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What is Milk Thistle?

What are its benefits and its possible side effects?

What is Milk Thistle?

Milk Thistle uses and the health benefits of Milk Thistle are hot topics on the lips of many due to the rediscovered health benefits of this ancient herb. Milk Thistles are of the genus 'Silybum Adans', and are flowering plants of the daisy family.

They are mottled with shades of white and contain a milky sap, thus the name 'Milk Thistle'. A few of its other names are Marian thistle, Holy thistle, St. Mary's thistle, and Our Lady's thistle. It's from the 'Asteraceae' family. They are both annual or biennial plants. They are large, and have disc-shaped, pink-to-purple solitary flower heads. 'Tubular florets' describes the flowers. The upper leaves have a clasping base and the lower leaves are cauline, meaning 'attached to the stem without petiole.

Where does it come from? The answer is they come from the Mediterranean regions of Europe and are, as stated above, a flowering plant of the daisy family. But it's not the flowering part that herbalists are after.

The seeds of the Milk Thistle are used for treating chronic liver disease, and to protect the liver against toxins. Research is still being done on them and their effects on the body and their possible therapeutic applications.

Milk Thistle liver detox

Milk Thistle extract, silymarin, is used in medicine. The extracts of Milk Thistle are recognized as 'liver tonics'. It's use is mainly for treating liver cirrhosis and chronic hepatitis, as well as toxin-induced liver damage and gallbladder disorders.

It is a common roadside plant, and is related to the artichoke. History portrays it as a food. The most promising use of this herb, which is unproven, is as an anti-cancer agent. It's been shown to retard the growth of certain forms of cancer grown in the laboratory.

The Milk Thistle acts on cell membranes of liver cells to prevent the entry of toxic substances, and it stimulates protein synthesis, accelerating regeneration and producing liver cells. It acts as an anti-oxidant and has far more free radical damage control than vitamin E.

Milk Thistle Side Effects

Some of the common side effects of Milk Thistle are headache and itching and indigestion, and although it's rare, sometimes heartburn, gas, diarrhea, joint pain and sexual dysfunction.

It may lower blood sugar levels, but should be used with caution by people with diabetes, hypoglycemia, and people who are taking medications or supplements that affect sugar levels. The simple answer to the question of 'what is Milk Thistle?' is that it is a herb which has many proven health benefits and possibly many more benefits which have not been, as yet, conclusively proven.

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I hope the above has helped answer the question What is Milk Thistle? Please follow the related links listed below for further information.

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