Metabolic Benefits of Milk Thistle

• Control High Cholesterol

Metabolic syndrome is the term used to describe a group of related conditions, including:⁽¹⁰⁶⁾

• Diabetes
• Heart disease, including high cholesterol
• Non-alcoholic fatty liver disease
• Obesity

Lab, animal, and clinical research suggests milk thistle extracts can help prevent and treat metabolic syndrome by:^{(76, 107, 108)}

• ↑ Antioxidant protection.
• ↓ Accumulation of fat in the liver.
• ↓ Insulin resistance.
• ↓ Oxidative stress from excess free radicals.
• ↓ Elevated triglyceride levels.
• ↓ Enzyme for absorbing dietary fat.

Cholesterol Control with Milk Thistle

Milk thistle may also reduce the need for high doses of statins. In a 6-month clinical trial, a combination of milk thistle, another herb containing berberine, and half-dose statin drug was more effective than the statin combined with placebo. The milk thistle dosage was 105 mg, twice a day.⁽¹⁰⁹⁾

Berberine is a natural statin, as is Monascus purpureus fermented rice. Milk thistle's silymarin compounds improve absorption of berberine. In a clinical study, a combination of these herbal compounds helped lower cholesterol in patients with high cholesterol levels.⁽¹¹⁰⁾