Saw palmetto is an herbal supplement made from the saw palmetto, or Serenoa repens, plant, a dwarf palm tree indigenous to the southeastern United States. Supplements containing saw palmetto have been studied extensively as a treatment for enlarged prostate in men, with conflicting results, according to the National Center for Complementary and Alternative Medicine. Relatively little is known about the effects of saw palmetto on women. Like any health supplement, consult your doctor before taking saw palmetto.
Balance Hormones
Saw palmetto is frequently advertised as a treatment to "balance hormones" in women. Despite these frequent claims, there is very little research into the effect of saw palmetto on female hormones, explains Herbal Safety of the University of Texas, El Paso. Health supplements are not regulated by the Food and Drug Administration, and manufacturers are not required to base claims of balancing hormones on scientific evidence.
Estrogen
Researchers suspect that saw palmetto may decrease the activity of estrogen in the body, but these speculations are based on little evidence. One study of men with enlarged prostate found indications that saw palmetto may reduce the effect of estrogen, as reported in 1992 in the journal "European Urology," but this effect has not been scientifically measured in women.
Testosterone
Saw palmetto is also thought to decrease the activity of testosterone, by inhibiting an enzyme that converts testosterone into another active form, dihydrotestosterone. However, there are conflicting reports about whether saw palmetto actually decreases levels of dihydrotestosterone in men, according to a study published in the Summer 2001 issue of the journal "Reviews in Urology." The effect of saw palmetto on testosterone levels in women has not been widely studied.
Recommendations
The lack of scientific evidence regarding saw palmetto and hormone levels in women does not necessarily mean it is not effective for this purpose. Additional research is needed to address this question. However, due to the potential effect on hormones, women are advised to avoid taking saw palmetto with other medications that contain estrogen, such as certain birth control pills and hormone replacement therapy, warns MedlinePlus. Similarly, women who are pregnant or lactating should consult a doctor before taking saw palmetto.
References
- National Center for Complementary and Alternative Medicine: Saw Palmetto; July 2010
- MedlinePlus: Saw Palmetto; December 2010
- Herbal Safety: Saw Palmetto; Armando Gonzalez Stuart
- "Reviews in Urology"; Saw Palmetto Berry as a Treatment for BPH; Elliot Fagelman and Franklin Lowe; Summer 2001
- "European Urology"; Evidence that Serenoa Repens Extract Displays an Antiestrogenic Activity in Prostatic Tissue of Benign Prostatic Hypertrophy Patients; F. Di Silverio et al.; 1992
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