Silymarin
antioxidant benefit, milk thistle and liver
Silymarin is a group of flavonoids found in the herb milk thistle.
Milk
thistle is commonly found growing wild in a variety of settings,
including roadsides. The seeds of the dried flower are used. Silymarin is an antioxidant
said to protect liver cells from toxins. Sylimarin apparently promotes liver cell protein
synthesis and decreases the oxidation of glutathione. Milk thistle or silymarin may potentially be
beneficial in a number of diseases involving the liver, if in the early stages.
Silymarin is not likely to work in cases of late stage cirrhosis. The dose of silymarin used in
studies has ranged from 200 to 800 mg per day.
Milk Thistle Extract
80% Silymarin, 60 Capsules - Club
Natural
Milk Thistle Extract is standardized to 80% silymarin, the key constituent that
exerts a protective effect against substances potentially harmful to the liver.
Supplement Facts:
Milk thistle extract - 200 mg
(seed) standardized to 80% Silymarin
Recommendation: Take 1 milk thistle capsule daily or as recommended by your
health care provider.
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Silymarin benefit
The protective effects of silymarin and silibinin suggest a clinical use in
liver patients and cancer patients as an adjunct to established therapies, or to
prevent or reduce their toxicity. Silymarin may be helpful in
hepatitis treatment.
Blood sugar and diabetes
Silymarin as an adjunct to glibenclamide therapy improves long-term and
postprandial glycemic control and body mass index in type 2 diabetes.
J Med Food. 2007 Sep;10(3):543-7. Hussain SA. Department of Pharmacology and
Toxicology, College of Pharmacy, University of Baghdad, Baghdad, Iraq.
This study looked into the effects of the antioxidant flavonoid silymarin in
improving long-term and postprandial glycemic and weight control in type 2
diabetic patients treated with glibneclamide. Using a randomized, double-blind,
placebo-controlled design, 59 type 2 diabetic patients, previously maintained on
10 mg/day glibenclamide and diet control, with poor glycemic control, were
randomized into three groups: the first two groups were treated with either 200
mg each day silymarin or placebo as adjuncts to glibenclamide, and the third
group was maintained on glibenclamide alone for 120 days. Compared with placebo,
silymarin treatment significantly reduced both fasting and postprandial plasma
glucose excursions, in addition to significantly reducing HbA(1c) levels and BMI
after 120 days. No significantly different effects were observed for placebo
compared to glibenclamide alone. In conclusion, adjunct use of silymarin with
glibenclamide improves the glycemic control targeted by glibenclamide, during
both fasting and postprandially, an effect that may be related to increased
insulin sensitivity in peripheral tissues.
Silymarin for prostate cancer and
skin cancer
Chemopreventive efficacy of silymarin in skin and prostate cancer.
Integr Cancer Ther. 2007 Jun;6(2):130-45. Department of Pharmaceutical
Sciences, School of Pharmacy, University of Colorado Health Sciences Center, CO
80262, USA.
The cancer chemopreventive role of silymarin (Silybum marianum) has been
extensively studied and has shown anticancer efficacy against various cancer
sites, especially skin and prostate. In skin cancer, silymarin treatment
inhibits ultraviolet B radiation or chemically initiated or promoted
carcinogenesis. These effects of silymarin against skin carcinogenesis have been
attributed to its strong antioxidant and anti-inflammatory action as well as its
inhibitory effect on mitogenic signaling. In prostate cancer, silymarin
treatment down-regulates androgen receptor-, epidermal growth factor receptor-,
and nuclear factor-kappaB- mediated signaling and induces cell cycle arrest.
Extensive preclinical findings have supported the anticancer potential of
silymarin, and now its efficacy is being evaluated in cancer patients.
Silymarin for patients with high
blood sugar
Long-term (12 months) treatment with an anti-oxidant drug (silymarin) is
effective on hyperinsulinemia, exogenous insulin need and malondialdehyde levels
in cirrhotic diabetic patients.
Velussi M, Cernigoi AM, De Monte A, Dapas F, Caffau C, Zilli M.
Anti-Diabetes Centre, Monfalcone Hospital, Gorizia, Italy.
J Hepatol. 1997 Apr;26(4):871-9.
Several studies have demonstrated that diabetic patients with
cirrhosis require insulin treatment because of insulin resistance. As chronic
alcoholic liver damage is partly due to the lipoperoxidation of hepatic cell
membranes, anti-oxidizing agents may be useful in treating or preventing damage
due to free radicals. The aim of this study was to ascertain whether long-term
treatment with silymarin is effective in reducing lipoperoxidation and insulin
resistance in diabetic patients with cirrhosis. A 12-month open,
controlled study was conducted in two well-matched groups of insulin-treated
diabetics with alcoholic cirrhosis. One group (n=30) received 600 mg silymarin
per day plus standard therapy, while the control group (n=30) received standard
therapy alone. The efficacy parameters, measured regularly during the study,
included fasting blood glucose levels, mean daily blood glucose levels, daily
glucosuria levels, glycosylated hemoglobin (HbA1c) and malondialdehyde levels.
There was a significant decrease (p<0.01) in fasting blood glucose
levels, mean daily blood glucose levels, daily glucosuria and HbA1c levels
already after 4 months of treatment in the silymarin group. In addition, there
was a significant decrease (p<0.01) in fasting insulin levels and mean exogenous
insulin requirements in the treated group, while the untreated group showed a
significant increase (p<0.05) in fasting insulin levels and a stabilized insulin
need. These findings are consistent with the significant decrease (p<0.01) in
basal and glucagon-stimulated C-peptide levels in the treated group and the
significant increase in both parameters in the control group. Another
interesting finding was the significant decrease (p<0.01) in malondialdehyde/levels
observed in the treated group. These results show that treatment
with silymarin may reduce the lipoperoxidation of cell membranes and insulin
resistance, significantly decreasing endogenous insulin overproduction and the
need for exogenous insulin administration.
Silymarin questions
Q. My dad has hepatitis C. What do you
know about milk thistle (silymarin extract, recommended at 200 to 400 mg per day
dosage) for liver support?
A. See
hepatitis
for more info.
Q. Can I get your thoughts on silymarin phosphatidylcholine complex taken at 100
to 200 mg two times per day in regard to improving liver function?
A. We have not seen any studies regarding the role of a combination
silymarin and phosphatidylcholine for liver health. If a person has a normal
liver, there is no need to take supplements to improve liver function. If there
is a liver problem, then one should find out what kind of liver disease is going
on since there many different conditions that cause liver disease, and each
condition has a separate treatment.
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