Acne.org Products
Hi guys, so I am back on this forum after having relatively clear skin for the past couple of years because having come off the Dianette I am now breaking out horribly again! My doctor won't prescribe me Dianette anymore because I've been on it for about 3 years and they're worried about the blood clot risk (as am I) but since coming off it I seem to be breaking out all the time again (at least one new spot every single day) and it's making me really depressed and miserable all over again. So now I'm looking into alternatives that might help with my acne. I'm fairly convinced my acne is hormonal because of my age (24) and the fact that Dianette seemed to help it so much when I was on it.
So my questions to you guys are:
Have any of you had significant success with saw palmetto for female acne?
If so, what dosage and brands did you use and how long did it take to see a result? (I'm really not keen on megadosing so am hoping people might have had success with lower doses here!)
And did you have any side effects? Is it safe to use?
Thank you all in advance 
Hi, I'm not sure if you've seen my thread on the hormonal acne forum but I go into a lot of detail in it and there is a link to my personal log thread from when I was first starting out on it there too.
Right now I take saw palmetto, stinging nettle, and pygeum. It's been a little bit up and down, but overall I've seen a lot of improvement and no side effects. I really want more people to know about my experience because I think it could help others who can't/don't want to take birth control, spiro, or accutane for whatever reason.
3 hours ago, FiercePenguin said:Hi, I'm not sure if you've seen my thread on the hormonal acne forum but I go into a lot of detail in it and there is a link to my personal log thread from when I was first starting out on it there too.
Right now I take saw palmetto, stinging nettle, and pygeum. It's been a little bit up and down, but overall I've seen a lot of improvement and no side effects. I really want more people to know about my experience because I think it could help others who can't/don't want to take birth control, spiro, or accutane for whatever reason.
Hi, thank you so much for replying! Your thread is really interesting and I'm so glad you've had success with it. I've not heard of using stinging nettle or pygeum, do they have a similar kind of effect to the saw palmetto? Really hoping it will help me as I'm at my wit's end since coming off birth control. My skin is just horrible. Thanks again!
5 hours ago, MoonlitRiver said:Hi, thank you so much for replying! Your thread is really interesting and I'm so glad you've had success with it. I've not heard of using stinging nettle or pygeum, do they have a similar kind of effect to the saw palmetto? Really hoping it will help me as I'm at my wit's end since coming off birth control. My skin is just horrible. Thanks again!
No problem, glad you found it interesting! Yes, saw palmetto, stinging nettle, and pygeum all block DHT, a potent form of testosterone. If you haven't read The Big Hormone Post, that thread is also a great read with a lot of good information. That's where I got the idea to combine different herbs together instead of taking only saw palmetto and I think that has helped me for sure. There's also nothing wrong with starting out with just one at first, though. That's what I did to make sure I had no bad side effects, and saw palmetto alone does help some people. I hope you keep us updated if you try it or find something else that works for you
12 hours ago, FiercePenguin said:No problem, glad you found it interesting! Yes, saw palmetto, stinging nettle, and pygeum all block DHT, a potent form of testosterone. If you haven't read The Big Hormone Post, that thread is also a great read with a lot of good information. That's where I got the idea to combine different herbs together instead of taking only saw palmetto and I think that has helped me for sure. There's also nothing wrong with starting out with just one at first, though. That's what I did to make sure I had no bad side effects, and saw palmetto alone does help some people. I hope you keep us updated if you try it or find something else that works for you
Ah thank you! That gives me some ideas for combining as well. But I think you're right that starting out on just one to make sure I don't get side effects is a good idea. I've bought some 160mg standardised saw palmetto capsules so was going to try taking those twice a day. Really hope it works for me! I didn't even realise the Dianette was doing anything much until I came off it and all hell broke loose on my skin.....
Hey just wanted to mention that Saw Palmetto actually made my skin worse, I had to stop immediately. I think my problem has always been the free testosterone, and while Saw Palmetto prevents DHT conversion that apparently leads to more free testosterone, which at least in short term can hurt your skin. At least that's the info I found. I know it has helped some, and it may help you, but researching can't hurt good luck!
I tried taking saw palmetto with my birth control pills for a little more than a month and during that time my skin got from being still fairly oily to absolutely beautiful and normal. I don't think saw palmetto can get all the credit since the birth control definitely played a big part, but it did help fasten things up and make a very big difference. Unfortunately I decided to go off of it after a short while because reducing my DHT levels also significantly reduced my sense of well being and gave me sever anxiety issue and panic attacks (but I do have a family history of depression). Up until now my anxiety is a lot more mild but I have to say it never goes away and I never get back to the calm state I was in before. So I have to say that even though SP is always said to be a "natural" cure for acne, still it is quite a powerful herb and should be taken very very carefully.
