Medicinal plants, artichoke and milk thistle

A relative of thistles, the artichoke belongs to the Asteraceae family, although of a different genus, cynara for the artichoke. The artichoke is an annual plant that grows every year after winter, if it does not freeze from the cold.

In the lower part, it has a rosette of highly segmented leaves (although unlike the thistle without spines), smooth green in the upper part (upper face) and covered on the underside (lower face) with whitish fibrils that give it a more Clear.

Highly protruding longitudinal ribs emerge from the main vein of the leaf. From the center of the rosette grows a stem that usually grows about a meter and a half. The stem is in turn ribbed and branched, it has few leaves, less and less divided as they climb higher. At the end of the stem and in some lateral divisions it blooms with inflorescences in the form of very thick heads, with superimposed green leaves that look like scales. L

The internal soft bracts and the central bud constitute the edible part of the plant or "heart of the artichoke". The part used as medicinal are the leaves of the rosette at the base.

Uses of alcahofera

It seems that the current artichoke derives from the successive cultivation of other thistles that the horticulturists were transforming. In the fifteenth century its consumption as food in Italy is already described. Dioscorides proposed the use of the root as a plaster in the armpits to avoid the smell of sweat. From the eighteenth century its use to cure jaundice is cited.

At present it is considered that the artichoke leaf facilitates digestion by stimulating the secretion of gastric juice, it also stimulates the production of bile in the liver (choleretic) and facilitates its exit to the intestine from the gallbladder (cholagogue). Recent studies have shown that it can help lower high cholesterol levels. These properties are due to the synergy between its components and mainly to polyphenolic compounds. It also has an aperitif action, that is, it whets the appetite, that is why artichoke leaf extracts are part of the composition of some aperitif wines and vermouths.

The artichoke versus milk thistle

As mentioned above, each of them has specific properties in the liver that should be differentiated in order to know which one should be used in each case. The artichoke facilitates the function of the liver, the milk thistle protects it.

How is it taken?

Artichoke leaf:

• The infusion is prepared with 1 tablespoon of dried leaves in 150 ml of water, which will be allowed to infuse for 5 minutes. The infusion should be taken before meals to help the gallbladder to empty bile at the time of digestion.
• Capsules or powdered tablets: 600-1,500 mg / day, divided into two or three doses before the main meals.
• For products based on dry extracts, follow the manufacturer's instructions, as there are extracts with different concentrations.

Contraindications, adverse effects and recommendations

The artichoke is contraindicated in case of obstruction of the bile ducts (except under medical supervision). There are no safety studies on it and its use in lactation is discouraged, because it can give mother's milk a bitter taste.

«Informative note: the contents included in this section offer information related to existing therapies explained by specialists with experience in the field with an informative objective. MAPFRE does not intend under any circumstances to position itself on its suitability or expressly promote its use ”.

• The artichoke is a relative of thistles, of the genus Cynara. As a medicinal plant the leaves of the rosette at the base are used.
• It facilitates digestion, stimulates the production of bile in the liver and facilitates its exit to the intestine from the gallbladder.
• It can be taken in the form of an infusion, capsules or powdered dragees and based on dry extracts.