TUDCA

Tauroursodeoxycholic acid · Tauroursodeoxycholate

Snapshot

Indications	Contraindications
Primary biliary cholangitis¹ Liver cirrhosis, biochemical markers² Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis^{3, 4} Ulcerative colitis⁵ Transthyretin amyloidosis⁶ Progressive multiple sclerosis⁷	Pregnancy⁸ Nursing⁸ Under 18 years⁸

Supplementation is used for liver and biliary support. In one 24-week trial in primary biliary cholangitis, it improved liver tests as well as ursodeoxycholic acid and was well tolerated¹. Practitioners also reach it for neuroprotection in amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, for mucosal healing in ulcerative colitis, and for stabilizing transthyretin amyloidosis alongside doxycycline.

Human research is limited to about two dozen small to mid-sized trials, mostly in cholestatic liver disease, amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, and amyloidosis. In primary biliary cholangitis, a randomized trial found TUDCA comparable to ursodeoxycholic acid on alkaline phosphatase response¹. In amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, a small randomized trial reported slower functional decline, but a meta-analysis of the combined phenylbutyrate-taurursodiol product found no significant difference in function or survival. In preclinical models of pancreatic beta-cell secretory failure, a 2026 meta-analysis found TUDCA restored glucose-stimulated insulin secretion; no human trial has tested this. Products listing TUDCA are mostly capsules, with some powders and gummies; see Form comparison.

Some product labels ask for practitioner advice with kidney, liver, or heart disease⁸.

Last updated October 16, 2026. Read how we make monographs.

In the full monograph

48 sources, 33 studies

When to useThe situations practitioners use it for, each with the reason and the study behind it.
SafetyWho should avoid it, who needs extra care, and the side effects reported in studies.
InteractionsThe medicines and supplements it interacts with, the effect of each, and what labeling says to watch.
Protocol notesThe doses used in studies, how and when they were taken, and how the forms on the market compare.
How it worksWhat it is and how it works in the body, in plain terms.
Published studiesThe studies behind each use, popular claims checked against them, and trials still under way.
Word of mouthWhat patients and practitioners report online, kept separate from the clinical evidence.
Clinical perspectiveA closing read of where the evidence is solid, where it is thin, and what has not been studied.

Snapshot

In the full monograph

Sources