It is estimated that at least 50% of patients with dyspeptic complaints have no verifiable disease colitis-crohns-colitis Because of the liver's essential role in detoxification, even minor impairment of liver function can have profound effects colitis-crohns-colitis It is therefore important to take such chronic complaints seriously colitis-crohns-colitis In Germany and France, France, for example, physicians frequently prescribe herbal liver remedies such as artichoke extract with good results when presented with these chronic but nonspecific symptoms colitis-crohns-colitis We may have something to learn here colitis-crohns-colitis The proven basis for the beneficial effects of artichoke leaf extract on the gastrointestinal system is the promotion promotion of bile flow colitis-crohns-colitis Bile is an extremely important digestive substance that is produced by the liver and stored in the gall bladder colitis-crohns-colitis The liver manufactures about one quart a day of bile to meet digestive requirements colitis-crohns-colitis It is secreted into the small intestine, where it emulsifies fats fats and fat-soluble vitamins and improves their absorption colitis-crohns-colitis Any interference with healthy bile flow can create a myriad of immediate digestive disorders such as bloating colitis-crohns-colitis Good bile flow is also essential for detoxification, which is one of the major tasks of the liver colitis-crohns-colitis The liver is constantly bombarded bombarded with toxic chemicals from the environment: the food we eat, the water we drink, and the air we breathe colitis-crohns-colitis Bile serves as a carrier for these toxic substances, delivering them into the intestine for further elimination from the body colitis-crohns-colitis This is the major route for excretion of cholesterol colitis-crohns-colitis cholesterol colitis-crohns-colitis Yet another feature of the bile is helpful here: its promotion of intestinal peristalsis which helps prevent constipation colitis-crohns-colitis When the excretion of bile is inhibited for various reasons (gall stones or gall bladder disease) , toxins and cholesterol stay in the liver longer with damaging effects colitis-crohns-colitis One One of the causes of inhibited bile flow is obstruction of the bile ducts by the presence of gall stones colitis-crohns-colitis Other common reasons for impairment of the bile flow within the liver itself are, for example, alcohol ingestion, viral hepatitis, and certain chemicals and drugs colitis-crohns-colitis In the initial stages stages of liver dysfunctions, laboratory tests, such as serum bilirubin, alkaline phosphatase, SGOT, LDH, and GGTP, often remain normal colitis-crohns-colitis It is not adequate to rely on such tests alone colitis-crohns-colitis Symptoms that may indicate reduced liver function are general malaise, fatigue, digestive disturbances, and sometimes increasing allergies and chemical | 