement 80% Silymarin, 60 Capsules

Milk Thistle Extract is standardized to 80% silymarin, the key constituent that exerts a protective effect against substances potentially harmful to the liver.


Supplement Facts: Milk thistle extract 200 mg         
   (seed) standardized to 80% Silymarin

Recommendation: Take 1 milk thistle capsule daily or as recommended by your health care provider. It can be taken with or without food.

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Milk Thistle benefit
Studies show silymarin, silibinin, and other flavonoids found in milk thistle may benefit in a number of conditions including alcoholic cirrhosis and tumors. Many compounds in milk thistle, for instance silibinin, have shown potent anti- prostate and anti-lung cancer activity. Milk thistle herbal supplements are mostly used for liver health.

Cancer treatment of prevention

Bladder cancer
Silibinin causes cell cycle arrest and apoptosis in human bladder transitional cell carcinoma cells by regulating CDKI-CDK-cyclin cascade, and caspase 3 and PARP cleavages. Carcinogenesis. 2004.

Silibinin modulates CDKI-CDK-cyclin cascade and activates caspase 3 causing growth inhibition and apoptotic death of human TCC cells, providing a strong rationale for future studies evaluating preventive and/or intervention strategies for silibinin in bladder cancer pre-clinical models. Carcinogenesis. 2004.

Chemotherapy
In a study of 50 children undergoing chemotherapy for acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL), milk thistle appeared to reduce treatment-related liver inflammation. Dr. Kara M. Kelly, a pediatric oncologist at Columbia University Medical Center in New York randomly assigned 50 children with ALL to take either milk thistle capsules or placebo (inactive) capsules for one month while undergoing their "maintenance" round of chemotherapy. Going into the study, all of the children had signs of liver inflammation from their previous round of treatment. After one month, however, children taking milk thistle had lower levels of two liver enzymes than those in the placebo group -- a sign of lesser liver inflammation. Kara M. Kelly reports that children on milk thistle were also somewhat less likely to need their chemotherapy dose lowered at any point. Cancer, 2009.

Milk thistle and diabetes
The efficacy of Silybum marianum in the treatment of type II diabetes: a randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled, clinical trial.
Phytother Res. 2006.
Oxidative stresses are increasingly implicated in the pathogenesis of diabetic complications which may either cause direct pancreatic beta-cell damage or lead to metabolic abnormalities that can induce or aggravate diabetes. The present study was designed to investigate the effects of the herbal medicine, milk thistle seed extract (silymarin), which is known to have antioxidant properties on the glycemic profile in diabetic patients. A 4-month randomized double-blind clinical trial was conducted in 51 type II diabetic patients in two well-matched groups. The first group received a silymarin (200 mg) tablet 3 times a day plus conventional therapy. The second group received the same therapy but a placebo tablet instead of silymarin. The results showed a significant decrease in HbA(1)c, FBS, total cholesterol, LDL, triglyceride SGOT and SGPT levels in milk thistle silymarin treated patients compared with placebo as well as with values at the beginning of the study in each group. In conclusion, milk thistle silymarin treatment in type II diabetic patients for 4 months has a beneficial effect on improving the glycemic profile.

Milk thistle and liver disease
Is there scientific evidence that milk thistle protects the liver or is helpful as a treatment for liver disease?
   As of 2011, I believe more research is needed in order to know such benefits. There are many types of liver disease and perhaps milk thistle or extracts will be found to be of benefit in certain types of liver conditions.

Dr. Christian Gluud of Copenhagen University Hospital in Denmark, reviewed 13 clinical trials of milk thistle for liver disease due to alcoholism or hepatitis B or C. The gold standard for clinical trials is for them to be placebo-controlled and double-blind, meaning neither patients nor the study administrators know whether a patient is taking the real drug or placebo. Just six of the trials analyzed met this standard. The researchers found no effect of milk thistle versus placebo on mortality rates or liver disease complications. While the remedy appeared to reduce death from liver-related causes when all data was included, an analysis limited to the best-quality studies found no effect. No increased risk of adverse events was seen with milk thistle. The American Journal of Gastroenterology, November 2005.

