Silymarin or diabetic nephropathy
A recent study by Fallahzadeh et al. in the Journal of American Journal of Nephrology found a new potential agent for the treatment of diabetic nephropathy: silymarin.
Diabetic nephropathy is the most common cause of diabetic renal failure worldwide. Fallahzadeh and his colleagues studied a new potential agent for treating diabetic nephropathy: the herbal silymarin, which has antioxidant and anti-inflammatory properties.
Researchers conducted a randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled clinical trial to assess the potential efficacy and safety of silymarin, with the exception of type 2 diabetes mellitus patients treated with RAS inhibitors and patients with obvious nephropathy. Patients with significant proteinuria and oliguria were randomly assigned to silymarin. In the ensuing discussion, researchers found rare opportunities and special challenges in using plant products to treat diseases. Compared with traditional medicines, plants are usually a mixture of unknown ingredients, and special attention must be paid to the analysis of all potential active ingredients and batch-to-batch changes.