Ascites is a condition in which protein-containing fluid builds up in your abdomen. It usually results from liver disease that produces increased pressure in the veins carrying blood from the abdomen into the liver. This situation, called portal hypertension, causes fluid to leak out of the veins and into the abdomen, leading to ascites. Milk thistle is a traditional herbal remedy that may help protect your liver cells from damage and may lessen the severity of ascites if you have liver disease. Discuss using milk thistle with your doctor to decide if it might help you.
Causes and Symptoms
Ascites most often develops from liver disease when the problem is chronic and long-standing, usually as a result of cirrhosis. Cirrhosis is caused by death of liver cells, which are replaced by tough, fibrous scar tissue. With time, cirrhosis elevates the blood pressure liver veins and fluid leaks from the blood into the abdomen. Hepatitis, alcoholism or other liver disorders may lead to cirrhosis. Sometimes, the large hepatic vein that carries blood from the liver to the heart may become obstructed, causing pressure to back up into the liver and produce ascites. Early cases of ascites may cause no symptoms, although in later stages you might experience abdominal swelling, a sense of abdominal pressure, loss of appetite or shortness of breath.
Milk Thistle
Milk thistle, or Silybum marianum, has been an herbal remedy recommended for liver and gall bladder problems for thousands of years. The plant grows wild and is found worldwide, deriving its name from the milky appearance of its sap. The medicinally active ingredient in milk thistle is silymarin, actually a group of flavonoids that have a number of health benefits. Silymarin is a strong antioxidant and anti-inflammatory agent that has particular usefulness in treating liver disorders.
Actions and Evidence
According to Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center, silymarin in milk thistle stabilizes the cell membranes of liver cells by changing their structure, preventing toxins from gaining entry to the cells. It also helps damaged cells to repair themselves by promoting enzymes needed by the cells to manufacture new components, and it supports liver regeneration by helping remaining healthy cells multiply. All of these actions have potential benefit if you experience ascites as a result of liver disease. Milk thistle has not been specifically studied in cases of ascites from liver disease. However, in a paper published in 1989 in a Hungarian journal, "Orvosi Hetilap," markers of liver damage improved in subjects with liver disease who took silymarin for six months compared to others who took a placebo.
Recommendations
Milk thistle is available from health food stores and pharmacies as capsules standardized for their content of silymarin. The recommended dose is 280 mg to 450 mg daily in divided doses. Milk thistle is generally considered safe and with only mild side effects that include stomach upset or diarrhea. Do not take milk thistle if you are pregnant or breastfeeding, or if you have a history of a hormone-dependent cancer. Talk to your doctor before adding milk thistle to your regimen.
