8 best drugs to restore the liver

The liver is the largest biochemical factory of the body, which one way or another is tied to most of the processes occurring in it. About the fact that this particular body neutralizes most toxic substances. one way or another trapped in the body is common knowledge. But this is not the only function of the body:

1. accepts, processes, if necessary, and distributes all substances entering the body through the gastrointestinal tract;
2. highlighting bile, provides normal digestion of fats, and, consequently, the intake of fat-soluble vitamins;
3. all serum proteins are synthesized in the liver, including clotting factors;
4. synthesizes heme - the very substance that is able to absorb oxygen from the air and give it to the tissues;
5. it is in this organ that glucose is stored in the form of glycogen, iron, copper, vitamin A;
6. synthesizing bile, the liver removes bilirubin from the body - a toxic breakdown product of “aged” blood cells;
7. with bile is excreted and excess cholesterol, which the liver converts into bile acids.

To support the functions of the body, you can take drugs to restore and protect the liver - hepatoprotectors. Note that using these products “just in case,” a healthy person, of course, is possible, but meaningless. The liver itself is endowed with tremendous ability to recover and, if it does not interfere with it, perfectly maintains itself in a healthy state. It makes sense to take means for restoration of a liver if:

1. long holidays (new year, may, etc.) are approaching with expected food and alcoholic excesses;
2. with existing hepatitis of infectious origin to support liver function;
3. with excess weight: obesity often entails a condition called non-alcoholic fatty liver disease, in which excess fat is deposited not only under the skin and around the internal organs, but also in the liver cells - hepatocytes - disrupting their normal functions;
4. to people prone to alcohol abuse: alcoholic fibrosis (cirrhosis) of the liver, alas, is not just a horror story;
5. if the profession compels contact with substances that have a toxic effect on the liver: petroleum products, arsenic, mercury, phosphorus;
6. with long-term medication, especially paracetamol, which has proven hepatotoxic properties.
7. people undergoing chemotherapy for cancer treatment.

We have collected in the ranking the best drugs to restore the liver. It should be noted that most of them are not recommended during pregnancy - but this does not mean some special “harm”, but due to the fact that for obvious reasons it is impossible to conduct a study of the efficacy and safety of the drug in pregnant women.

Rating of the best drugs to restore the liver

Nomination	a place	Name of product	price
best preparations based on plant extracts	1	Silymarin 150 mg Now Foods	1 050 ₽
	2	Legalon	611 ₽
	3	Artichoke extract	327 ₽
best preparations based on essential phospholipids	1	Phosphogliv	476 ₽
	2	Essentiale forte N	1 076 ₽
	3	Essliver forte	335 ₽
best drugs based on other compounds	1	Ursodeoxycholic acid	1 556 ₽
	2	Ademetionine	1 975 ₽

The best preparations based on plant extracts

Medicinal plants - the first pharmacy of mankind. With the development of medicine and chemistry, some of the herbal “drugs” have lost their relevance due to inefficiency, others. on the contrary, they were carefully studied, and the useful substances from them were specially isolated in a concentrated form and cleaned of impurities in order to obtain preparations with standard dosages and a clearly predictable effect.

Silymarin 150 mg Now Foods

Rating: 4.8

Made in the USA.

Contains standardized milk thistle extract, 150 mg. This is a complex of natural plant substances with the following properties:

1. antioxidant - protects liver cells from reactive oxygen species that appear under the action of toxic substances;
2. help reduce the activity of inflammation,
3. contribute to the acceleration of protein synthesis in hepatocytes,
4. accelerate the recovery of liver cells,
5. contribute to the prevention of fibrosis.

It is necessary to take silymarin for prophylactic purposes 1 capsule 3 times a day for 3-4 months, 1 course per year. Thus, packing in 120 capsules is enough for a course, and at the moment it is one of the most economical options for effectively supporting liver recovery, which made us include the drug in the rating. Please note that this is a dietary supplement, that is, a tool not intended for the treatment of serious diseases. Another important point: milk thistle bioflavonoids are effective only with course application. That is, 1 - 2 tablets before planned alcoholic entertainment will not bring the expected effect.

