Monday 21/April/2025 – 12:53 AM
For many years, millions of men in middle age have resorted to herbal supplements promoted as a natural remedy for the problems of benign prostate enlargement, most notably a saw palm supplement or what is known as Saw Palmetto, and new research from Harvard University revealed that these pills do not provide the event that manufacturers have long promised.
Experts warn against herbal supplements
In a major clinical trial that included about 370 men, it was found that even the tripartite doses of the saw palm supplement did not show any effectiveness that exceeded the effect of fake pimpo pills, and a number of participants in both groups reported a slight improvement in the symptoms, indicating that what happens may be the result of a psychological effect and not actually from the same supplement.
And Dr. Heidi Riala, a professor of an assistant in the urinary tract surgery at the Faculty of Medicine at Harvard University, confirmed to Harvard Health, that the effectiveness of this supplement is largely exaggerated, and that if it had already contained effective ingredients, pharmaceutical companies would have obtained official approval to use it as a certified and covered drug from insurance companies.
She added: There is no great harm to its use, but it will also not provide you with little benefits, so there is no point in spending a lot of money on it.
In another analysis that included more than 4,600 men, the researchers reached a similar outcome, which is that the saw palm offered a slight or non -existent benefit to those who suffer from symptoms of prostate enlargement or urination problems.
Marketing trick or poor control?
Dr. Mark Garneck, Riala’s colleague, pointed out that the great demand for natural supplements is understood, especially in light of some chemical drugs, but he stressed the importance of assessing the real cause behind the symptoms before resorting to any herbal treatment.
Doubts about the effectiveness of supplements go back to 2015, when investigations in New York revealed that many herbal products sold in stores do not contain herbs announced originally, but were full of cheap fillings such as wheat, rice and household plants.
It is estimated that about 14 million men in the United States suffer from benign prostate enlargement, while the Harvard Health Foundation data indicates that a third of the supplements of the supplements depend on the saw palm.
