Milk thistle (also known as holy thistle or silymarin) is a plant from the ragweed family and close related to the daisy. It is native to the Mediterranean area and looks like your everyday weed that you would normally cut down. Milk thistle gets its name from the plant itself as there are white spots or smudges covering the plant and the sap itself is very ‘milky’.
Most herbal body cleanse kits or programs have milk thistle as part of their package, often taken with fiber to give your body a good flush. Your liver plays a huge part in the cleansing your body and milk thistle benefits your liver by helping to maintain and clean it. You see you liver is one of the organs that does a lot of detoxifying for your body, acting like a filter for your body. Milk thistle can help maintain and clean that filter allowing it be more efficient, in fact I am not aware of a liver cleanse out there that does not revolve around milk thistle. Milk thistle has even been shown to help repair some of the damage from heaving drinking, though it should not be used as a crutch or a cure of any serious liver condition like cirrhosis
If you are not currently on a cleansing diet, you still may want to incorporate some milk thistle into your daily intake, especially if you are somewhat of a social drinker, it can help protect your liver from damage from alcohol. If you if you are not a social drinker taking milk thistle can make your liver stronger and slow the aging process of your liver. There are other benefits to taking milk thistle including helping to lower your cholesterol.
Milk thistle is a natural remedy that has been used for hundreds of years for various medicinal purposes including treating mushroom poisoning. The active element of milk thistle is Silymarin. Silymarin has been found to be an anti-inflammatory and an effective antioxidant. Those most of the claims about milk thistle itself have been unclear as to what benefits there are for the body. That being said the natural health and herbal fields both encourage it’s use and consider it an essential herb when cleansing your body.
Since milk thistle may lower the amount of bad cholesterol in your body, essentially decreasing your risk for heart disease. It should be noted that this observation was done with persons who had type 2 diabetes and healthy adults may not experience the same lowered cholesterol level.
Milk thistle does not have a very long list of side effects like a lot of modern medicine. It should be noted that that those with ragweed allergies should not take milk thistle as it is from the ragweed family and could some serious discomfort. It is also recommended that women who are breast feeding or pregnant do not take milk thistle as a supplement.
There is also a small chance that taking milk thistle may cause some cases of diarrhea, though most will not experience that.
You can purchase milk thistle at most health food stores and supplement places. Though it is recommended that you take a natural brand you trust that has not added anything extra to the milk thistle itself. If you live near a whole foods you (first, consider yourself lucky) you can just go the supplement section and ask for it, brand name will not matter as much at a Whole Foods Market as they have pretty strict quality standards for all their vitamins and supplements. If you do not live near a whole foods and are unsure of what brand to buy I recommend Nature’s Way and you can buy milk thistle online.
As always please see your doctor if you experience any pain or discomfort from taking milk thistle and it is always recommend you talk with your physician first before starting and supplement regimen.
Thanks for reading.
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