The Clinical Utility of Milk Thistle in Cirrhosis of the Liver.
J Herb Pharmcother. 2002.
Silybum marianum is a flowering herb utilized for its potentially protective effects on the liver. Although the mechanism of action is not fully understood, one explanation may be that it concentrates in the hepatocytes and competes with toxins for hepatocyte binding and penetration. Preliminary clinical evaluations of milk thistle for cirrhosis of the liver indicate potential benefits in healthier patients with alcoholic cirrhosis. However, major flaws in many of the studies make it difficult to draw solid conclusions. Milk thistle appears to be relatively safe, even with long-term use.

Randomized controlled trial of silymarin treatment in patients with cirrhosis of the liver.
Hepatol. 1989.
Silymarin protects experimental animals against various hepatotoxic substances. To determine the effect of silymarin on the outcome of patients with cirrhosis, a double blind, prospective, randomized study was performed in 170 patients with cirrhosis. 87 patients (alcoholic 46, non-alcoholic 41) received 140 mg silymarin three times daily. 83 patients (alcoholic 45, non-alcoholic 38) received a placebo. The mean observation period was 41 months. The 4-year survival rate was 58% in silymarin-treated patients and 39% in the placebo group. Analysis of subgroups indicated that treatment with silymarin in milk thistle was effective in patients with alcoholic cirrhosis. No side effects of drug treatment were observed.

Compounds in the plant
There are many compounds in the herb, mostly flavonoids, including silymarin, silybin, isosilybin, and silibinin.

Milk thistle dosage
The dose of silymarin used in studies has ranged from 200 to 800 mg per day. Milk Thistle extract is sold in a variety of concentrations including 70 percent silymarin, 80% silymarin or a 10 to 1 milk thistle extract. One option is 80 to 200 mg extract (80% sylmarin) once or twice daily.

Milk thistle side effects, risk, danger
No significant milk thistle side effects have yet been reported thus far with milk thistle extract but it is possible that, as more people take this herb, potential side effects could be uncovered. It is unlikely that milk thistle side effects exist in drinking the tea, but perhaps using several milk thistle extract capsules daily for prolonged periods could cause problems.

Combining with other herbs and nutrients
I've heard that milk thistle and alpha lipoic acid can be taken together to fight fatty liver and high liver enzimes. Is this true? What are the correct dosages and do they hurt the kidneys?
    I have not seen human studies that have evaluated the combination of the herb and alpha lipoic acid as a treatment for liver damage so it is not easy to say what the right dosage would be when taken together and whether they have any effect on kidney function. I personally prefer using lower dosages than other people recommend.

Milk Thistle research review
Inhibition of telomerase activity and secretion of prostate specific antigen by silibinin in prostate cancer cells.
J Urol. 2004.
The down-regulation of PSA by silibinin and its counteraction on DHT effects indicate that this compound can interact with the expression of genes that are regulated through the androgen receptor. Silibinin can also inhibit the telomerase activity that mediates cell immortality and carcinogenesis. The 2 effects underline the possible therapeutic use of silibinin as an antiproliferative agent in intervention for prostate cancer.

Questions
Q. Is is safe to take vitamin-E with C and milk thistle? What about taking it with serrapeptase?
   A. No one can definitely promise 100 percent safety with the use of vitamin combinations, but milk thistle and vitamin C and E you mention are relatively benign and should be fine to use together if not used in excess. As to serrapeptase, we don't know enough about this enzyme to be certain how it interacts with medicines and herbs and vitamins.

Q. I know it is difficult to predict, but do you foresee any problems taking small amounts of milk thistle extract with chrysin supplements?
   A. I would suggest at first trying them separately each for a week before combining. Use low dosages when combining many herbs or supplements.