Has anyone ever used saw palmetto?

[Monkey962]

I've read that saw palmetto can be very beneficial for hair growth, and that it can be used to thicken it up. Has anyone used it, and noticed anything like that?

[Helix]

Saw Palmetto is a natural DHT blocker. It's usually used by men b/c it's good for prostate health and I think people with PCOS use it to help with the symptoms as well if I remember correctly. However, like you mentioned it is beneficial for the hair as well. I don't think it will make your hair grow any faster but you will probably lose less hair (some people take it to prevent or slow the onset of male-pattern baldness).

It's one of the ingredients in Nioxin recharging complex which I've tried before. In a short period of time I did notice a lot of growth around my hairline so it's possible that it works. I don't know what the health implications are when a healthy woman takes saw palmetto alone. I really hope someone with a medical background can answer that for us b/c I've considered taking it (it's a lot cheaper than nioxin pills).

[Mairéad]

I've read up a lot about saw palmetto because I've heard it is highly beneficial to men whose acne is caused by hormones. My DBF has a lot of skin issues and I've been trying to help find anything to help it ease up at all. Also, since it has so many benefits to male health I figured it wouldn't hurt him since baldness is a concern of his.

But, I've also wondered if it's OK for females to take it. I no longer suffer from acne, but I wonder.

[Spring]

I also was wondering about this myself. It says on my bottle of saw palmetto that it is for men's prostate health. I then googled about the effects of it in women, but I didn't read enough to feel comfortable taking the supplement internally. Hopefully others that may have tried it will come in and share their experience as well.

[hazelnut]

I've had Saw Palmetto tea. It made me feel....funny. I can't explain it, but I didn't like the way I felt after drinking it. I then tried it in my hair and I didn't really notice much of a difference. Maybe a little less shedding, but I really hadn't used it long enough to truly see a significant difference.:shrug:

[McFearless]

Saw Palmetto is used by both men and women. It has been used to treat acne, asthma, cough, diarrhea, impotence, indigestion, menstrual pain, migraine, vaginal disorders, sore throat, reduce blood pressure, regulate hormonal imbalances and foster breast enlargement. I don't know if it can thicken up individual hair strands, but if it decreases how many hairs you shed you will have thicker hair overall. People take garlic supplements for the same reason. I'd be interested in reading studies that have proved it to be effective in healing all of those disorders. It seems a bit risky so please talk to your doctor before taking it.

[Monkey962]

Gonna bump this up to see if anyone has any experience or knowledge. Also I should clarify that I am a dude, so perhaps taking saw palmetto would benefit not just my hair, but my health too?

[littlenvy]

I fed it to my DH. :) He has a typical MPB. I swear it was working!! Everyone noticed that his hair has thickened up. He took it for 4 months and then (unrelated) was having stomache problems and had to stop taking it. :(
From what we read, you can take it internally and externally as in massage your scalp with the extract. The extract however does smell quite sharply.
There are lots of shampoos on the market right now that do have saw palmetto as one of the ingredience. I should think about getting that for DH, problem is, since he has not much hair and the hair he has is cut really short, he never uses shampoo :rolleyes: just soap.

PS.
It supposed to be very good for balancing male hormons and making them work at their optimal if you know what I mean. ;)