Does Saw Palmetto Work for Hair Regrowth?

Traditional medicine has a lot of overlap with modern medicine. After all, modern medicine doesn’t extract the chemical compounds from thin air. No, it goes to the source – to nature. That’s why more and more people are opening up to the idea of food as medicine, particularly supplements.

This applies to almost everything, even for hair regrowth. You’ll have people trying out hair oils to help boost hair growth, and yes, even food supplements.

One of the supplements that is gaining a lot of traction recently is saw Palmetto, but what is it exactly, and does it work for hair regrowth? This guide tells all:

What is Saw Palmetto?

Saw Palmetto is a type of palm tree that’s native to the United States. It’s also been called as the American dwarf palm tree or even the cabbage palm. Unlike other palm trees that produce coconuts, the saw palmetto produces small berries, which is where we get our extract today.

Native Americans have used saw Palmetto for centuries. Typically, however, they use it to treat reproductive disorders, or much more benign issues like coughs. The link between hair growth, saw Palmetto, and even stopping hair loss outright is still relatively new.

Today, it’s primarily used as a food supplement. Men, in particular take it to help with:

• Urinary symptoms
• Enlarged prostate
• Chronic pelvic pain
• Migraines
• Hair loss

How effective is Palmetto for hair loss, you may ask? To understand that question, you need to fist learn what it is saw Palmetto does in your body.

What’s In Saw Palmetto?

There are many active compounds in saw Palmetto [1].

• Monoacylglycerides
• Triglycerides
• Phytosterols
• Fatty acids
• Flavonoids

The Monoacylglycerides are the compounds that work to actively target prostate cells, which can help with prostate-based issues.

What may help with reducing hair loss, however, is the phytosterols. It’s currently believed to help minimise what’s known as 5-alpha reductase. Typically this is used to help with issues like urinary tract infections, but it does also show promise in slowing down hair loss.

Does Saw Palmetto Hair Regrowth Work?

To understand how hair growth, saw Palmetto, and stopping hair loss all work together, you first need to understand what the 5-alpha reductase does.

In short, it’s an enzyme that plays a role in the conversion of testosterone into DHT.

What is DHT?

DHT, or dihydrotestosterone, has been linked to male pattern hair loss [2]. It’s been found that DHT binds itself to the receptors on your hair follicles, which then causes those follicles to shrink. Eventually, it chokes them out entirely, and you stop producing hair.

Do Women Produce DHT?

Since women don’t typically produce nearly as much testosterone or DHT, however, this means that the effects of female pattern hair loss are minimal, though there are other ways that saw Palmetto can help, which we’ll get into later on in this article.

How Does Reducing DHT Stop Hair Loss?

By supplementing your diet with 5-alpha reductase inhibitors as a man, you can limit the testosterone to DHT process. This, in turn, limits how much DHT is in your body, slowing down that choking process that eventually leads to total hair loss in certain follicles (or even every follicle).

Can Saw Palmetto Help With All Hair Loss Causes?

Saw Palmetto can only help slow down hair loss if the cause is natural, and in some cases hormonal. That’s why it’s primarily only useful if you have androgenetic alopecia. This means that it’s the naturally-occurring DHT that’s causing your hair loss.

It won’t, however, typically help if your hair loss is caused due to other reasons.

So long as DHT is the cause of your hair loss, slowing it’s spread can help minimise shedding and baldness.

What Does the Science Say About Saw Palmetto for Female Pattern Hair Loss?

There are several studies that have looked into the link between saw palmetto and male pattern baldness. However, the evidence that saw palmetto works in women is less clear.

However, this doesn’t mean that there haven’t been studies or that there are some ways that saw Palmetto can help.

For one, saw Palmetto may work as an anti-androgen, which in turn helps balance out hormonal imbalances – particularly for those with polycystic ovary syndrome or PCOS [3]. Since some of the symptoms of PCOS are excess body or facial hair, there’s some chance that this supplement can help cut back that promoted hair.