On 8/28/2016 at 4:10 PM, lifelong confusion said:Hey just wanted to mention that Saw Palmetto actually made my skin worse, I had to stop immediately. I think my problem has always been the free testosterone, and while Saw Palmetto prevents DHT conversion that apparently leads to more free testosterone, which at least in short term can hurt your skin. At least that's the info I found. I know it has helped some, and it may help you, but researching can't hurt
Thank you for your reply. Sorry to hear saw palmetto made your skin worse 
How long were you taking it for? I've been on it about a week now and I seem to be getting less of the deep stuff but am still breaking out with smaller stuff so not really sure if it's working or not (and I imagine it needs longer than this to work in any case!) Have you found anything else to help your acne since?
On 8/28/2016 at 7:27 PM, Jennifer Cheung said:I tried taking saw palmetto with my birth control pills for a little more than a month and during that time my skin got from being still fairly oily to absolutely beautiful and normal. I don't think saw palmetto can get all the credit since the birth control definitely played a big part, but it did help fasten things up and make a very big difference. Unfortunately I decided to go off of it after a short while because reducing my DHT levels also significantly reduced my sense of well being and gave me sever anxiety issue and panic attacks (but I do have a family history of depression). Up until now my anxiety is a lot more mild but I have to say it never goes away and I never get back to the calm state I was in before. So I have to say that even though SP is always said to be a "natural" cure for acne, still it is quite a powerful herb and should be taken very very carefully.
Hi, thanks for replying. Do you mind me asking which birth control you were taking? I'm really hoping to get a similar effect with saw palmetto alone as I can't take the Dianette anymore. Bit worried to hear about the anxiety problems you got with it. My mental health is kind of a mess anyway and acne in itself makes my social anxiety really bad so if it works I think it would be worth it for me anyway but I will certainly keep an eye out for the issues you describe.
2 hours ago, MoonlitRiver said:Thank you for your reply. Sorry to hear saw palmetto made your skin worse
Hi, thanks for replying. Do you mind me asking which birth control you were taking? I'm really hoping to get a similar effect with saw palmetto alone as I can't take the Dianette anymore. Bit worried to hear about the anxiety problems you got with it. My mental health is kind of a mess anyway and acne in itself makes my social anxiety really bad so if it works I think it would be worth it for me anyway but I will certainly keep an eye out for the issues you describe.
I'm currently on Yaz! But I think I will be going off of it really soon because of too many side effects. And it has also stopped giving me clear skin after the 4th month, sadly!
So.... I took saw palmetto for a week and didn't get a single new spot come up in that time. A week ago I stopped it because I thought it was causing my hair to fall out, but since stopping my hair has fallen out worse and my skin has positively erupted again, with cysts all along my jawline. So I've decided to start taking it again because I think the hair loss must be related to me stopping the pill 3 months ago rather than to the saw palmetto I was only taking for a week (otherwise it would have got better not worse when I stopped right?) Really hoping it will be as quick and effective on my skin as it was last time again. Will keep you all posted!
20 hours ago, MoonlitRiver said:So.... I took saw palmetto for a week and didn't get a single new spot come up in that time. A week ago I stopped it because I thought it was causing my hair to fall out, but since stopping my hair has fallen out worse and my skin has positively erupted again, with cysts all along my jawline. So I've decided to start taking it again because I think the hair loss must be related to me stopping the pill 3 months ago rather than to the saw palmetto I was only taking for a week (otherwise it would have got better not worse when I stopped right?) Really hoping it will be as quick and effective on my skin as it was last time again. Will keep you all posted!
Remember, you gotta stick with it for at least 3-4 months. Saw palmetto deals with hormones, and it doesnt work overnight to help those hormones. Just like birth control, you typically have to wait. Im gonna try saw palmetto again soon. I had anxiety when I took it last time and had to stop within a week. But, im going to try another brand and see if it was the saw palmetto that actually caused the anxiety
2 hours ago, Exning said:Remember, you gotta stick with it for at least 3-4 months. Saw palmetto deals with hormones, and it doesnt work overnight to help those hormones. Just like birth control, you typically have to wait. Im gonna try saw palmetto again soon. I had anxiety when I took it last time and had to stop within a week. But, im going to try another brand and see if it was the saw palmetto that actually caused the anxiety
Yeh, I always give things 3 months before deciding if they're working or not, which is why I was really surprised this seemed to work so quickly but maybe it was a fluke! Just have to wait and see I guess. Let me know how you get on too.