Herb of the Month: Milk Thistle

Herb of the Month:
Milk Thistle

This time I’ll write about Milk Thistle.

Known as a ‘liver tonic’ for centuries, research suggests that milk thistle both prevents and repairs damage to the liver from toxic chemicals and medications, and has been reportedly very helpful with viral Hepatitis (C).

This is a particularly effective herb in the broad scheme of things, as the liver has good regenerative properties to begin with. The liver can be dammaged to 25% of it’s normal function, and still recover fully. This is unique in human tissues. I’m not advocating dammaging your liver that badly…but it’s nice to know there is something out there that can help if the going gets rough. Milk thistle has even been shown to reverse the toxic effects of the poisonous deathcap mushroom in animal studies.

So how best to use it?

I like to suggest its use when you know you are taking any substance that is hard on the liver for any length of time. The use of NSAIDS, alcohol, and many medications are very hard on the liver. This is a good time to supplement with milk thistle, and give your liver a little regenerative boost. 200-400 mg. one, to three times a day.

Milk Thistle is a little trickier to use than some herbs. There are several medications that interfere with milk thistle. Some of these medications include treatment for cancer, and anxiety. So please use caution.

I have included a link to the University of Maryland’s website on milk thistle. It provides a good amount of information on interfering medications.

http://www.umm.edu/altmed/articles/milk-thistle-000266.htm