How to make
The plant is one of the oldest and most thoroughly researched herbal medicines in the world, thanks to its main active ingredient - silymarin.
It is often mistakenly called cotton thistle, although they are not even in the same family - it's good to know that it is a closer relative of the artichoke than the cotton thistle!
For tea, you can also use the common cotton thistle, whose flower baskets are smaller.
In folk medicine it is mainly used for liver and gall bladder problems.
5 flower baskets (2 tbsp.) are poured with 400 ml of boiling water. Soak them for 1 hour. Drink 1/2 cup before meals 4 times a day.
I sweeten with the homemade flower honey from the herb White Thistle. The milk thistle detox tea is ready.
Medicinal effect of the herb:
It is a powerful antioxidant that protects liver cells from harmful substances formed by smoking, alcohol abuse and fatty foods.
Its antioxidant effect is ten times stronger than that of vitamin E. Silymarin has anti-inflammatory and anti-metastatic effects.
Also, milk thistle is one of the most effective hepatoprotectors. Its active ingredients help to stabilize the bio-membranes of hepatocytes, significantly increase the detoxifying and antioxidant activity of the liver, including the synthesis of glutathione.
The liver is the purification station of the whole organism, but in order to be effective and work at full speed, it itself must be cleansed.
According to scientists and doctors in the field, extremely important processes take place in the liver, in which many of the toxins are transformed into non-toxic water-soluble substances. It is also thought that in Alzheimer's disease some of the enzymes involved in the detoxification process methylation and sulfonation are damaged.
The liver cell attracts the sulfur-containing and methyl-containing amino acids to extract the pollutants and pass them out as water-soluble, less toxic products. From there they go to the bile, after which they leave the body. The liver and gallbladder are something like the purification station of the body.
In any case, one should also know what foods harmful to the liver are, in order to avoid them. These are large potatoes, grilled foods, fatty meats, fried eggs, alcohol. Caffeine is also good to avoid.
During the liver cleansing period, it is very important to make soups with bulgur and millet. It is good to add turmeric to them. This is the herb extremely important for the process of cleansing the bile.
Lightly toasted cocoa beans with a little water, not milk, are very good for the liver. Dark chocolate and red wine are recommended, but in moderation. Carrots, apples, peaches, figs and apricots are also beneficial.
The body fluids responsible for removing unnatural products are bile, urine and sweat. They themselves must be clean in order to transport unwanted substances out of the body and in this process herbs such as horsetail, parsley and milk thistle help a lot.
White thistle prophylactically protects undamaged hepatocytes and increases their resistance to infections and various types of poisoning.
The herb enhances the formation of bile and accelerates its release, thereby normalizing the processes of digestion and metabolism.
For this reason, the plant is used for acute and chronic hepatitis, cirrhosis of the liver, cholangitis, cholecystitis and also for toxic liver damage as a result of poisoning with various chemical compounds, including chemotherapy and radiotherapy.
Its properties are also successfully used in the treatment of diabetes mellitus, chronic diseases of the gastrointestinal tract and varicose veins.
It has also been studied for its potential action in preventing cancer and treating complications in HIV patients.
Milk thistle can also be used to make a salad - all spinach salad recipes can be replaced with fresh milk thistle leaves. They are a useful immunostimulator, especially in spring, when the body is already exhausted from the winter's lack of enough fresh fruit and vegetables. The young leaves, shoots, stems and roots are edible and are a good source of flavonoids, vitamin C, iron and other minerals.
