When it comes to the choice of a natural hair loss remedy and treating hair loss, the Internet is littered with dietary supplements, shampoos, conditioners, balms and any combination of these substances. As such it is rather interesting to note that with a few exceptions, the vast majority lists as its main ingredient an extract of the saw palmetto.
- The saw palmetto is a small palm tree.
- By and large, this plant likes to grow in clusters, where many individual plants intertwine their root balls and it is hard to tell where on palm begins and another ends.
- The leaves have a very recognizable shape of a small fan such as it is used by children.
In the history of herbal lore it has come to light that the saw palmetto found favor with Native Americans who used it as food and also as a remedy for maladies affecting the urinary tract, the digestion, and to a lesser extent as a methodology for fighting fever. Over the decades, physicians experimenting with the humble saw palmetto attempted to harness its extracts and in recent years women suffering with ovarian cysts have reported good results when ingesting extracts from this plant. In some cases, women even have attempted to overcome fertility problems with the help of this plant, although there is no reported result that showcases the effectiveness of this plant with respect to the ability to conceive children.
Before long, the saw palmetto went the way of so many other herbs and plants before it, and those in search for an effective natural hair loss remedy began to look to the palm for help. The theories abound as to which portion – if any - of the palm tree actually may be useful in the treatment of baldness, and some claim that the oil of the palm is a surefire way to once again cause hair growth on the heads of the bald.
Yet in stark contrast with this assertion rests the fact that the very substance hailed in this manner is also implicated in the treatment of hirsutism – the over stimulation of hair follicles on various area of the body! As hard as it is to reconcile these very opposite treatment choices for the same substance, what makes it even more questionable whether this natural hair loss remedy truly is a wise choice for those suffering from hair loss is the very fact that a stated side effect of saw palmetto extract containing supplements is hair loss.
Other problems associated with saw palmetto supplements that are ingested is the assertion that an overdose may cause the body to temporarily increase the body’s likelihood to bleed while at the same time it depresses the body’s ability to efficiently absorb iron. In the long run, physicians are warning that this natural hair loss remedy – when packed in caplets - may even be indicative in a rise in heart disease risk because of the substances which have to be mixed into the extract to keep it viable.
