Vitex : Vitex

Brand:
Reviews
4.1
19 Reviews

Active Ingredients:
Vitex (Chasteberry) Extract, (Vitex agnus-castus).

Inactive Ingredients:
Gelatin Capsule (gelatin, purified water), Cellulose, Vegetable Grade Magnesium Stearate (lubricant).

The list of ingredients above is provided for informational purposes only. Always check the actual product label in your possession for the most accurate ingredient information due to product changes or upgrades that may not yet be reflected on our web site.

5
63.2%
4
15.8%
3
0%
2
5.3%
1
15.8%

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July 29, 2017
BEWARE: PLEASE, PLEASE READ
I eat a very healthy plant based diet, drink over a gallon of water per day, exercise regularly, sleep 8+ hours per night, and do yoga and meditation to manage my stress. Despite all of this, my cystic acne has only gotten worse and I figured that I must have a hormonal imbalance. I wanted to avoid harsh medications like accutane, retin-A, birth control, antibiotics, and spironolactone so I decided to take the natural route. I stumbled upon vitex and only found positive reviews, so I decided to give it a try. Probably one of the worst mistakes I've ever made. I ended up in the ER because of heart palpitations and acute anxiety. I could not sleep because my heart was pounding and I would wake up in the middle of the night and look in the mirror and not be able to recognize myself. Sometimes when I closed my eyes, I experienced some form of psychosis and saw terrifying images and hallucinations. I couldn't concentrate at all and I became unable to read, hold conversations, or perform simple addition. I put on weight because I was ravenously hungry and no amount of food could satisfy my cravings. The worst part is that my skin broke out in a severe, itchy, acne-like rash and it had never looked more terrible or swollen. I took it for approximately 1 week and stopped it cold turkey after taking a higher dose (two 400 mg pills, 12 hours apart) and suffering severe diarrhea the following day. It has been nearly 3 weeks since I last took it. Fortunately, my period is still regular, but the anxiety and the derealization/depersonalization remain. I'm getting better day by day but this has been not been an easy journey. I was lucky to get out quickly and to be young (I'm 19 years old) and fairly healthy, but I have read stories of women who stuck with the pill for months and even years despite the side effects and permanently damaged their bodies. Please, please reconsider taking vitex until you have gone to a doctor, gotten your hormones tested, and been told that your progesterone is low. I don't want to discount that vitex has been a miracle worker for so many women. However, it is NOT for everyone. I feel that after the pain I have endured, it's my duty to share my experience so no else has to suffer like I have. If you do wish to start vitex, start with VERY small dosages. A lot of my anger stems from the fact that the Whole Foods brand has pills with 400 mg of the herb and the instructions recommend that you take 1 to 2 capsules per day. IMPORTANT: THE RECOMMENDED DOSAGE IS ANYWHERE BETWEEN 50 MG AND 250 MG (MAX!!!!) DAILY. I took 800 mg only ONE day and I have not been the same since. So start with small doses or avoid the herb all together. Trust me, clear skin is not worth your health or your sanity. Update: It has now been nearly 4 months and I am still not even close to 100%. My acne is the worst it's ever been, my period comes later and later each month, and my anxiety is through the roof. DO NOT TAKE ANY SUPPLEMENT WITHOUT CONSULTING A DOCTOR OR A LICENSED HERBALIST. I'm devastated and I would never wish this pain upon anyone.
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December 3, 2017
Sorry to hear about that..........vitex does have some side effects but you need to lower you dose.....I started taking vitex 1st Nov 2017 the first day I took 400mg 3 times a day and notice I was always hungry....night sweat, heart palpitations and diarrhea after about 1 week I decided to lower my dose now I am only taken 400mg 2 times per day .....but beside the negative the first day I stated feeling good about myself I was always depressed.....no depressing now ...have a lot of energy ...no headache and I am ovulating the way I should.....today 3rd December 2017 I notice my hands peeling so I am now going to keep looking and if so be it lower my dose to just 1 per day but I really love vitex never felt so good and healthy about myself my cravings are not there like before when I just stated ..I guess it not for everyone what might work for me might now work for someone else.
March 16, 2018
July 4, 2018
A lot of people take 800mg daily for months, including myself, with no side effects. Your reaction seems very extreme and unusual. It seems like maybe you have a severe hormonal imbalance going on, and the Vitex supplement made it worse. I'm sorry that happened to you, and I hope you were able to recover. However I also hope people looking to try this supplement dont get put off because for the vast majority of people it has an amazing effect on acne without any side effects, unlike other acne treatments.
March 11, 2013

Pros:

Relatively cheap, not difficult to access if you have health food stores available. One of the few "herbal" remedies that have a proven track record for treating acne (at least in phytotherapy journals in Europe).

Cons:

Personally gave me worse acne, bloating, breakthrough bleeding, as if I were on birth control pills. If you are one of those women who have bad side effects from all birth control pills, you probably won't benefit much from this. I wouldn't try this treatment if I were male.

I wrote "yes" for recommendation simply because I'm sure it would work for some women out there-- but don't expect miracles. Stop it if you get funky periods and bloating.
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January 26, 2013

Pros:

None

Cons:

Migraine headaches
Mood swings
Irregular cycle
Skin rash
Raging acne

This works well for a lot of people, but not for me. After about two weeks, I started getting terrible migraine headaches, rashes, and acne on my chin/jawline. After about two weeks more, I stopped taking it because none of the side effects had dissipated. More than a month later, the side effects have still not dissipated and the acne is actually considerably worse. It's left large swaths of my skin red, pimply, and flakey.
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