I am also starting saw palmetto a month ago, but it,s too soon to say something, but I,ll keep reporting. I am also interesting to know if someone has any success with SP or not, and report their experience with this stuff.

Gem84, what dosage are you actually taking? I am taking 160 mg, and I know I should take at least 360 mg, but I am scared because I am also taking Diane 35 + 50 mg zinc + 50 mg pumpkin seed oil.

Hey, thanks for your reply. I am taking 320mg once a day. I am so desperate for some results now. I have had two Saliycic Acid peels and one go of lazer and my skin is a peeling & purging mess at the mo. (.

A relatively safe supplement you can add in is vitamin B5. It disrupts the alpha reductase process, which helps lower your androgens in a way that is different but complementary to saw palmetto.

Great! Thanks. Have you had any results with this "Green Gables"?

I am also interesting to know the effects of vitamine B5 in testosterone. I thought it was vitamine b6 and not vitamine B5 that has relation with testosterone, please, Green Gable, tell us your experience with B5. And there is a theory about the conexion between a deficit in coenzyme A ( vitamine B5) and Acne ( from a chinese doctor Dr.Lee I think).

I have read that vitamine B6 reduces prolactin, and a reduction in prolactin levels avoid the conversion of testosterone to DHT.

I have looked up vitamin B5 or P Acid and it has worked for a lot of people but a possible common side effect is hair loss!!! NO THANK YOU ha.

The doctor has today given me Benzoyl peroxide 5% because 2.5% has been discontinued (in the uk). I will give it a try buy really worried about the dry skin and I dont like using anything not natural on or in my body. Desperate times I guess!!

Maybe a lower dose of B5 will be enough to compliment the Saw Palmetto. I have seen some people take 4 - 7 vit B5 pills a day!!

Vitamin B5 helps with the coenzyme A process, which seems to help people with acne. Coenzyme A is involved in hormonal processes in the body. I don't think B5 is strong enough / complex enough to stop hormonal acne on its own, but I do recommend it in addition to something else, such as saw palmetto.

I haven't done much research on vitamin B6, so I can't help you there.

I have looked up vitamin B5 or P Acid and it has worked for a lot of people but a possible common side effect is hair loss!!! NO THANK YOU ha.

 

The doctor has today given me Benzoyl peroxide 5% because 2.5% has been discontinued (in the uk). I will give it a try buy really worried about the dry skin and I dont like using anything not natural on or in my body. Desperate times I guess!!

 

Maybe a lower dose of B5 will be enough to compliment the Saw Palmetto. I have seen some people take 4 - 7 vit B5 pills a day!!

I've been using saw palmetto for several months, and I have absolutely noticed decreased oiliness. It took about 2 months before I really started noticing a difference, and the first place I saw it was on my forehead. This area never had a ton of acne, but the skin there became incredibly smooth.

I don't want to hail it as a miracle drug, because when I experienced an external skin setback I needed the additional boost at the beginning of using a BP treament. I had inflamed, infected acne, and a good anti-bacterial agent was the only thing that could get rid of that existing acne that simply would not heal. BUT... my skin was still less oily during that time, and under normal circumstances I think it would have become much worse.

Basically, every body will need something different, but I was an absolute oil slick before I began taking this. If you believe excess androgen is a problem it is absolutely worth a try.

One word of caution: my menstrual cycle is irregular, and I'm not sure about the effects SP may be having there. While my skin is clearing up, this is still an issue I'm working through.

For reference: I took 320mg of standardized SP a day (one pill in morning, one in evening) for three months, then stopped for a month. Resumed taking it, but at a higher dose of 600mg a day (2 in the morning, 2 in the evening). Adding a bit of milk thistle helped with some of the sleeplessness I was experiencing.

Thank you Laitholiel for sharing your experience about saw palmetto, it`s very useful for me.

I am currently taking Diane35, but it,not enough for me, and I think I have excess of androgen, and 2 miligrames of ciproterone acetato is not enough. That,s the reason I am actually taking zinc 50 mg + pumpkin seed oil 50 mg + 160 mg of saw palmetto, but I have been taking it just for a month and its very soon to say something.

I didt understand well. So, you say you are actually taking 320 mg or 600 mg a day? ( english is not my first language). And in case you have decreased your dosage, have you had better results? I am asking because my skin is even now so oily.

