Saw Palmetto Or Rx Drugs
So should men skip the saw palmetto and go right to prescription medications?
Not so fast. “There is no real downside to taking saw palmetto, but the patient forgoes treatment that we know works,” says researcher Gerald Andriole, MD. He is the Robert K. Royce distinguished professor and chief of urologic surgery at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis.
Certain prescription medications can help treat the symptoms of an enlarged prostate. These include alpha blockers such as Cardura , Flomax , Hytrin , and Uroxatral . These drugs help relax the prostate muscle tissue to increase the flow of urine.
Another category of drugs to treat BPH are 5-alpha reductase inhibitors. These include Avodart and Proscar . They help shrink the enlarged prostate and may prevent further growth. Both types of drugs do have risks.
Some men will need surgery to relieve the symptoms associated with an enlarged prostate.
“Proven therapies prevent urinary retention and the need for surgery and help reduce the chances of developing a urinary tract infection,” Andriole says.
But according to the new study, “men are at the same risk for these events if they take saw palmetto as someone with placebo.”
Men in both groups — the saw palmetto and placebo — improved slightly.
Put another way: the placebo was just as effective as the saw palmetto at relieving prostate problems such as frequent urination.
About The 32nd Annual International Prostate Cancer Update:
The International Prostate Cancer Update , founded in 1990, is a multi-day CME conference focused on prostate cancer treatment updates with expert, international faculty. It is led by expert physicians and is designed for urologists, medical oncologists, radiation oncologists, and other healthcare professionals involved in the diagnosis and treatment of prostate cancer. Dr. Nickel delivered this educational activity during the 32nd iteration of the meeting in March 2022 in Snowbird, Utah.
How Saw Palmetto Could Help Prostate Health
09 Dec 2022
If youâre always getting up to pee in the night, you could have an enlarged prostate. But help could be at hand with a traditional herbal remedy: saw palmetto.
Grey, thinning hair and getting up to pee in the night are all perfectly normal â if annoying â signs of ageing. While itâs easy enough to dye your hair, what can you do about an enlarged prostate?
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Does Saw Palmetto Help With An Enlarged Prostate
Saw Palmetto is shown to help with an enlarged prostate/benign prostate hyperplasia by reducing inflammatory DHT, and prostate cell growth. This helps clear up symptoms associated with an enlarged prostate. Research indicates that Saw Palmetto extract is as effective as drug medication for mild to moderate symptoms of BPH.
Can Saw Palmetto Treat An Enlarged Prostate
Saw Palmetto is a low-growing plant that looks kind of like a palm tree. It produces tiny flowers as well as small berries.
The flower itself is of little medicinal benefit, but the berries are primarily used in prostate supplements. This is not a new development.
For centuries, berries have been used to treat lots of medical issues. Nowadays saw palmetto is a widely-recognized treatment for the Prostate.
This is because saw palmetto contains beta-sitosterol, a substance found to be effective in the treatment of BPH.
Beta-sitosterol works to inhibit the activity of an enzyme called 5-alpha-reductase, which is a key trigger in the development of BPH and prostate cancer.
Flomax and other common prostate drugs were designed to mimic the way beta-sitosterol works. In fact, these drugs are called 5-alpha-reductase-inhibitor drugs because of it! Significantly, saw palmetto also reduces your level of dihydrotestosterone .
This hormone is one of the leading causes of prostatitis and BPH .
Although beta-sitosterol is the main active ingredient in saw palmetto, some of the top prostate supplements like the well-known Total Health for the Prostate do not include saw palmetto.
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Saw Palmetto Vs Flomax For Prostate Problems
Benign prostatic hyperplasia or enlarged prostate is a common problem for many men as they get older.
Men with enlarged prostate experience a wide range of lower urinary tract symptoms that impact their lifestyle.
The good news is that prostate problems are largely manageable with medications and plants, and herbs.
Youve probably come across men who use saw palmetto or Flomax for this purpose.
