Artichoke leaf: cholesterol and liver fat
Modest for cholesterol, early for the liver.
Biocol Labs sells “Something for Cholesterol”, a drinkable ampoule led by artichoke leaf extract, with an ad claiming it reduces liver fat in 82% of patients. Short answer: artichoke leaf extract on its own lowered cholesterol modestly in two double-blind trials. For liver fat the trials are small and early, and one saw a liver enzyme rise. We could not find the source of the 82%, and the ampoule holds less artichoke than the trials used.
How the evidence flows
Each claim (middle), the studies that tested it (left) — green found it, red found nothing — and the grade they add up to (right). Drawn from the same records as the grades below. Tap to open full size.
Artichoke leaf extract (Biocol) · evidence checked 2026-10-27
What the research shows
Grades are calculated from the studies listed, by fixed rules.
- Artichoke leaf extract lowers cholesterolEstablished
Two double-blind, placebo-controlled trials set out to test cholesterol, and both found it lower on artichoke leaf extract (1,000–1,280 mg a day). The falls were modest: 4% in the larger trial, where LDL did not differ from placebo. A Cochrane review called the evidence promising but limited.
- Double-blind randomized trial, 75 people, 12 weeks (2008) — primary outcome: improved. Funder not checked.
- Double-blind randomized trial, 92 people, 8 weeks (2013) — primary outcome: improved. Funder not checked.
- Narrative review, 262 people (2013) — secondary outcome: improved. Funder not checked. Not counted toward the grade.
- Artichoke leaf extract reduces fat in the liverEarly evidence
A 40-person pilot that does not say it was blinded found less liver fat after six weeks, alongside a rise in a liver enzyme. A larger double-blind trial found a smaller liver and better enzymes but did not report liver fat itself. That is early evidence.
- Biocol’s “Something for Cholesterol” ampoule reduces liver fat in 82% of patients and lowers triglyceridesNo real evidence
The ad said “Did you know your liver is solely responsible for eliminating cholesterol from your body? / When it’s functioning properly, it converts excess bad cholesterol (LDL) into bile, which is then excreted…”
Biocol Labs · Facebook ad, seen Oct 2026
We found no study of the ampoule or the source of its 82%. Its label lists 400 mg of artichoke leaf extract in a glycerin base with fennel, chicory, choline and others; the trials above used 600–1,280 mg of artichoke extract on its own. The figures on its own site come from members who were retested, not from a controlled trial.
Related: Dose for Your Liver