What Are Milk Thistle Benefits?

What are milk thistle benefits? One of the benefits is it can protect against bone loss. There have been research studies that have shown it can prevent and delay bone loss in postmenopausal women. There have been experimental test tubes and animal studies that have shown that it can stimulate bone mineralization and be protective against bone loss.

What are milk thistle benefits? iStock-photo credit: Daryl James

Another potential benefit is its therapeutic effects on people that have liver damage due to alcoholic liver disease, hepatitis, liver cancer, non-alcoholic liver disease, etc. Research studies have shown improvement in liver function with people that have liver disease or liver inflammation when they take milk thistle. It is important to understand that the studies are limited, and more studies still need to be done in this.

There are currently no human studies to validate any of this yet. Research studies have shown that milk thistle can lower blood sugar levels especially with people that have diabetes. A recent review and analysis found that people who took silymarin regularly experienced a reduction in fasting blood sugar levels and HbA1C. And A1C for some of you that don’t know is a measure of blood sugar control.

My father Dr Joseph Obadike told me he took milk thistle, and it lowered his A1C dramatically and his doctor was curious what did he do to lower his A1C. He did his own research and found that milk thistle is impactful to those blood markers.

Studies have also shown that antioxidant and anti-inflammatory properties of milk thistle can be useful in reducing the risk of developing diabetic complications like kidney disease.

The types of people that should be cautious of taking milk thistle is pregnant women, people with diabetes and those that are allergic to plants.

The Bottom Line, one of the best health benefits of milk thistle is its ability to regulate blood sugar levels and lower your A1C levels. It is considered a safe health supplement.

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References

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