Whats better for you? How do saw palmetto and Flomax compare? Read on to learn more.
Safety And Side Effects
Though raw and dried saw palmetto berries have been eaten for centuries, their safety hasnt been directly studied.
That said, studies suggest that saw palmetto supplements are generally safe for most people. The most common side effects include diarrhea, headache, fatigue, decreased libido, nausea, vomiting, and vertigo. Yet, they tend to be mild and reversible .
More serious side effects like liver damage, pancreatitis, bleeding in the brain, and death have been reported in isolated cases. However, it isnt always clear whether saw palmetto was the cause (
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Can Saw Palmetto Shrink The Prostate
Many claims have been made about the ability of saw palmetto , a natural remedy derived from the American dwarf palm tree.
There are many claims it helps to shrink the prostate and relieve symptoms of an enlarged prostate and associated urinary tract problems, as well as showing promise in prostatitis, and perhaps even in fighting prostate cancer.
But is this hype, or does saw palmetto really work to shrink the prostate?
The simple answer to the question is yes, saw palmetto has been shown to be effective in managing BPH symptoms and prostatitis, and its too early to tell how effective it may be in the fight against prostate cancer. But here is why saw palmetto works
One of the main components is beta-sitosterol, a substance that inhibits the activity of an enzyme called 5-alpha-reductase. This enzyme promotes the growth of prostate cells, and thus contributes to an enlarged prostate. Saw palmetto also appears to reduce levels of dihydrotestosterone , a hormone which, at elevated levels, causes the prostate to become enlarged.
To get a better idea of how saw palmetto has performed in men with BPH or prostatitis, here are the highlights of some of the research
Benefits Of Saw Palmetto Vs Flomax
The main benefits of Flomax include relaxing the muscles in the prostate and bladder in order to reduce urinary symptoms of BPH.
Saw palmetto is more versatile in terms of benefits. This over-the-counter Flomax alternative can improve urinary function and prostate health, aid the management of night-time urination and other BPH symptoms, and exhibit other health effects. Other benefits of saw palmetto include reducing male pattern baldness, improved testosterone levels, and protecting libido.
Many people wonder if saw palmetto can lower blood pressure. The use of saw palmetto for blood pressure could be helpful for persons with hypertension. The best thing is that there is no interaction between saw palmetto and blood pressure medications.
More studies are necessary on saw palmetto and prostate health, especially in terms of managing problems such as prostatitis or chronic pelvic pain syndrome.
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Saw Palmetto Extract In Bph And Luts: Mechanism Of Action And Efficacy
Transcript:
Bilal Chughtai, MD: When it comes to prostate health, urinary tract symptoms, one of the best-studied supplements is probably saw palmetto. Now, saw palmetto has been used since the early 1800s. This supplement has been studied extensively in rat liver models, mouse models, and human prostate cells. Ultimately, saw palmetto has a very compelling mechanism of action in a couple of different ways. The first is that it can help modulate the androgen receptor signaling, helping to reduce the conversion of testosterone to dihydrotestosterone, which is a much more potent form of testosterone. The second mechanism that were seeing from saw palmetto is that it may help with the inflammatory signal pathway. As we know, as prostates enlarge, theres definitely an inflammatory component to it. This inflammatory component can come from a multitude of reasons, whether its subclinical infections, natural parts of aging, or the fact that you have this imbalance of apoptosis and proliferation. This leads to free radicals that can attract different lymphocytes. When you have these lymphocytes present, this may lead to more inflammation. Saw palmetto may actually help with reducing this inflammatory pathway as well.
Transcript edited for clarity.
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Saw Palmetto As Combination Treatment For Bph
Saw palmetto also works well when combined with other selected supplements. In a 2017 Cochrane review of saw palmetto both as a solo therapy and in combination, the authors concluded that the totality of evidence includes favorable patients response from clinical experience, impact of placebo effect, early positive studiesand potential synergistic effects when combined with other therapies. Those combinations include saw palmetto with lycopene and selenium as well as with stinging nettle.
