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The Greek herbalist Dioscorides catalogued milk thistle in his list of healing plants for liver conditions, improving bile flow and stimulating digestion.* The Roman author Pliny was of a similar opinion. Indeed, milk thistle (Silybum marianum) extracts have been used as traditional herbal remedies for almost 2000 years and milk thistle is now extensively cultivated as a healing herb. This is especially true in Germany, where milk thistle is quite popular. Despite its distinctive prickly leaves and milky sap, milk thistle is sometimes confused with a different plant known as blessed or holy thistle (Cnicus benedictus).