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- Saw palmetto may be taken with food if it upsets your stomach. Do not use different forms (capsules, tablets, tinctures, topical forms, etc) of saw palmetto at the same time without medical advice. Using different formulations together increases the risk of an overdose.
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Taking saw palmetto along with estrogen pills might decrease their effects. Dosing Saw palmetto has most often been used by adults in doses of 320-960 mg by mouth daily for up to 3 years.
- Overview
- What is saw palmetto?
- May benefit prostate health and urinary function
- May reduce male pattern baldness
- Other potential benefits
- Safety and side effects
- Potentially effective dosages
- The bottom line
Saw palmetto may provide health benefits, including supporting prostate and urinary health and reducing male pattern baldness. It may have additional uses, though more research is needed.
Saw palmetto is a supplement made from the fruit of the Serenoa repens tree.
It’s often used to treat enlarged prostate, improve urinary function, and enhance hair growth. Some also use the supplement to boost libido and fertility and reduce inflammation. Finally, saw palmetto is claimed to have anticancer effects.
However, not all of its uses and purported health benefits are supported by science.
Saw palmetto, or Serenoa repens, is a dwarf palm tree native to the southeast regions of North America and especially abundant in Florida, Georgia, Cuba, and the Bahamas (1).
It grows in sandy soil and gets its name from the sharp, saw-like teeth on the stalks that attach the tree’s leaves to its stem. The saw palmetto tree produces dark berries that contain a large seed (1).
The saw palmetto fruit has long been used by Native Americans for its nutritional, diuretic, sedative, aphrodisiac, and cough-reducing properties.
Nowadays, the berries are eaten whole or dried and used to make tea. Dried and ground saw palmetto can also be purchased in capsule or tablet form. It’s widely available, including online.
Still, the most common form on the market is oily extracts of the fatty portions of the dried berries (1).
These supplements contain 75–90% fats depending on the extraction method. They typically provide higher amounts of beneficial plant compounds like vitamin E and other antioxidants compared to the raw fruit (2).
Saw palmetto may help treat benign prostatic hyperplasia (BPH) — a medical condition characterized by a slow, noncancerous yet abnormal enlargement of the prostate.
BPH is common in older men, affecting up to 75% of men in their 70s (3).
If left untreated, the prostate can enlarge to the point of interfering with the ability to properly empty the bladder. It can also increase the frequency and urge to urinate, often causing excessive nighttime urination which may disrupt sleep.
BPH is part of a larger group of lower urinary tract symptoms (LUTS), a group of symptoms typically involving the bladder, urethra, and prostate. Unlike BPH, LUTS can affect both men and women (4, 5).
Several studies have looked at saw palmetto’s effect on LUTS — with mixed results.
Early studies reported that saw palmetto may help increase urine flow and reduce nighttime urination in men with BPH — both when used alone or in combination with traditional drug therapy (6, 7, 8, 9, 10).
Saw palmetto may help prevent androgenic alopecia — a type of hair loss also known as male and female pattern baldness in men and women, respectively.
It’s thought to work by blocking the enzyme that converts testosterone to dihydrotestosterone (DHT), an androgen-type hormone believed to cause this form of hair loss (14, 15).
Higher levels of androgen hormones like DHT are thought to shorten the hair growth cycle and lead to the growth of shorter and thinner strands of hair (15).
One small study reports that a daily 200-mg dose of saw palmetto — taken with another beneficial plant compound known as beta-sitosterol — reduced hair loss in 60% of men with androgenic alopecia compared to a placebo (16).
In a 2-year study, men with male pattern baldness were given 320 mg of saw palmetto per day or finasteride, a conventional hair loss medication.
By the end of the study, about one-third of those given saw palmetto reported an increase in hair growth. That said, saw palmetto was only half as effective as the conventional medication (17).
Saw palmetto is touted as providing additional benefits — though most are unsupported by strong science.
For instance, test-tube research shows that Permixon – a specific formulation of saw palmetto – may reduce markers of inflammation in prostate cells. However, it’s unclear whether other saw palmetto supplements have the same effect (19, 20).
Permixon may also protect libido and fertility in men. Conventional drug therapy for BPH and LUTS has been shown to negatively impact sexual function in men.
A review of 12 randomized controlled studies — the gold standard in nutrition research — compared Permixon with conventional drug therapy as a treatment for BPH and LUTS.
Though both produced negative side effects on male sexual function, the saw palmetto supplement led to smaller drops in libido and lower impotence compared to the conventional drug treatment (12).
Still, it’s unclear whether Permixon has the same effect in healthy men or whether other saw palmetto formulations offer similar protective benefits.