One example can be seen in a clinical trial of 257 men who were experiencing lower urinary tract symptoms associated with BPH. The men were randomly assigned to take either placebo or a combination of 160 mg saw palmetto extract and 120 mg stinging nettle root extract daily for 24 weeks, followed by a 24-week control period and a 48-week period during which all the men took the combination. By the end of the study , the researchers reported a 53% improvement in the International Prostate Symptom Score , a 19% improvement in urinary flow, and a 44% reduction in residual urine volume.
A subsequent study involved the use of saw palmetto along with stinging nettle, quercetin, and curcumin versus the antibiotic prulifloxacin in men who had chronic bacterial prostatitis. A total of 143 men were enrolled in the study, and they were randomly assigned to one of two groups: 106 received 600 mg prulifloxacin plus the four extracts for 14 days, while 37 men received the antibiotic only.
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Its Not Just About Eating Healthy Its About Eating Prostate Healthy
And just like some food is bad for our general health, a few types of food are absolute killers when it comes to the wellbeing of the prostate receptors.
These are the types of food you must stop eating today.
Once the prostate is back to a healthy size, you can reintroduce these foods in smaller quantities.
But for now, you must eliminate these prostate destroyers from your diet.
Benefits Of An Effective Saw Palmetto Supplement
Fewer Trips To The Bathroom
Repeatedly waking up to use the bathroom can lead to lower sleep quality. This takes a toll on many mens energy, mood, and focus. A quality saw palmetto supplement can help for restful, satisfying sleep.
More Control When Urinating
An aging prostate can lead to weaker, less controllable streams. Sometimes urgency becomes less noticeable, and leakage can result. A powerful saw palmetto supplement can help maintain urinary sensitivity, strengthen your stream, and promote urinary control.
Longer Periods Without Using the Bathroom
Frequent urination often puts limitations on what we can do, like trips in the car, sports games, meetings at work, and dinners with family. An effective saw palmetto supplement can lengthen the time spent between bathroom trips by supporting better bladder emptying, improved comfort, and reduced urgency.
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Similarities And Differences Between Saw Palmetto And Flomax
Similarities between saw palmetto and Flomax revolve around their potential to treat the enlarged prostate condition, the most common problem affecting the prostate gland.
Both saw palmetto and Flomax have the potential to alleviate inflammation in the tissue of this small gland. Additionally, they reduce the intensity and severity of lower urinary tract symptoms in men with BPH.
The abovementioned study showed Flomax was more effective in reducing prostate volume. But it is also believed that saw palmetto can do the same.
Its important to mention that neither of these agents is intended for this purpose primarily but to aid the management of urinary symptoms of prostate enlargement.
The main difference between Flomax and saw palmetto is their mechanism of action and safety profile. Saw palmetto is often referred to as one of the best Flomax alternatives.
How Does Saw Palmetto Work
It is important to note that palmetto doesnt shrink the overall size of the Prostate. It seems to shrink the inner lining that puts pressure on the tubes which carry urine.
This was proven during a study that measured changes in mens prostate tissues after six months of taking 320mg of saw palmetto every day.
It was shown that saw palmetto reduced swelling in the inner lining of the prostate gland which surrounds the urethra.
Other studies have demonstrated similarly positive effects. During a Chinese study, saw palmetto was given to 165 BPH patients for a period of 3 months.
The dose was small , yet the symptom score of the patients improved significantly after only 6 weeks. It got even better at the 12-week mark. The patients could urinate with a fuller stream, and they also had fewer feelings of retention.
In France, a small saw palmetto extract was shown to reduce the inflammation of the Prostate.
Moreover, in South Korea, scientists tested saw palmetto with a medication for BPH called tamsulosin. The combined treatment, they found, was more effective than with the medication alone.
