Silymarin, a compound found in the milk thistle herb, is believed to be the ingredient responsible for milk thistle's health benefits, according to the University of Maryland Medical Center. Silymarin is made up of three different plant flavonoids, which are substances that provide secondary support for metabolism. These flavonoids are silibinin, silidianin and silicristin and they work together as silymarin to deliver several health benefits. Silymarin is available as a dietary supplement herbal extract.
Liver Protection
Silymarin may be best known for the liver protective benefits it delivers through milk thistle. The National Institutes of Health explains that the liver is the largest organ in the body, aiding in the digestion of food and cleaning toxins from the blood. Diseases that affect the liver will affect your overall health. One such disease is hepatitis, a viral infection that causes inflammation of the liver. In a study by researchers at the University of Washington in Seattle, the components of silymarin were tested against the hepatitis virus. The results of the study, published in the March 30, 2010 issue of the "Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the USA," show that silymarin, and its compounds inhibit the development of the hepatitis virus by way of their antioxidant and anti-inflammatory properties. These properties, along with silymarin's ability to stimulate the immune system, provide overall protection to the liver.
Anticancer Benefits
Silymarin is an antioxidant, a compound that stops damage to healthy cells caused by harmful oxygen molecules, or free radicals. It is the antioxidant properties of silymarin that the American Cancer Society cites as being responsible for its purported anticancer benefits. Silymarin is reported to protect against skin cancer, and to reduce the growth of breast, cervical and prostate cancer cells. Another benefit of using silymarin in the treatment of cancer is the fact that it can protect the liver; the liver has to work twice as hard to clean the body from toxins left by the chemotherapy drugs. A report from the University of Colorado, published in the October 8, 2008 issue of the journal Cancer Letters, suggests that silymarin be used in conjunction with other cancer therapies, to help prevent or reduce the need for chemotherapy and to protect the liver from toxic cancer treatments.
Blood Sugar Control
The antioxidant properties of silymarin exhibit a benefit on blood sugar levels. Researchers at the Institute of Medicinal Plants in Tehran tested supplemental silymarin in patients with type II diabetes. The results, published in the December 2006 issue of Phytotherapy Research, show that after four months of taking 200mg of silymarin three times per day, patients had a significant drop in fasting blood sugar levels. The positive results did not stop there. They also had a decrease in LDL, or "bad" cholesterol, total cholesterol and triglyceride levels.
References
- University of Maryland Medical Center: Silymarin
- National Institutes of Health: Liver Diseases
- PubMed: Abstract--Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, USA: Hepatoprotective flavonolignans from silymarin
- American Cancer Society: Milk Thistle
- PubMed: Abstract--Cancer Letters: Multitargeted therapy of cancer by silymarin
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