Though raw and dried saw palmetto berries have been eaten for centuries, their safety hasn’t been directly studied.
That said, studies suggest that saw palmetto supplements are generally safe for most people. The most common side effects include diarrhea, headache, fatigue, decreased libido, nausea, vomiting, and vertigo. Yet, they tend to be mild and reversible (21).
More serious side effects like liver damage, pancreatitis, bleeding in the brain, and death have been reported in isolated cases. However, it isn’t always clear whether saw palmetto was the cause (21, 25, 26, 27).
Two case studies further report that young girls experienced hot flashes when given saw palmetto supplements to treat hair loss or hirsutism — a condition causing unwanted male-pattern hair growth in women (28, 29).
Moreover, there is some concern that saw palmetto may be linked to birth defects and may prevent the normal development of male genitalia (1).
Therefore, use is strongly discouraged in children, as well as pregnant or breastfeeding women.
Saw palmetto can be taken in many forms.
Little research exists on effective dosages when the saw palmetto berries are eaten whole or steeped to make a tea.
When taken as a dried supplement or an oily liquid extraction, saw palmetto appears most effective in daily dosages of 160–320 mg (12, 13, 16, 17).
That said, most studies have been done exclusively in men, so it’s unclear whether the same dosages are appropriate for women (1).
Always consult your healthcare provider before taking saw palmetto to ensure your safety and appropriate dosage.
Summary
Saw palmetto is a supplement made from the fruit of the Serenoa repens tree.
It may offer health benefits like improved hair growth, prostate health, and urinary function.
According to test-tube studies, it may also have anti-inflammatory and anticancer properties, but more research in these areas is needed.
It’s best to discuss this supplement with your healthcare provider before giving it a try. Children and pregnant or breastfeeding women should abstain from taking saw palmetto.
Apr 15, 2024 · Reactions to saw palmetto are rare, says Dr. Saper, and if issues do appear, they tend to be mild. Reported side effects of saw palmetto have included headaches, plus feelings of dizziness and nausea.
Aug 7, 2023 · Saw palmetto may be taken with food if it upsets your stomach. Do not use different forms (capsules, tablets, tinctures, topical forms, etc) of saw palmetto at the same time without medical advice. Using different formulations together increases the risk of an overdose. Saw palmetto can affect blood-clotting and may increase your risk of bleeding.
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- Before Taking This MedicineBefore using saw palmetto, talk to your healthcare provider. You may not be able to use saw palmetto if you have certain medical conditions., such...
- How Should I Take Saw Palmetto?When considering the use of herbal supplements, seek the advice of your doctor. You may also consider consulting a practitioner who is trained in t...
- What Happens If I Miss A Dose?Skip the missed dose if it is almost time for your next scheduled dose. Do not use extra saw palmetto to make up the missed dose.
- What Should I Avoid While Taking Saw Palmetto?Avoid using saw palmetto together with other herbal/health supplements that can also affect blood-clotting. This includes angelica (dong quai), cap...
- Saw Palmetto Side EffectsGet emergency medical help if you have signs of an allergic reaction: hives; difficulty breathing; swelling of your face, lips, tongue, or throat.A...
- What Other Drugs Will Affect Saw Palmetto?Do not take saw palmetto without medical advice if you are using any of the following medications: 1. birth control pills or hormone replacement th...
- May prevent hair loss. Hair loss is a common condition that can be caused by a variety of factors, including genetics, certain medical conditions, hormone changes, and the use of medications such as stimulants and blood thinners (1).
- May improve urinary tract function. Urinary tract symptoms such as incontinence and difficulty urinating are common among older adults (5). Saw palmetto may improve urinary symptoms associated with benign prostate hyperplasia (BPH), a condition that causes an enlargement of the prostate gland and results in decreased urine flow.
- May support prostate health. The prostate is a small gland located between the bladder and the penis. It’s responsible for maintaining sperm health (9).
- May decrease inflammation. Some research suggests that saw palmetto has anti-inflammatory properties, which may help treat certain conditions. For example, one study in mice with enlarged prostates observed that saw palmetto extract decreased swelling and several markers of inflammation, including interleukin 6 (IL-6) (12).
5 days ago · Saw palmetto for urinary health. Lower urinary tract symptoms affect millions of women globally and cause issues with frequent or urgent urination, nocturia (nighttime urination), and bladder capacity. One study supplemented 76 older women in Japan with 320 mg of saw palmetto daily for 12 weeks.
Saw palmetto can be taken with food if it upsets your stomach. Ensure not to take different types of saw palmetto at the same time without advice from your doctor. The different forms of saw palmetto also have different formulations, which would increase the risk of an overdose.
