Cardo Mariano (Milk Thistle) Extrakt with Silymarin, 100 VegeCaps

Milk thistle, like the artichoke, belongs to the Asteraceae family. This popular medicinal plant forms a rosette in its first year and grows into a 60–150 cm tall flowering perennial in the second year. Particularly striking are the dark green leaves with their light marbling pattern and spiny edges. Once the purple flowers have faded, milk thistle produces brown-black fruits about 6 mm long, which can be dispersed by the wind thanks to their pappus (“parachute”).

The Christian legend says that the Virgin Mary, fleeing to Egypt, nursed her son Jesus under a thistle. Some drops of milk fell onto the leaves, leaving white spots. For this reason, the plant was also called “milk thistle” or “Our Lady’s thistle,” and was believed to promote milk production.

Milk thistle originates from Southern Europe, North Africa, and Western Asia. It was first cultivated in gardens and now grows wild in Central Europe. It has also naturalized in North and South America as well as Australia.

The ripe fruits (Cardui mariae fructus) of milk thistle from commercial cultivation are primarily used, less commonly the aerial parts of the plant.

Read more in the Herbal Encyclopedia or in the Lexicon