Saw Palmetto

After completing a regime of isotretinoin, I was assaulted by a sudden outbreak of acne on my face, back, and neck. I became a nervous wreck because I knew a second course was out of the question. After hours of online research, I stumbled upon a forum member mentioning saw palmetto and how it affected hormonal reactions. I was convinced that my acne was hormonal, so I did even more research, mostly focusing on this supplement. To my surprise, it seemed like this extract's effects on testosterone made perfect sense. Enzymes synthesize DHT (Dihydrotestosterone) in the hair follicles, and this is known to increase the activity of the sebaceous glands. If your face is oily and you have a lot of facial hair, your body may be producing too much of this sex hormone. That was the case with me. After a week of supplementing with saw palmetto extract (standardized - 85% fatty acids), I received amazing results. Over the past few months, I have gotten only two small pustules. I still take this supplement and will probably continue to do so for a few more years.

Been taking saw palmetto for about a week now. I have been taking 3 a day to equal 1800mg I may cut to taking 2 pills as it seems everyone takes lower. My acne has completely stopped. Last week was terrible with inflamed red spots and new cystic acne everyday, now it is completely smooth and not red at all. It's actually unbelievable. I do take speariment tea everyday as well as this is an anti androgen. But I can tell the saw palmetto is really working.

I struggled with this prescription, because I believed in the theory behind Saw Palmetto preventing hormonal acne; however, it took a very long time to see results (approximately three months). After month one and mediocre results, I doubled my dosage to 640 mg/day. I purchase Nature's Bounty Extra Strength capsules, because it also contains Zinc. I have not had a single cyst for over one month now. I am amazed that my face is completely turning around from a single supplement. Guys, if you have done your research, and you are sure that your acne is indeed hormonal, this is totally worth it. But, be patient!

This stuff is great for preventing hormonal breakouts. It's usually marketed as a supplement for men and prostate health, but women can use it, too. I buy the standardized extract from walmart for around $7 and take 4 softgels a day, which comes out to 640mg a day, which I take all at once, at night. Start at a lower dosage to see how you react.

I have had clear skin since I started taking 320mg BID standardized (Vitamin world brand). It is amazing.

Since I turned 23 I started getting deep inflamed pimples/cysts on my chin. Not always; in waves. Particularly around the time of the month or if I consumed too much cheese which is my favorite food. I am healthy the majority of the time with a good clean diet and lots and lots of water/tea. I got it under control with birth control but recently when I stopped drinking alcohol as much I broke out all over not just my chin but my cheeks. Deep pimples that developed in clusters. One would go away and another would arrive the next day leaving red marks whether or not I popped them. I started taking Saw Palmetto. Started with 3 160 milligrams a day and it's been 5 days and not one new pimple. I'm also taking zinc, and a probiotic multi vitamin. I am only taking 2 160 milligrams a day now. It also elevated my mood and energy levels although it made my heart beat rather quickly late at night if I took it too late. I cleared up the remaining acne with selsun blue aloe. I think it also may have had a fungal relation somehow because it dried all the zits up and helped ease the redness associated but it leaves your skin dry. Once the skin clears up I use selsun blue 2-3 times a week. Once it's all healed I will have to start with a retin a /aha exfoliant sometimes also just to help wit the red marks left behind.

I am a 51 yr old female and have suffered acne since I was 12. It has waxed and waned over the yrs but is now waxing with the onset of menopause. 2 yrs ago I started taking sp along with DIM, and my acne cleared and everything was great. Then this past summer I stopped taking everything and I am experiencing one of the worst breakouts ever. Very resistant to treatment. I think I am going to up my dosage fr 160 to 480 and see if that helps. Also it's necessary to watch your sugar and dairy intake, and get some excercise and keep your stress levels in check.

In February this year I started getting pimples on my cheeks before my period. This was something new. I had tons of clogged pores and would get 2 or 3 pimples on my chin but never on my cheeks(salicylic acid helped a lot!) . So I started using benzoyl peroxide..my skin looked great for 3-4 month and then I suddenly became allergic to BP and had to stop. Switched back to salicylic acid but that didn't prevent new pimples. I looked horrible way worse than before..I'm not exaggerating. Old cysts wouldn't heal but flare up during ovulation...and new ones would appear. I am in my late 20's.. I haven't cried about my skin in years..probably since I was 18. But I did during that time. It was so bad and I just couldn't get it under control. I thought about getting on BC...but said every month to myself 'wait another month..maybe it gets better'. It didn't. I came across Saw Palmetto on youtube and ordered it ( I was about to order some supplements anyway and ordered Saw Palmetto to save shipping costs) Only after ordering I started my research...in order for it to work it had to be the standardized version. Of course I ordered the wrong version. Then I read some scary stories about it on reddit and decided not to take it. Weeks have passed and my skin wasn't getting any better. I was about to order BC online when I thought 'you don't want to take a herbal supplement because you might mess up your hormones even more..but you are willing to take BC?!?' So I started taking my Saw Palmetto..one pill is 450mg..The first two weeks I took 2 pills and then 4 pills a day. I am about to get my period and I have only two active pimples. I have been taking Saw Palmetto for three month now..and only after two month I saw a difference on my face. My small whiteheads on my chest were gone in 2 weeks. I'll finish the not standardized version in 4 days and will start taking the standardized pills then. I'll probably take two pills a day ( one pill is 320 mg). If you have hormonal acne Saw Palmetto is definitely something you should try. But only if you have too much testosterone. If you have been on BC and have acne I think Vitex is more for you. I also lose much less hair than before and my boobs have gotten bigger. I was pretty happy with mine before..but as long as they don't get too big I don't mind it. I am not a native speaker..so excuse any mistakes.

Hey guys, I have a question: I'm currently taking 22 capsules of 160mg Saw Palmetto Extract a day. I take 10 in the morning, 2 at lunch, 10 at night. I just recently went off Spironolactone and I found it helped me go off the Spiro with less of an impact on my acne. I started with the recommended dose of 320mg per day (2 capsules a day) originally, but eventually I've increased it to the above amount, as i noticed i was getting cysts again and i wanted to stop them. As far as im aware there are no side effects to taking a very high dose of Saw Palmetto. I asked my Naturopath if there is a recommended dose and he said their wasn't. Since taking this high dosage I haven't had any new cysts. The only thing I've noticed is that my nipples are quite sore and tender and my breasts are larger. Any advice is appreciated!! Thanks :)

I suffered with my skin and excess hair since I was 12, I also suffered with anxiety and would constantly pick at my skin. I suffered with oily skin with severe break outs all over especially just before my period. In 2014 I was told I had PCOS, so I did some online research and decided to start taking some herbal meds, change my diet and quit red meat and caffeine. Literally within 2 weeks my skin completely cleared up, no more oily skin and my anxiety and need to pick completely disappeared too. I felt brand new it was amazing! Now I know after all these years (I'm now 44) all my skin and anxiety problems were down to my hormones. This is what I did: I take 320mg saw palmetto (standardised extract) one per day in the morning along with a fish oil capsule and 1000mg evening primrose oil capsule. I no longer drink caffeine. I drink redbush tea which is also very good for your immune system and skin. I limit sugar intake, and try to eat fruit instead (avoid high sugar fruit or fruit that would affect your testeterone levels such as bananas) nuts are great in your diet. Try to stick to a low fat, low carb, high protein diet with lots of fruit, salad and vedgetables. With lean white meats such as fish turkey and chicken. And of course lots of water at least 2 litres a day. I promise you, you'll see a big difference. Saw palmetto literally changed my life.