Milk thistle has been used by traditional healers around the world for more than 2,000 years to support liver, and gallbladder health. More recently, scientists have started documenting the herb’s incredible health benefits.
Known sometimes as Mary thistle or holy thistle, and scientifically as Silybum marianum, milk thistle is a flowering plant originally from the Mediterranean region, although it has been brought to other regions, including North America. The prickly purple-flowering plant is in the sunflower or Asteraceae family. The plant was named because of the milky white fluid inside of the stems, which is sometimes visible as white veins on the leaves. You can consume milk thistle seeds, leaves, roots, young stalks, and flowers for health benefits. And you can buy the herb as a capsule or liquid supplement, or as tea.
The extract of the milk thistle is called silymarin, and it contains several components, including silychristin, silydianin, and silybin (also called silibinin), which are flavonolignans. Silybin is the most abundant and most beneficial of the components, making up about 50 to 70 percent of silymarin.
Silymarin has a bioavailability of around 30 to 50 percent; in other words, 30 to 50 percent of the flavonolignans get used by the body. Interestingly, when a healthy person consumes silymarin, the body converts it relatively rapidly to other chemical byproducts that do not have biological activity, with its peak activity occurring one to two hours after consumption.[1] However, in patients with liver dysfunction, silymarin and the flavonolignans it contains stay in the blood longer and at concentrations three to five times higher than that of a healthy patient. Perhaps this means it is doing its work in the liver, helping to protect it.
Silymarin, including its main component silybin, strengthens and stabilizes cell membranes, stimulates protein synthesis and cell regeneration in the liver, and keeps the body from producing prostaglandins that otherwise lead to irritation and swelling.[2]
Milk thistle and its active components particularly help support liver health. Milk thistle can counteract toxin-related damage and other conditions that produce redness and swelling.[3] Milk thistle:
The most-known and well-established health benefit of milk thistle is how it supports your liver. Silymarin directly blocks toxins that the liver encounters, preventing them from entering liver cells, thus preventing premature cell death.
Silymarin is an antioxidant[4] that soothes redness and irritation,[4, 5] provides a defense against various types of harmful organisms,[1, 2] and prevents the formation of scar tissue, or fibrosis, in the liver and elsewhere in the body.[1, 6]
Milk thistle counteracts toxin-related injuries to the liver. Scientists have found that silymarin protects against liver damage from drug use, viral hepatitis,[1, 7] death cap (Amanita) mushroom poisoning,[2, 8] and acetaminophen.[1, 9] Over 80 percent of the liver is comprised of cells known as hepatocytes.
Silymarin keeps toxic compounds from entering these cells, protecting them and, in turn, their contribution to liver function.[2] It has helped support the liver in individuals exposed to high amounts of hydrogen sulfide.[10] That’s an amazing variety of scientifically documented liver benefits for this purple flower!
Silymarin slows and prevents infection by preventing viral entry, fusion, and RNA and protein synthesis. Silymarin given intravenously (in the veins) may protect against viral proliferation, and the treatment is well tolerated with no side effects.[1] In other words, it can stop harmful organisms like viruses from spreading and growing.
Because of the way it promotes normal liver tissue, milk thistle extract may promote normal liver function in people whose liver is challenged. In people with severe liver conditions, silymarin therapy normalized bilirubin levels, a yellow compound that comes from breaking down the heme in blood. Silymarin also promoted normal levels of certain liver enzymes.[1] As a result, silymarin-treated patients lived four years longer, on average, compared with those who did not receive it.[1]
Thalassemia is one of the most common genetic disorders worldwide. It results in anemia, or low blood levels of iron, requiring regular blood transfusions that can lead to iron toxicity and iron overload. Over a nine-month treatment, thalassemia patients given silymarin experienced better liver function and reduced iron overload as opposed to those using a placebo.[11]
Glutathione or GSH is known as the body’s super antioxidant, and it is abundant in the liver. Glutathione bonds with toxins in the body, making them too big to cross cell membranes. This effectively makes the toxins inactive — and easier for the body to transport them out through urine or feces. Silymarin from milk thistle boosts levels of glutathione, which helps the liver detoxify itself of harmful substances.[2, 12]
Taking silymarin may not only improve liver function and reduce circulating blood lipids, it can also lead to a significant amount of weight loss (even when food intake remains the same).[13]. It's always best to eat a healthy diet and exercise along with any supplement for weight loss!
If you want to detoxify your liver, add milk thistle to your daily regimen. Whether you want to take a supplement or drink milk thistle tea, definitely consider the health benefits of this incredible herb. You can even try a full 6-day Liver Cleanse Program that includes eating a diet free of processed foods and toxins and taking a supplement that includes milk thistle. See our detailed Liver Cleanse Guide.
The seeds of milk thistle are usually used to make tea. You can buy milk thistle seeds in bulk online or at many larger health food stores. You can also buy it in tea bags, already prepared.
To make milk thistle tea yourself follow these instructions:
Milk thistle has an excellent safety record.[1] The United States National Toxicology Program studied silymarin and found it to have no harmful effects over two years. In fact, they even found that milk thistle reduced the incidence of liver tumors.[14]
Milk thistle may have interactions with alcohol, anti-inflammatory drugs, antiretrovirals, estrogen, fertility agents, anti-anxiety drugs, and products used for heart, stomach or intestines. Check with your healthcare provider for further information and guidance about whether milk thistle is right for you.
While clinical studies have tested between 210 mg to 2100 mg daily, the typical and recommended serving of milk thistle is 420 mg. You can drink up to six cups of milk thistle tea daily.
I recommend Liver Health, our herbal liver support liquid supplement. It is a blend of raw herbal extracts including milk thistle seed, yellow dock root, chicory, and ginger. It uses triple distilled water and vegetable glycerine as a base instead of alcohol, which can harm the liver.
Milk thistle provides many benefits to your overall health, but specifically supports liver function and liver health. The herbal extract of milk thistle is called silymarin, and the main component of silymarin is silybin. Milk thistle provides an excellent, scientifically well-documented means to help boost your liver functioning.
If you are concerned about your liver function or want to detoxify your liver, try a milk thistle supplement, milk thistle tea, or a full liver cleanse.
Is milk thistle part of your supplemental regimen? What benefits have you noticed?
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