Ranked by evidence
Best supplements for liver health
Your liver detoxifies without help, and weight loss of 7–10% remains the only intervention with strong evidence in fatty liver disease. The few supplements below are ranked by the grade of the evidence for liver outcomes, not by popularity, and most apply only to a specific diagnosis. Herbal and dietary supplements account for roughly 20% of drug-induced liver injury cases in US registries, so this is a goal where less is often more.
Picks are ranked by the strength of published evidence for this goal in otherwise healthy adults. A persistent symptom needs a clinician's evaluation, and no supplement on this list replaces treatment.
Evidence last reviewed: September 2026
Solid options
| Option | Evidence | Best for | The honest note | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Dihydromyricetin (DHM) | Limited evidence | fatty liver enzyme markers | In one randomised trial in 60 adults with NAFLD, 300 mg twice daily for 3 months lowered ALT and AST and improved insulin resistance. It is a single small trial, and the hangover use it is sold for has no human trial behind it. | View |
Situational
| Option | Evidence | Best for | The honest note | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Vitamin E | Limited evidence | non-diabetic, biopsy-proven NASH | In the PIVENS trial, 800 IU/day improved NASH histology in 43% of patients versus 19% on placebo, though fibrosis did not improve. Doses of 400 IU/day and above carry bleeding, stroke and prostate cancer signals, so this is not a general liver supplement. | View |
| Choline | Moderate evidence | low choline intake | Controlled depletion studies show that too little choline causes fatty liver, which resolves on repletion, and most people fall short of the 425–550 mg/day adequate intake. Eggs are among the best sources; high doses raise TMAO and cause a fishy body odour. | View |
Popular for this goal — but the evidence says skip
- Milk Thistle (Silymarin) Limited evidence
It modestly lowers ALT and AST, but a Cochrane review found no mortality or histology benefit in alcoholic and viral liver disease, and two NASH trials missed their primary endpoints.
- Liver Detox Formulas Limited evidence
No trial shows any detox product removes a toxin from the body, and green tea extract, a common ingredient, can cause liver injury.
- Dandelion Root Limited evidence
Every liver finding comes from rodents or cell culture; no clinical trial shows it changes liver enzymes, bile flow or any outcome in humans.
- Boldo Limited evidence
It has no controlled human efficacy trials, and it has caused acute hepatitis, the opposite of what it is sold to do.
- TUDCA (Tauroursodeoxycholic Acid) Limited evidence
Small studies suggest it lowers liver enzymes similarly to the drug UDCA, but there are no outcome trials and guidelines recommend UDCA instead.
- Artichoke Extract Moderate evidence
Its fatty liver signal comes from small trials using enzyme or imaging endpoints, not histology or clinical outcomes.
Our verdict
If you have biopsy-proven NASH without diabetes, vitamin E at 800 IU/day has the best trial, but discuss it with your doctor first given its bleeding and prostate cancer signals. Skip milk thistle, detox blends, dandelion root and boldo: none has shown a clinical liver benefit, and some detox ingredients can cause the liver injury they claim to prevent.