Silymarin in Treatment of Viral Hepatitis, Hepatitis B, Hepatitis C
In a study published in”Journal of Viral Hepatitis, 2005; Silymarin treatment of viral hepatitis: a systematic review” Milk thistle or silymarin extracts have been explored for treatment of chronic viral hepatitis, although there is remarkable decrease in serum transaminases, however, its overall efficacy remains unknown.
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/16255756
Silymarin in treatment of Liver Cirrhosis
In a randomized controlled trial of silymarin treatment in patients with cirrhosis of the liver as published in the Journal of Hepatology, 1989, preliminary studies suggest milk thistle or silymarin supplements may be beneficial for liver cirrhosis most especially for alcoholic cirrhosis. The study suggests that there is an improvement in liver function, http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/2671116
Silymarin’s Protective Activity against Liver Damage
In a report entitled “Silymarin protects liver against toxic effects of anti-tuberculosis drugs in experimental animals” published in “Nutrition and Metabolism, 2006”, it suggests that milk thistle may protect the liver against toxicity from anti-tubercolosis drugs in experimental animals. In other related studies, Milk thistle or silymarin compounds can protect the liver from other harmful chemicals such as alcohol and other drugs. Silymarin has a good safety record and in only rare case reports of gastrointestinal disturbances and allergic skin rashes have been published. In Europe, milk thistle is reportedly administered to patients when they are given medications known to cause liver problems.
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2491620/
Silymarin Improves the LDL to HDL ratio of blood cholesterol level
In a study entitled “Effect of silymarin on serum cholesterol levels in rats” published in “Acta Universitatis Palackianae Olomucensis Facultatis Medicae; 1998”, it was reported administered silymarin, a mixture of flavonolignans extracted from the seeds of Silybum marianum, possesses a hypocholesterolemic effect in rats fed high cholesterol diet enriched with fat. Silymarin has also been found to mildly increase the HDL cholesterol level.
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/9684492
Silymarin as Treatment of Diabetes Mellitus with liver disease
In a study entitled “Effect of silymarin in diabetes mellitus patients with liver diseases” published in “Journal of Pharmacology and Pharmacotherapeutics”, It is reported that silymarin has good effect in the restoration of liver function and also established efficacy in controlling blood glucose level in diabetes patients with liver diseases. The study further recommends that silymarin may be a breakthrough as a new approach to protect other organs in addition to liver.
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3198528/
Silymarin : Anti cancer, Anti-inflammatory, Anti-metastic Activity
In a report entitled “Multi targeted therapy of cancer by silymarin” published in “Cancer Letters, 2008”, Silymarin, a flavonolignan from milk thistle (Silybum marianum) plant, is used for the protection against various liver conditions in both clinical settings and experimental models. In this review, it was summarized the recent investigations and mechanistic studies regarding possible molecular targets of silymarin for cancer prevention. Silymarin also showed anti-inflammatory as well as anti-metastatic activity. Further, the protective effects of silymarin and its major active constituent, silibinin, studied in various tissues, suggest a clinical application in cancer patients as an adjunct to established therapies, to prevent or reduce chemotherapy as well as radiotherapy-induced toxicity.
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/18472213