Milk thistle, popularly called thistle, has been known to medicine for a long time and is widely used in cosmetology and pharmaceuticals. The most valuable form of milk thistle is oil used internally or externally.
Due to its unique composition and wide range of medicinal properties, thistle seed oil obtained by cold pressing is an invaluable dietary product that has long been widely used in alternative medicine in many countries, and is also an effective natural cosmetic product.
The chemical composition of the oil
Milk thistle oil is quite rich in fat-soluble vitamins D, A, E, K, F and group B. Chlorophyll, tocopherols and carotenoids are very valuable in its composition. In addition, the oil contains the following trace elements: zinc, iodine, potassium, copper, magnesium, vanadium, aluminum, selenium, calcium, boron, manganese, chromium, iron; polyunsaturated fatty acids: linoleic, oleic acid, palmitic, stearic, arachinic, behenic; biologically active components: flavonoids (quartzetine), a powerful hepatoprotector silymarin (a unique complex of the strongest natural antioxidants-flavolignans: silibinin, silicristin, silidianin, neohydrocarpin, etc.).
Milk Thistle Oil: Properties and Applications
Thistle oil has anti-sclerotic, anti-inflammatory, epithelizing, wound healing, anti-ulcer, immunomodulatory, bactericidal, laxative, choleretic, analgesic, anti-allergic effects, it is also a powerful hepatoprotector and detoxifier, preventing the absorption of toxic substances into humans and water. That is why milk thistle, the properties of which we have just listed, has been successfully used for many centuries to prevent and treat all kinds of ailments.
For 2 millennia, milk thistle oil has been traditionally used to treat a variety of diseases of the gall bladder, liver and biliary tract. Containing silymarin, reliably protects liver cells from the damaging effects of free radicals, helps restore liver cells damaged by the effects of alcohol and toxins, improves the detoxification function of the liver, which is aimed at neutralizing and eliminating harmful substances from the body, and stops the development of the bile ducts, liver and gall bladder inflammatory processes, enhances bile formation and bile separation, improves metabolic processes in the liver.
Thanks to this, the oil has found application in the prevention and comprehensive treatment of cholangitis, hepatitis, cholecystocholangitis, cirrhosis, cholelithiasis, fatty liver disease (and associated with excessive alcohol consumption or diabetes mellitus, including), toxic liver damage (due to exposure to alcohol, natural or synthetic poisons and heavy metals, due to prolonged use of drugs).
In addition, with constant use in food, thistle oil significantly improves digestion, has a beneficial effect on the gastrointestinal mucosa. That is why oil is often used for the prevention and treatment of gastroduodenitis, gastritis, ulcerative lesions of the duodenum or stomach, enterocolitis, colitis and constipation.
Milk thistle oil is also useful for diseases of the throat, nose, ear and oral cavity. Often in dental practice it is used in the complex treatment of gingivitis, stomatitis, periodontal disease, periodontitis and for effective and quick healing of postoperative wounds. With bleeding gums, swelling and pain in the oral cavity, suppuration of the gingival pockets, applications with thistle oil will help. And these applications are very useful for diseases of the throat (tonsillitis, pharyngitis, etc.), and for atrophic rhinitis - intranasal use.
This amazing tool will also improve the activity of blood vessels and the heart, since oil is rich in substances that favorably affect the state of blood vessels and the heart. In a complex combination, these substances help to reduce cholesterol in the blood , lower blood pressure, strengthen the elasticity of the walls of blood vessels, reduce the risk of thrombosis, maintain normal blood coagulation, eliminate blood vessel spasm, and prevent the occurrence of atherosclerotic plaques. Trace elements and vitamins in the oil provide good protection of blood vessels and the heart from inflammatory processes and the harmful effects of free radicals, and also help the heart muscle. It is useful to introduce oil into the diet for the prevention and complex treatment of arterial hypertension, arteriosclerosis, varicose veins, ischemia, and also as an effective natural remedy for the prevention of strokes and heart attacks.
Thistle oil is an excellent adjuvant in the treatment of gynecological diseases and pathologies. Due to the wound healing, antibacterial and anti-inflammatory effects, the oil is often used in the form of intravaginal applications for the complex treatment of cervical erosion, endocervitis, colpitis, atrophic vaginitis, characteristic of menopause, and other inflammatory diseases of the female genital area. With daily applications with the oil of this plant, on the tenth day, the erosive region of the epithelium begins to be delayed by a new epithelium, and soon the erosion completely heals.
External use of oil is also frequent, it is useful for skin diseases and its traumatic injuries. With anti-inflammatory, analgesic and anti-allergic properties, the oil significantly speeds up the process of epithelization of skin tissues during trauma or disease (the effectiveness of the wound healing action is even much higher than that of the well-known sea buckthorn oil). Thanks to this, milk thistle oil is popularly known as an effective tool in the treatment of wounds, thermal and chemical burns, allergic rashes or cracks in the skin, trophic ulcers, pressure sores, neurodermatitis, eczema, psoriasis, hyperkeratosis, acne, lichen planus. The oil does not cause burning, does not stick the wound to the dressing tissue, but at the same time promotes the healing of the skin without the formation of rough scars.
Contraindications
Thistle oil has no contraindications or side effects, and this is what pharmacists of many countries have come to love. If you suffer from serious illnesses, then a doctor's consultation is mandatory before taking this remedy.
Good health!