Milk Thistle and its Benefits

What is milk thistle?
Milk thistle is a flowering herb that is related to daisies and ragweed plants. It is also known as Mary’s thistle and holy thistle and is indigenous to the Mediterranean region. The milk thistle plant’s fruit and seeds have treated liver problems for over 2000 years. According to experts, silymarin is the herb’s principal active component.
A brief history of Milk Thistle
A Greek physician and botanist, Dioscorides (40–90 AD) were the first to describe milk thistle’s healing properties. Dioscorides prescribed milk thistle as a remedy for serpent bites in the earliest recorded usage of the plant. Later, in 1597, John Gerard noted that milk thistle was “the best remedy against melancholy diseases”.
Pliny the Elder (AD 23-79) stated that the plant’s juice combined with honey was useful for “carrying out bile.” Then, Culpepper, a British herbalist, used milk thistle as a treatment for liver blockages after using it as an antidote for liver poisons in the Middle Ages. Felter and Lloyd, two eclectic doctors, documented the herb’s use in 1898 as a treatment for “congestion” of the liver, spleen, and kidney. Native Americans used milk thistle to heal boils and other skin conditions. This plant has a long history of helping people and has many medicinal benefits.
Benefits of Milk Thistle
Different portions of the milk thistle plant can be used to treat a variety of health problems. People drink it as a tea, take it as a supplement, and even mix it into skin treatments. Milk thistle is most commonly used to treat liver issues. Some suggest it can aid in the treatment of
- cirrhosis
- Jaundice
- hepatitis
- gallbladder problems
Other possible advantages include safeguarding heart health by decreasing cholesterol levels and assisting patients with type 2 diabetes management. Below, we look at the potential health advantages of milk thistle.
Supports Liver Health
Milk thistle was proven to alleviate diet-induced liver damage in mice in a 2016 study. Silymarin, the active component in milk thistle, serves as an antioxidant by lowering free radical generation. Milk thistle, according to scientists, has a detoxifying impact, which is why it is good for liver disorders.
According to early research, silymarin may enhance liver function by preventing hazardous chemicals from attaching to liver cells. Milk thistle may help people with moderate, sub-acute (symptom-free) liver disease. Early Finnish research discovered that a four-week course of silymarin supplements reduced critical liver enzymes in people with sub-acute illness, suggesting that the liver was operating more effectively.
Promotes healthy skin
Milk thistle may aid in the promotion of healthy skin. When applied to the skin of mice, it helped to treat inflammatory skin disorders.
Researchers also discovered that milk thistle has antioxidant and anti-aging benefits on human skin cells in a laboratory setting. A 2019 research on cells in a lab indicated that milk thistle components may protect against the negative effects of sun exposure, including decreasing skin aging.
Reduces the risk of damage to body tissue
Thistle contains powerful antioxidant capabilities. Compounds known as free radicals can harm biological tissue and open the door to infection and disease as a result of poor food, poor environmental circumstances, and other causes. Antioxidants in the circulation provide defenses against these assaults. The usage of milk thistle helps to boost the body’s natural defense mechanisms.
Reduces Cholesterol
High cholesterol levels may wreak havoc on a person’s heart health and increase their risk of stroke. Researchers discovered that patients using milk thistle to treat diabetes had lower cholesterol levels than those taking a placebo.
Researchers fed rodents a high-cholesterol diet in a 2016 study. They administered silybin (the active ingredient in milk thistle) to rats at doses of 300 and 600 milligrams per kilogram (mg/kg) of body weight and discovered that the rats had considerably reduced total blood cholesterol and triglyceride levels.
High cholesterol levels may wreak havoc on a person’s heart health and increase their risk of stroke. Researchers discovered that patients using milk thistle to treat diabetes had lower cholesterol levels than those taking a placebo.
Researchers fed rodents a high-cholesterol diet in a 2016 study. They administered silybin (the active ingredient in milk thistle) to rats at doses of 300 and 600 milligrams per kilogram (mg/kg) of body weight and discovered that the rats had considerably reduced total blood cholesterol and triglyceride levels.
Supports Weight Loss
The first animal study, published in 2016, discovered that silymarin produced weight reduction in mice fed a diet designed to cause weight growth.
Milk thistle aids the liver and gallbladder in the digestion of fattier and more caloric foods simultaneously. This advantage, in turn, aids bodily cleansing and waste product removal.
Milk thistle promotes the body to function more efficiently. And as a result, weight reduction is substantially aided. The metabolism will accelerate significantly, resulting in a higher burn of excess fat. This implies that milk thistle may be good for those trying to reduce weight.
Reduces insulin resistance

