What are the origins of saw palmetto?
From its Latin name “Serenoa repens“, the dwarf palm designates a small tree (its size varies between 70 cm and 3 m high). Also called “florida palm” Or “palm saw“, saw palmetto grows wild in territories like the United States (southeastern part), Central America and South America.
Like most palm trees, the dwarf palm likes dry soil and fears negative temperatures.
The trunk, often creeping, bears leaves with long petioles endowed with sharp thorns. The bluish-green leaves are divided into numerous sharp segments forming a wide-open fan. It’s the terminal budcalled “saw palmetto“which is cooked for its delicate flavor.
Creamy white flowers develop to give olive-sized fruit containing a seed, they are edible despite a strong flavor. It is these fruits that are used for their therapeutic properties. They contain a fatty oil as well as phytosterols (β-sitosterol, campesterol, cycloartenol).
In their day, Native Americans quickly made saw palmetto fruit one of their foodstuffs. Once dried, saw palmetto fruit could indeed be stored for many months. Many Indian healers also used saw palmetto fruit for its medicinal properties.
What are the benefits of saw palmetto?
- Since pre-Columbian times, the indigenous peoples of North America have used palm fruit dwarf for the treatment of many infections, including urinary And genitals. It is then often combined with other plants such asnettle where the pumpkin seeds.
- From the end of the 19th century, studies highlighted the effects of saw palmetto on thebenign prostatic hyperplasia. Indeed, the berries of this plant have properties of inhibiting the 5-alpha reductase and inhibit the proliferation of prostate cells. However, it cannot be considered a treatment forhypertrophy benign prostate, which affects a large proportion of men over the age of 50. Currently, there is no scientific evidence to suggest that saw palmetto reduces benign prostatic hyperplasia (source: MSD Manual).
- The saw palmetto is also associated with other medicinal virtues and benefits, little or not yet demonstrated until now. We thus evoke its use in the treatment ofalopecia male (baldness), I’acnethere seborrheic dermatitis or again, for breast augmentation in women.
The protective effect of saw palmetto against prostate cancer also remains to be demonstrated.
How to use saw palmetto?
The saw palmetto is now available in different forms. It is found in the form of:
- Dry extract
- liquid extract
- In infusion
- In powder to mix
In general, the dosage of saw palmetto should be between 160 and 320 mg of dry extract per day (at this dose, the symptoms of prostatic hypertrophy would be reduced by 50% after 8 weeks of use). However, it is advisable to follow the advice of a health professional to identify the right dosage according to your state of health and the desired benefits.
What are the contraindications of saw palmetto?
To date, there are no known contraindications against saw palmetto.
In rare cases, however, saw palmetto can cause gastrointestinal disorders.
People who have been prescribed drugs or plants with anticoagulant and antiplatelet properties (this is the case with ginkgo biloba for example) are also advised to consult their doctor before considering the consumption of saw palmetto in any form.
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