Issue link: https://cp.revolio.com/i/541817
Page 38 | Abby's Magazine - www.AbbysMag.com because of the danger that it might promote not just healthy cells, but cancerous cells, too. Silybum appears to have no such stimulatory effect on malignant hepatic tissue. In studies in humans, silymarin has been shown to have protective effect in a variety of serious liver diseases and toxicities, including cirrhosis, fatty infiltration, cholangitis and inflamed bile duct. In one of the first double-blind, placebo-controlled clinical trials of silymarin's therapeutic effects in liver disorders, patients with signs of slight acute and subacute liver damage (due largely to alcohol abuse) were randomly assigned to receive either silymarin or placebo. Aer four weeks, the slymarin-treated patients were showing signs of significant improvement according to almost every measure. A six-month double-blind, placebo-controlled study in patients with chronic alcoholic liver disease also found silymarin provided significant hepatoprotective activity and improved liver functions. ere is evidence that Silybum extracts can be beneficial in people with chronic hepatitis. Although it does not cure the disease, it does help the liver work more effectively, despite the infection. Silybum extracts appear to be quite safe. Toxic effects have never been observed when silymarin has been given by various routes to mice, rats, rabbits, and dogs at high doses for short periods of time. Likewise, long-term studies in rats have failed to demonstrate any toxicity. Because silymarin has bile-stimulating activity, it may produce loose stools, especially if higher doses are used. is effect can be countered by taking a bile-sequestering fiber compound such as guar gum, pectin, psyllium or oat bran. Dandelion Powdered Extract Powdered Dandelion Extract (extract Taraxacum officinale) has a long history as a folk medicine for liver and bile problems. Experiments in animals dating back to the 19th century showed that dandelion extract could stimulate bile secretion up to four times the normal amount. In humans, improving bile flow improves such conditions as liver congestion, bile duct inflammation, hepatitis, gallstones, and jaundice. Most of the research on Taraxacum come from the old Soviet Union and Eastern European studies dating back to the 1930s which demonstrate that Taraxacum increases bile production in the liver, bile flow to the gallbladder (choleretic effects), and bile flow from the gallbladder (cholagogic effects). In clinical trials, Taraxacum use has been associated with decreased blood cholesterol, reductions in liver swelling, jaundice, and dyspepsia. In clinical studies, using the German drug Heptachlor, which contains Taraxacum as one of its ingredients, improvement was reported in patients with gallstones, acute and chronic bile duct and gallbladder inflammation, jaundice and dyskinesia of the bile duct. L-Methionine L-methionine is an essential sulfer-containing amino acid that may be the body's most important lipotropic factor. L-methionine combines with ATP to form S-adenosylmethionine (SAMe), which is the body's principal source of methyl groups. Methionine and SAMe have been shown to be very beneficial in preventing cholestasis and promoting bile flow. Adequate methionine levels are critical for hepatic intracellular concentrations of peptide sulydryl, such as glutathione. Non-selenium-dependent glutathione and other sulydryl peptides play critical roles in the detoxification of xenobiotic substances and in converting lipid soluble toxic agents to water soluble materials that are easily excreted through the kidneys. When levels of toxic compounds rise, more methionine is needed to form cysteine and glutathione to protect the cytochrome P-450 complex and other hepatic components from the damaging effects of these toxic compounds. TMG (Trimethylglycine) TMG (Trimethylglycine) is a valuable hepatoprotective agent, because it not only protects the liver against damage from excess homocysteine, but it also generates molecules of SAMe. SAMe is used for the treatment of liver disorders such as cirrhosis, Gilbert's disease, drug- induced liver damage, cholestasis and fatty accumulation in the liver. It can also be used to treat depression, migraine, osteoarthritis, and fibromyalgia. e main problem with SAMe is its high cost. Fortunately, taking TMG (along with folic acid and vitamin B12) allows you to generate your own SAMe at a far lower cost.