Research in 2016 showed that milk thistle extract lowered insulin resistance in mice, a problem for people with type 2 diabetes. Another evaluation of milk thistle studies published in 2020 indicated that the ingredient silymarin looks to be a “promising material” for treating insulin resistance, especially in patients with obesity and type 2 diabetes. There is a need for more studies to clarify whether milk thistle can decrease insulin resistance and aid with diabetes management.
Helps Type 2 Diabetes
Several studies have shown that milk thistle may be useful for diabetics, particularly type 2 diabetics. A 45-day course of silymarin enhanced antioxidant capacity and decreased generalized inflammation in individuals with type 2 diabetes better than a placebo, according to a 2015 study published in Phytomedicine.
The findings show that silymarin may lessen the oxidative stress linked with diabetic complications, according to the study’s authors.
Improves allergic asthma symptoms
Asthma is a chronic inflammatory illness in which the immune system overreacts to environmental stressors, resulting in airway inflammation. Milk thistle’s active component may assist to decrease inflammation.
In 2012, researchers discovered that silymarin protected the mice that had asthma against inflammation. Another mouse study published in 2020 indicated that silymarin may help decrease asthma symptoms by modulating immunological responses.
Limits the spread of cancer
According to the National Institutes of Health (NIH), small studies mostly conducted on cells in labs have discovered that milk thistle can reduce cancer cell and tumor development and perhaps boost the efficiency of chemotherapy. Researchers have discovered advantages for a variety of cancers, including:
- prostate cancer
- breast cancer
- cervical cancer
- leukemia
- skin cancer
- colon cancer
Several small studies have also discovered that milk thistle may reduce the negative effects of cancer therapies such as radiation, surgery, and chemotherapy.
Improves Cognition
According to a 2015 research in worms, milk thistle boosted tolerance to oxidative stress, and Alzheimer’s disease is usually caused by oxidative stress. In this approach, milk thistle may help enhance cognition and cure degenerative brain disorders.
Supports the immune system
Milk thistle may help to boost a person’s immune system. It may aid the body’s ability to fight infection as well as diminish chronic inflammation caused by the immune system.
Milk thistle appears to have noninflammatory properties. Silymarin activates the immune system, according to researchers. It also inhibited an overactive immune system, reducing chronic inflammation in illnesses including asthma and allergic rhinitis.
A 2016 animal model research discovered that milk thistle extract enhanced immunity. A previous study discovered that milk thistle extract improved immunological response in people.
More research with human subjects may allow scientists to state unequivocally that milk thistle benefits the immune system.
Helps prevent kidney damage
According to research, the hepatoprotective effects of milk thistle might be useful in the treatment of renal disease. Some natural treatment specialists relate its kidney advantages to those of the liver. Recent research focuses on how it can encourage the regeneration of damaged cells, which is essential for renal dialysis patients
Risks
Milk thistle has the potential to cause allergic responses. Individuals who are allergic to artichokes, kiwi, ragweed, daisies, marigolds, chrysanthemums, or plants in the aster family are at a greater risk. Before taking milk thistle, anyone with diabetes or endometriosis should see a doctor.
Despite using milk thistle in pregnant and nursing women for many centuries, its safety is currently unknown. Therefore, pregnant or nursing women must consult their doctors before using milk thistle. Milk thistle is not suitable for young children.
Side Effects

Even after years of use, milk thistle appears to have few negative effects. Some individuals experience headaches, nausea, diarrhea, itching, bloating, and gas.
In rare instances, milk thistle can trigger anaphylaxis, a life-threatening all-body allergy. Anaphylaxis, if untreated, can result in shock, unconsciousness, cardiac or respiratory failure, or death.
Because milk thistle may reduce blood sugar, patients with diabetes should see their doctor before using it, as it may cause their blood sugar to drop too low.
Drug Interactions
If you use any medications on a daily basis, see your doctor before beginning to use milk thistle. It may interact with a variety of medications, including those used to treat excessive cholesterol, infections, sleeplessness, and blood pressure. Milk thistle can change the way that your body metabolizes certain drugs in the liver, triggering interactions with:
- Antibiotics like Biaxin (clarithromycin)
- Anticoagulants like Coumadin (warfarin)
- Nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) like Advil (ibuprofen), Celebrex (celecoxib), and Voltaren (diclofenac)
- Statin drugs like Mevacor (lovastatin) and Lescol (fluvastatin)
- Cytochrome P450 2C9 (CYP2C9) substrates; this enzyme and the medications it processes, such as diazepam (Valium), warfarin (Jantoven), and others, may be affected by using milk thistle. This means that milk thistle may impact the amounts of these medications in your body.
- Diabetes medications. Milk thistle may help people with type 2 diabetes control their blood sugar levels. If you use diabetic medicines, keep a close eye on your blood sugar levels and consult your doctor before using milk thistle pills.
- Raloxifene (Evista). Milk thistle may interfere with the way your liver processes this osteoporosis treatment, resulting in greater amounts of the drug in your bloodstream. If you are on raloxifene, see your doctor before taking the milk thistle.
- Simeprevir. Taking milk thistle together with this hepatitis C medicine may boost the drug’s levels in your blood plasma. Avoid using milk thistle and simeprevir at the same time.
- Sirolimus is an antibiotic (Rapamune). Taking milk thistle alongside this immunosuppressant may alter how your body absorbs the medicine.
How should milk thistle be consumed?
Milk thistle supplements are most typically accessible as capsules, although they are also available as tablets, tea bags, and oral tinctures. Doses vary from 175 to 1,000 mg. The quality and active substances in supplements might vary greatly between manufacturers. This makes establishing a standard dosage challenging. Consult your doctor for guidance.
Conclusion
Because of its key component, silymarin, which is an antioxidant, milk thistle provides a variety of possible health advantages. Before specialists can compile a comprehensive list of milk thistle benefits, they need to conduct further research. However, a preliminary study indicates that it may be worth experimenting with alongside traditional therapies. Before beginning to take milk thistle or any other supplement, it is always a good idea to consult with a health care expert because it may interfere with prescriptions or diseases. Milk thistle supplements are available at health food stores and online