Each manufacturer has different doses and levels in their Milk Thistle. On my bottle it says, "for health maintenance, take 3 capsules, 2x a day. For health management, take 4 capsules, 3x a day. I started off with the lower one, even though I should be taking the higher one. But like Humaworm says, Milk Thistle can cause die-off and I just need to take it slow, which is what I am trying to do.