When saw palmetto shrinks the prostate lining, the most pronounced effects are improved urinary flow speed and a reduced need to urinate at night. These are also 2 of the most common symptoms of BPH. Both of them can significantly affect ones quality of life.
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Proven Bph Treatments And Advice On Herbs
While herbal supplements may help with some conditions, always talk with your doctor before beginning a regimen.
Other treatments for an enlarged prostate exist. Sometimes, a doctor will closely monitor you and advise you to modify daily habits to improve symptoms. For example, diet and certain prescription medications can cause prostate problems.
If the problem is severe, several medications exist to treat BPH. You can take them either alone or in combination with other therapies. Minimally invasive procedures also can provide relief.
What Are The Side Effects Of Saw Palmetto
Get emergency medical help if you have signs of an allergic reaction: hives difficulty breathing swelling of your face, lips, tongue, or throat.
Although not all side effects are known, saw palmetto is thought to be likely safe for most people.
Stop using saw palmetto and call your healthcare provider at once if you have:
- easy bruising or bleeding
- any bleeding that will not stop
- signs of stomach bleeding–bloody or tarry stools, coughing up blood or vomit that looks like coffee grounds
- pancreas problems–severe pain in your upper stomach spreading to your back, nausea and vomiting, fast heart rate or
- liver problems–nausea, upper stomach pain, itching, tired feeling, loss of appetite, dark urine, clay-colored stools, jaundice .
Common side effects may include:
- nausea, vomiting, diarrhea, constipation
- headache, dizziness or
- impotence, sexual problems.
This is not a complete list of side effects and others may occur. Tell your doctor, pharmacist, herbalist, or other healthcare provider about any unusual or bothersome side effect. You may report side effects to FDA at 1-800-FDA-1088.
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Help To Continue The Work
The Prostate Cancer Free Foundation, reviews the results of hundreds of thousands of men treated for prostate cancer. Tracking them for years. This information is available to you, and others like you, to help find the best prostate cancer treatment. This work takes time, effort, resources all of it done by volunteers. Please help us continue. Please Donate!
The Fundamental Difference Between Men With Enlarged Prostates And Healthy Men
Ill get back to this fundamental difference in a second.
Because Scott didnt stop there
After spending several months in the Amazon, he returned to the US.
Here, he examined hundreds of elderly American men who do not suffer enlarged prostates.
You have probably been told the myth that all men will develop enlarged prostates with age.
Thats simply not true.
Because one in five men never develops an enlarged prostate, no matter how old they become.
Again, the traditional medical system has no explanation of WHY these mens prostates dont grow bigger. Or WHAT these men do to keep their prostates in great shape.
But Scott found out.
Because those prostate-healthy American men confirmed
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He Put His Prostate Protocol To The Ultimate Test
He gave the prostate protocol to hundreds of men all over the world.
Then he interviewed them repeatedly on their progress.
He studied what worked and what didnt work for them.
And he adjusted the strategy accordingly.
Until one day, he was confident that his strategy could help everyone.
Fortunately for me, Scott had his strategy fully molded when I met him.
After our initial face-to-face meeting , he handed me an approximately 150-page printout of the prostate protocol.
What The Research Says
Although some early research suggested that saw palmetto could benefit people with BPH symptoms, later studies contradicted these findings.
A study published in 2011 followed the progress of 306 men with moderate BPH symptoms over 72 weeks as they took either saw palmetto fruit extracts or a placebo. The results showed that there was no significant difference in the results between the two groups.
Even when the participants took a triple dose of saw palmetto instead of the standard dose of 320 milligrams common in earlier research, the participants experienced no significant benefits.
These findings support 2006 research, which found no improvement in BPH symptoms after 12 months of saw palmetto use.
A 2012 Cochrane review of 32 randomized controlled trials involving 5,666 men further disputes the efficacy of saw palmetto in treating symptoms of BPH. The review states that saw palmetto does not improve excessive night-time urination , peak urine flow, or other urinary symptoms when compared with a placebo.
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