Hi, I have very little time now, so for now I will only respond to your question regarding milk thistle. I learned about milk thistle on the web when doing research on eczema and psoriasis.
in general wholehealthmd.com is a good website on different diseases, supplements etc.. I always consult there first when I want to learn something, and then I use the google :)
I will answer your othre questions later when I have time.