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Picture of Saw
Palmetto
Saw Palmetto detail, blades, close-up, saw palmetto, teeth,
green, plant
25153 Jupiter Images Royalty Free Photograph
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Prostate Dr.
Promotes prostate gland health, plus urinary tract and immune system functioning
- Promotes prostate gland health
- Soothes the urinary tract via systemic flushing
- Maintains suitable pH (acidity or alkaline) of the bladder
- Supports a strong, steady flow of urine
- Promotes sustained bladder and urinary health
- Supports a healthy immune system for systemic wellness
Improves long-term prostate gland health
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Saw Palmetto -
Saw
palmetto grows in the southern United States.
Common Names--saw palmetto, American
dwarf palm tree, cabbage palm
Latin Names--Serenoa repens, Sabal serrulata
- What Saw Palmetto Is Used For
- Saw palmetto is used mainly for
urinary symptoms associated with an enlarged prostate gland (also called
benign prostatic hyperplasia, or BPH).
- Saw palmetto is also used for
other conditions, including chronic pelvic pain, bladder disorders,
decreased sex drive, hair loss, and hormone imbalances.
- Try our Herbal Remedy and Herbal
Medicine:
Prostate Dr. - Promotes the health and functioning of the prostate and
urinary tract in men
- If you are experiencing one or
more than one of the following symptoms, you may be suffering from an
enlarged prostate:
- Frequent or sudden need to
urinate
- Frequent waking up to urinate
at night
- Weak, variable, or dribbling
urine stream
- Need to strain or push bladder
to urinate
- Difficulty beginning urination
- Feeling that your bladder
never completely empties
- Pain or burning during
urination
- How Saw Palmetto Is Used
The ripe fruit of saw palmetto is used in several forms, including ground and
dried fruit or whole berries. It is available as a liquid extract, tablets,
capsules, and as an infusion or a tea.
- What the Science Says about Saw
Palmetto
- Several small studies suggest that
saw palmetto may be effective for treating BPH symptoms.
- In 2006, a large study of 225 men
with moderate-to-severe BPH found no improvement with 320 mg saw palmetto
daily for 1 year versus placebo. NCCAM cofunded the study with the National
Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases.
- There is not enough scientific
evidence to support the use of saw palmetto for reducing the size of an
enlarged prostate or for any other conditions.
- Saw palmetto does not appear to
affect readings of prostate-specific antigen (PSA) levels. PSA is protein
produced by cells in the prostate. The PSA test is used to screen for
prostate cancer and to monitor patients who have had prostate cancer.
- Side Effects and Cautions of Saw
Palmetto
- Saw palmetto may cause mild side
effects, including stomach discomfort.
- Some men using saw palmetto have
reported side effects such as tender breasts and a decline in sexual desire.
- Tell your health care
providers about any herb or dietary supplement you are using, including saw
palmetto. This helps to ensure safe and coordinated care.
What's an Herb? An herb is a plant or part of a plant used for its flavor, scent, or potential
therapeutic properties. Includes flowers, leaves, bark, fruit, seeds, stems, and
roots. Herbal medicine products are dietary supplements that people take
to improve their health. Many herbs have been used for a long time for claimed
health benefits. They are sold as tablets, capsules, powders, teas, extracts and
fresh or dried plants. However, some can cause health problems, some are not
effective and some may interact with other drugs you are taking.
Dietary supplement is a
product that contains vitamins, minerals, herbs or other botanicals, amino
acids, enzymes, and/or other ingredients intended to supplement the diet. The
U.S. Food and Drug Administration has special labeling requirements for
dietary supplements and treats them as foods, not drugs.
To use an herbal product as safely as
possible:
-
Consult your doctor first
-
Do not take a bigger dose than the label
recommends
-
Take it under the guidance of a trained
medical professional
-
Be especially cautious if you are pregnant or
nursing
National Center for Complementary and Alternative Medicine
Why should I use herbal products?
The decision to use herbs to improve your
health is, as with all health decisions, a personal one. There are, however,
many good reasons to consider herbal products to complement your own
health care methods. One of the best reason, however, may be the fact that
herbs and herbal products, continue to provide real health benefits while
maintaining a remarkable safety profile. Readily available natural
substances were the first medicines used by humans. Primitive and ancient
civilizations as well as contemporary cultures throughout the world have
always relied on herbs to provide the benefits that have been observed with
their use. In fact, the World Health Organization has estimated that 80
percent of the world's population continues to use traditional therapies, a
major part of which are derived from plants, as their primary health care
tools. In our own time and culture, most herbs are available in the form of
"herbal supplements." These products are found in the form of teas, tablets,
capsules, liquid extracts, and others. We now have ready access to products
that bring the herbal traditions from all over the world in a variety of
convenient forms. In addition, scientific inquiries continue to develop our
knowledge of the benefits of plants, and often validate the observations
made over the past centuries.
Are herbs safe?
Plants that enjoy broad culinary and
therapeutic usage are generally safe. We can flavor our food with any number
of herbs to make a meal more flavorful. We can appreciate a delicious cup of
peppermint leaf or ginger root tea, or benefit from the soothing properties
of marshmallow root or the bark of slippery elm. We can take an herbal
supplement containing dandelion root or saw palmetto berries, or any number
of the other herbs. Although allergies and reactions have been recorded for
a few herbs that are widely used in foods and supplements, such individual
concerns are also seen with many foods, and do not diminish the safety
profile of the many herbs that are generally recognized as safe. On the
other hand, and as everyone knows, there are any number of plants that are
highly toxic, even deadly.
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