The safety of use during pregnancy has not been tested.

Legalon

Rating: 4.7

This is another preparation based on milk thistle extract. We included it in the rating because, unlike the previous one, it is not a dietary supplement, but a drug that can be bought at a pharmacy, produced by the German company Madaus. Available in tablets of 70 mg and 140 mg capsules, packs of 60 pieces. Given that the recommended dosage in the instruction is 140 mg 3 times a day, it is wiser to immediately purchase capsules. The mechanism of action is identical to other drugs silymarin (see above).

Contraindicated with individual intolerance.

Finishing the discussion on the preparations of milk thistle, we should mention that pharmacies often offer to buy cheap meal of this plant to restore the liver. Indeed, the cake obtained after pressing milk Thistle oil contains up to 5% silymarin - a natural complex of substances that protect the liver, that is, a teaspoon of meal may contain a single dosage of this substance. But there is one nuance - silymarin is fat soluble, that is, if you just drink the meal and drink it with water, the nutrients simply do not digest in the intestine. Therefore, if you, after reading our rating, still decide to save money, take milk thistle meal with food that contains fats: milk, salad with butter dressing, a sandwich with butter, and so on. Nevertheless, we advise you to use not the meal, the amount of active substances in which no one has tested or standardized, but factory extracts with exactly measured dosage.

Artichoke extract

Rating: 4.2

Trade names: Artichoke leaf extract, Hofitol.

Artichoke extract works in several directions. As a hepatoprotector, it protects the membranes of the liver cells from oxidative stress, normalizes protein metabolism, and promotes the elimination of toxic substances from the body.In addition, it has a mild choleretic effect and improves kidney function.

In pharmacies, you can buy Artichoke leaf extract 300 mg produced by the German company Hexal or the French drug Hofitol (200 mg coated tablets). The German drug is applied 1 tablet 3 times a day French - 2 tablets three times a day, in a course of 2 - 3 weeks.

Both drugs are approved for use during pregnancy.

Since the artichoke has a slight choleretic effect, it is contraindicated in patients with gallstone disease and other diseases leading to obstruction (blockage) of the bile ducts.

The best preparations based on essential phospholipids

Essential phospholipids are special substances that are part of the cell membranes of any organ. The content of essential phospholipids in hepatocyte membranes reaches 70%. Therefore, the main direction of action of such drugs is to restore the integrity of the membranes of liver cells and protect them from further damage. But besides this, essential phospholipids:

1. normalize metabolic processes in the liver cells,
2. increase detoxification potential (ability to neutralize or eliminate toxic substances);
3. normalize fat metabolism, preventing their deposition in liver cells;
4. reduce the activity of fibrosis (rebirth into the connective tissue.

Phosphogliv

Rating: 4.6

This is a domestic development. established in the Institute of Biomedical Chemistry. V.N. Orekhovich. The preparation, in addition to phospholipids, includes glycyrrhizinic acid. This substance is naturally found in licorice roots. It works as an antioxidant, protecting liver cells from the action of toxic substances, has anti-inflammatory properties and contributes to the stabilization of hepatocyte membranes. Thus, Phosphogliv contains two substances that promote the regeneration of liver cells. Some studies have shown that glycyrrhizic acid contributes to the inhibition of virus activity in viral hepatitis, therefore phosphogliv can be recommended primarily to those who are faced with a similar pathology (this does not mean that it can replace antiviral drugs prescribed by a doctor!).

Available in capsules, 50 pieces per pack (the instructions mention packs of 100 and 200 capsules, but we did not find them in online pharmacies). You can take from 12 years old, children - 1 capsule 3 times a day, adults - 1 - 2 capsules three times a day.

Not recommended during pregnancy due to insufficiently studied safety.

A manufacturer's recommended treatment course of 3 to 6 months, but a practically healthy person who wants to support liver recovery will have a prophylactic monthly course once every six months.

Essentiale forte N

Rating: 4.4

Produced by the French company Sanofi.

