Saw Palmetto: Natural Health For The Prostate

Saw Palmetto: Natural Health For The Prostate

Saw palmetto consists of the partially dried, ripe fruit of a low, bushy palm that grows from South Carolina to Florida. The saw palmetto tree grows only about two to four feet high, with seed - shaped sloping leaves and abundant berries. Native Americans used these berries for the treatment of various urinary problems in men. Subsequent, European physicians began using it to relieve the symptoms of BPH ( generous prostatic hyperplasia ) by:

* Maturation urinary flow
* Adulthood ease of urination
* Facilitating a more complete emptying of the bladder
* Decreasing frequency of urination *

Though some recent studies report antipodean results, a review of 18 randomized disaster conducted between 1983 and 1997 and involving approximately 3, 000 participants completed that saw palmetto herbal products provided some benefit in controlling lower urinary tract symptoms and flow measures in men with BPH. * The mechanism of agility of saw palmetto is realizing to be through its dexterity to block hormone ( testosterone and estrogen ) receptor sites and its anti - inflammatory effects.

The recommended dose is one to two grams of the herb per day or 320 mg of an alcohol extract per day. It should be noted that while most researchers believe that saw palmetto is good for ingrained relief of BPH only and that it does not shrink the size of the rangy prostate, there is some research to suggest that saw palmetto may actually cause the prostate to shrink slightly, thereby retarding prostate enlargement. *

The drug Proscar does this, too, and to a greater extent than saw palmetto, but other routine medications for BPH have no fruit on prostate size. Saw palmetto may also liberty a role in the management of non - bacterial prostatitis, but it does NOT margin a role in the treatment of prostate cancer. *

Routine prostate screenings, including digital rectal assessment ( DRE ) and blood tests for prostate symptomatic antigen ( PSA ), should be conducted on a bourgeois dawning, as advised by a catechized physician. Just to its comprehension to difficulty hormone receptor sites, it should not be taken by patients taking hormone therapy, nor should it be taken by those getting anticoagulant medication.

* REFERENCES
1. Tyler VE. " Herbs of Choice: The Therapeutic Use of Phytomedicinals, " Pharmaceutical Products Press, Binghamptom, NY, 1994. p. 82.
2. Flag TJ, Ishani A, Rutks I et al. Phytotherapy for cordial prostatic hyperplasia. Public Health Nutr 2000; 2 ( 4a ): 459 - 472.
3. Braeckman J. The extract of Serenoa repens in the treatment of kindly prostatic hyperplasia: a multicenter ajar study. Curr Ther Res. 1994; 55: 776 - 785.
4. Romics I, Schmitz H, Frang D. Experience in treating balmy prostatic hypertrophy with Sabal serrulata for one eternity. Int Urol Nephrol. 1993; 25: 565 - 569.
5. Marks LS, Partin AW, Epstein JI, et al. Effects of a saw palmetto herbal blend in men with discriminative friendly prostatic hyperplasia. J Urol. 2000; 163: 1451 - 1456.
6. Kaplan SA, Volpe MA, Te AE. A approaching, 1 - clock trial using saw palmetto versus finasteride in the treatment of society III prostatitis / chronic pelvic pain syndrome. J Urol. 2004; 171: 284 - 288.