Saw Palmetto And Hair Loss- Some Straight Talk

Can saw palmetto and hair loss be linked? Hair loss in men can be caused by a variety of factors, including: heredity, stress, medical conditions, medications and some types of hormonal imbalances. If you are losing your hair, depending on the cause, there just might be an effective treatment that will either stop hair loss or regrow hair. Saw palmetto and hair loss are closely related. Read on to find out if this all-natural treatment is right for you.

The first step to determining if saw palmetto and hair loss are relevant to your particular situation is to find out definitively what is causing your hair to fall out. It could be something as simple as a thyroid imbalance or as complex as liver or kidney disease. You could have diabetes or just be stressed out. You could be depressed or genetically predisposed to lose your hair. The important thing to recognize here is that a successful battle against hair loss begins with a medical doctor. The doctor will rule out medical conditions through a series of tests. If you're subject to stress, depression or anxiety, there are effective treatments. Only a doctor can diagnose a physical or systemic cause for your hair loss.

If the doctor rules out most medical causes, it may be that you have a genetic predisposition that causes your hair loss. In some men, the hair follicles at the temples, crown and front hairline are sensitive to a hormone known as dihydrotestosterone (DHT). The follicles at the sides and lower back of the head, for some reason not perfectly understood, are not susceptible to DHT. If you're balding at the front hairline, temples and crown, you may be experiencing "male pattern baldness." What does saw palmetto and hair loss have to do with this? We'll answer the question below.

Saw palmetto and hair loss are better understood once some basic biochemistry is explained. Testosterone exists naturally in a man's body. Some men are vulnerable to a process which converts testosterone into dihydrotestosterone (DHT). This process occurs when an enzyme called 5-alpha reductase converts testosterone into DHT. If you are genetically predisposed to be sensitive to DHT, what happens is that DHT attacks susceptible follicles on your scalp. Over time, the follicles produce finer and finer hair because the action of DHT causes them to weaken and miniaturize. Finally, the hair becomes transparent and the follicle eventually is unable to produce hair. Researchers discovered that if the action of either the 5-alpha reductase enzyme or of DHT itself could be inhibited, the hair could be preserved.

If the follicle could be maintained in a healthy condition, if DHT could somehow be cancelled out, men with this type of hair loss would experience less or none. Saw palmetto and hair loss are connected in that saw palmetto is a powerful natural DHT inhibitor. In a recent study, 19 men between the ages of 23 and 64 who were losing their hair either mildly or moderately took standardized saw palmetto extract in the dosage of 400 mg. per day. Other men in the study were given a harmless, ineffective placebo. The men who were taking the saw palmetto experienced hair growth at the rate of 60% of those who took it. Only 11% of the men taking the placebo had similar growth. In this study, the saw palmetto was combined with 100 mg of beta-sitosterol, also taken daily.

In light of this positive scientific evidence, men who are experiencing DHT-related hair loss may benefit from the addition of a saw palmetto and beta-sitosterol supplement to their daily routine. With low or no side effects, no prescription required and wide availability, saw palmetto and hair loss are a powerful combination for success. Standardized saw palmetto and beta-sitosterol are easily found in health food stores.