I have PCOS and mild hirsutism, and this is my experience with saw palmetto. I took it consistently for about 2 months because I am sure I have high androgens due to the increased facial fuzz and body hair, and high sex drive. I noticed a decrease in oil production, and a very minor reduction of acne, and also a noticeable reduction in the density of body hair. But I was taking a higher dose of about 600-700mg a day, spread out during the day (not all at once). The biggest side effect for me was brain fog. I would sometimes forget what I was going to say, or just feel out of it during the day. I think the higher dosage was what made this worse, but this was the only dosage that seemed to actually have an impact on my skin and it's similar to the dose of studies on saw palmetto.

I quit taking it (I *slowly* reduced the dosage and weaned off gradually bc I didn't want to shock my hormones) because I was starting to notice mid-section weight gain. My guess is that, along with lowering my androgens, it raised my estrogen and hence the mid-section muffin top and increased breast size. So, if your issue is both androgens and estrogen/low progesterone, then saw palmetto SHOULD NOT BE TAKEN ON ITS OWN. It should be taken with an estrogen/progesterone regulator like agnus castus or a bio-identical hormone cream to ensure it will not tip the hormones towards a new imbalance. It's best to do saliva testing and see which hormones are causing your issues...it may even be your thyroid (which I learned that doctors only use the T3 test to check, but need to also do the T4 and T7 to thoroughly cover thyroid issues). A full panel would be the most ideal so then you will know which hormones fluctuate during which parts of your cycle.

I had some good results with the Super Saw Palmetto formula from the LifeExtension brand. I bought it off Amazon.

These are the ingredients:

USPlus Saw Palmetto (Serenoa repens) CO2 DeepExtract (fruit) [std. to 85%-95% total fatty acids and sterols (136 mg)]

160 mg

Phytosterol Complex [standardized to 59% free total sterols (100 mg) and 26.6% free beta-sitosterol (45 mg)]

169.5 mg

Stinging and Dwarf nettle extracts (root)

120 mg

Boron (from boron citrate, aspartate, glycinate)

1.5 mg

Rosemary (Rosmarinus officinalis) extract (leaves)

400 mcg

I took about 3 pills a day.

I find that it combining anti-androgen herbs works a lot better than taking large doses of one, since they all affect androgens through slightly different mechanisms.

The Super Saw Palmetto combines saw palmetto, beta-sitosterol, and stinging nettle.

It is also important for saw palmetto to be "standardized extract" as you can see in the label above. Just whole herb saw palmetto isn't potent for acne.

Large doses of saw palmetto will dehydrate you rather quickly. You will need to drink tons of water. Typically the dehydration (which you may not even "feel" at the time) can cause brain fog unless you drink water constantly.

The only reason I stopped was because it just wasn't strong enough to clear me. I had VERY severe acne (all my dermatologists rated it on the acne grading scales as most severe or second to most severe). But the fact that I saw any improvements at all gives me high hopes that it will work well from someone with mild to moderate acne.

Dehydration is definitely an issue with antiandrogens. I noticed extreme dryness in my hands while taking saw palmetto. Right now I'm trying inositol (in powder form), and it's a bit too early to tell if it's truly working but so far I have seen a reduction in facial hair and a decrease in the numbness I was feeling in my hands and feet. To me, inositol is a far safer alternative to saw palmetto, and it's effective at much lower doses. Do some research on it and see what you think. It's very popular on PCOS forums. It not only reduces androgens, it also helps regulate progesterone and estrogen. For me, saw palmetto was not enough on its own because I also have issues with high estrogen and low progesterone.

I would highly recommend you do a full hormonal panel testing using saliva samples to see exactly what your hormonal imbalance is. It might be more complicated than just high androgens.

I also want to warn you ladies about melasma. Any time you use an anti-androgen, there is the risk of elevated estrogen. I developed melasma (brown hyperpigmented patches) during the time I was taking saw palmetto. I'm not sure if it was directly related to saw palmetto, but it was definitely not sun-induced because I got it in the wintertime. That's why I think that saw palmetto on its own will only help you if the only issue you have is high testosterone. If you have other hormonal imbalances including thyroid issues, then it might make things worse.

Thank you for your reply - its hard to know what to do for the best isnt it! Esp without professional advice. I am not sure how easy these hormonal checks are in the uk. I have only have SP for 1+ month. Ill see how I go. I am not sure about my other hormones, but I don't agree with the likes of angus cactus as I don't want to add additional hormones...I would rather just balance what I have.