There have been studies that have looked specifically

• One study ended with women experiencing a 10.8% increase in hair production after six months of treatment; however, the treatment included 20 other ingredients on top of the saw palmetto, so the precise impact is unknown.[4]
• In another study, 83.3% of women noticed reduced hair loss after six months; however, once again, the supplement contained other ingredients like AGA, FPHL, and TE, and not just saw Palmetto. [5]

In short, the specific link between saw palmetto and female pattern hair loss is completely unknown. It’s been a part of a few successful studies, but it was just one ingredient amongst many.

It’s also not recommended at all if you are pregnant, breastfeeding, or are expecting to be any time soon. This is because there’s a risk that the reduction of DHT in your blood can lead to foetus damage or a miscarriage [6].

Is Saw Palmetto Similar to Finasteride?

If you’ve spent time researching hair loss treatment, then you know that one of the common recommendations is to take Finasteride, which is a hair loss medication that also works to inhibit DHT.

Finasteride, however, is far more effective. A study conducted in 2012 found that 60% of those who took Finasteride saw slight improvements, 6% saw moderate improvements, and 2% saw significant improvements. As for those taking saw palmetto, only 38% of subjects saw a slight improvement. None saw moderate or significant improvements with the supplements [7].

How to Take Hair Growth Saw Palmetto Extract

Saw Palmetto, as one of the many available herbal remedies available today, can be purchased at a health foods store or online. It is important to note that the best way to take Palmetto extract is with these supplements. Making a tea from the berries or eating the berries directly won’t give you enough for you to see results.

Taking berries doesn’t work, need to take tablets as these contain the extracts.

How Much Saw Palmetto Should You Take?

You’ll want to take the same amount of saw Palmetto for hair regrowth as you would if you had an enlarged prostate, so about 320mg per day. The good news is that you can easily get this dosage with two tablets (or one, in some cases, check the labelling) from over-the-counter supplements.

Are There Any Negative Side Effects of Taking Saw Palmetto?

The only significant negative side effect of taking saw palmetto is if you are pregnant, as this may increase the risk of foetus injury or miscarriage.

You also won’t want to take saw palmetto with other DHT-inhibiting drugs, such as Finasteride. Similarly, you won’t want to take blood-thinning medications like Aspirin or Warfin.

As long as you aren’t taking conflicting medication along with the saw palmetto supplement, and you aren’t pregnant, then taking the supplement is seen as very safe.

Can You Use Saw Palmetto After a Hair Transplant?

Yes, you can get a hair transplant and start up a supplement of saw Palmetto to help minimise future hair loss. Combined, the promoted hair can thrive, since it has renewed life and the hair-loss causing hormone DHT isn’t interfering with the rest of your hair.

How to Improve Saw Palmetto Effects

While you won’t want to take Finasteride or similar medication, you can treat hair loss with other methods safely. For best results, use these tips:

Track Results

Start first by tracking your results. You can use a free hair track app to make things easier. By taking a photo of your hair the day you start treatment, you can start to visually see how your hair is improving – or not. This way, you can learn just what treatment combinations work best for your hair.

Eat a Healthy Diet

You will want to ensure that you are getting a healthy diet. Anorexia, or even nutritional deficiencies, can also cause hair loss due to physical stress. By improving your diet and ensuring your system has the vitamins it needs to care for you, you can improve hair health and prevent hair loss.

Seek Out Professional Treatment

If at-home methods don’t seem to be deterring your hair loss, then it’s time to seek out professionals like us. Have a look at our patients gallery to see the results we’ve won for patients just like you, and get in touch with us so we can help you understand your specific options.

What Can You Do If Saw Palmetto Hair Regrowth Didn’t Work for You?

There are many instances where saw Palmetto just won’t work. You may have frontal fibrosing alopecia, which is an autoimmune issue, and therefore won’t respond to saw palmetto. You may be a woman or AFAB, at which saw Palmetto won’t be effective. The good news is that there are plenty of options – you just need to get in touch to learn what treatments for hair loss are available for you.

Resources

[1] https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3798925/

[2] https://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/68082

[3] https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/23843810/

[4] https://nutrafol.com/static/version1559674754/frontend/Nutrafol/wondersauce/default/images/pdf/Nutrafol_JDD_2.pdf

[5] https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC7706486/

[6] https://healthjade.net/saw-palmetto/

[7] https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/pdf/10.1177/039463201202500435