Saw Palmetto

Serenoa Repens is its binomial name, and is presently the only species categorized in the Serenoa genus, Saw Palmetto is a little palm, which usually reaches a height of about two to four meters. Its trunk sprawls, and it develops in bunches or dense thickets within sandy coastal grounds, or as bushes in hardwood hammocks or pine woods. Straight trunks or stems are hardly ever produced but are frequently found in a number of populations. It is widespread towards the southeastern part of the United States, most usually along the Gulf and Atlantic coastal plains, as well as farther inland as southern Arkansas.

A fan-like palm having leaves with a bare petiole that finishes into a rounded fan of approximately twenty leaflets, Saw Palmetto in bunches is a beautiful sight to see. The petiole has fine, sharp spine or teeth, giving the palm its general name. The Saw Palmetto’s leaves are one to two meters in length, while the leaflets are fifty to hundred centimeters long. The leaves are comparable to that of the palmetto leaves of Sabal genus. Its flowers have a yellowish-white color which is about five millimeters across, and is produced in thick compound panicles that reach up to sixty centimeters long; the fruits are huge reddish-black drupe, which is an essential wildlife food source.

Saw Palmetto has been recognized in several synonyms such as Sabal Serrulatum, for which this name still frequently shows up in alternative medicine; it has been used by Native Americans as fruit for food, as well as the treatment of various genital and urinary problems. The colonists, particularly European, learned the use of this palm; for two-hundred years, it was utilized as a crude extract for a variety of conditions including urogenital problems, asthenia or weakness, and recovery from main illness.

In recent times, a lot of research has been made on the fruit extracts of Saw Palmetto, which has been found to be highly enriched with phytosterols and fatty acids. This study has been the issue of careful meta-analysis published in JAMA medical journal, and has been revealed to be effective for treating men who have indicative benign prostatic hyperplasia, a swelling of the prostate, in contrast to the placebo and two other major kinds of drugs used for the same condition in men. More studies are being done on the medical benefits of Saw Palmetto with the hope of finding significant uses for the herb.

Saw Palmetto is another one of nature’s remedies that still needs to be explored; nevertheless its health treatment findings have opened the doors to another solution to some of man’s ailments.