Available in capsules 300 mg, 30 and 90 capsules per pack. Inside the capsule - essential phospholipids and vitamin E, a powerful antioxidant.

Use the drug can be both adults and adolescents over 12 years old, provided that their weight is more than 43 kg. It is necessary to accept it on 2 capsules three times a day.

The drug is approved for use in pregnant women, moreover, one of its indications includes early preeclampsia (speaking in Russian - toxicosis of the onset of pregnancy). However, in such a situation, Essentiale forte N should be taken strictly under the supervision of a physician.

The duration of admission is not limited, but if we are not talking about the treatment of serious diseases, but about maintaining the work of the liver in healthy people. enough monthly course, repeated every six months.

The tool is contraindicated in case of intolerance to soy and increased sensitivity to phosphatidylcholine.

Considering that 6 capsules are needed per day, a minimum 2 packs of 90 capsules are required for a prophylactic course.

Essliver forte

Rating: 4.3

This tool could be called the Indian analogue Essentiale, if it were not for “but” - Essliver Forte contains vitamins of group B (B1, B2, B6, B12), nicotinic acid (PP), vitamin E, we will dose these vitamins several times. exceed the daily rate for a healthy person. Of course, it will not lead to hypervitaminosis: taking vitamins in tablets or capsules is impossible to obtain their surplus (with the exception of vitamin A): the body simply removes the excess. However, for a healthy person, such an amount of vitamins seems to be useless, and for patients with significantly impaired liver function, they, again, put an additional load on this organ.

On the other hand, this combination can be very useful in a situation of excessive alcohol consumption, since neutralizing alcohol just does require an increased consumption of vitamins from group B. .

Available in capsules of 30 or 50 pieces per pack.

You can apply from 12 years. Adolescents - 1 capsule 3 times a day, adults - 2 capsules 3 times a day with meals. The duration of the course is no more than three months, when it comes to prevention, it is better to limit yourself to a month of intake.

Not recommended during pregnancy due to insufficiently studied safety. Contraindicated with individual intolerance to the components of the drug.

The best drugs based on other compounds

In this section of the ranking, we collected drugs that cannot be combined by origin or mechanism of action.

Ursodeoxycholic acid

Rating: 4.5

Trade names: Ursosan, Ursofalk, Livodeksa.

Natural bile acid, in the human body is produced in extremely small quantities. Mechanisms of action:

1. protects the cell membranes of hepatocytes,
2. antioxidant,
3. helps to slow down fibrosis
4. reduces the activity of apoptosis - “programmed” cell death,
5. has an anticarcinogenic effect.

In addition, ursodeoxycholic acid helps to dissolve cholesterol gallstones, therefore, it is often recommended for gallstone disease.

Take 2-3 capsules per day (recommended dose of 10 mg / kg, in one capsule - 250 mg), the course of administration from six months.

Safety studies during pregnancy have not been conducted. Penetrates into breast milk therefore not recommended for lactating.

Prescription doctor

Ademetionine

Rating: 4.2

Trade names: Heptral, Heptor.

Ademetionine drugs are dispensed from pharmacies by prescription and must be taken under strict control.

Derived amino acid methionine.

Restores the antioxidant mechanisms of the liver, is involved in biochemical processes that restore the integrity of cell membranes, proteins, nucleic acids, thus contributing to the normalization of metabolism in hepatocytes. Promotes the removal of toxic bile acids.

In parallel, ademetionine has an antidepressant effect, which can be very useful in case of excessive love of alcohol, because alcohol, contrary to popular belief, is a depressant. Antidepressant effect appears at least 2 weeks after the start of the application. In addition, the drug reduces fatigue.

The tool is contraindicated in case of individual intolerance to the drug, genetic disorders that violate the exchange of methionine. There are no studies on the safety of means for pregnant women on 1 - 2 trimester and in children under 18 years. With caution, it is necessary to use the drug for bipolar disorders and simultaneously with antidepressants.

Available in tablets of 400 and 500 mg. The dosage and duration of the course is determined by the doctor.

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Attention! This rating is subjective, is not advertising and does not serve as a guide to the purchase. Before buying, you should consult with a specialist.