Saw palmetto berries prevent prostate enlargement and hair loss.

Saw palmetto berries have been used by Seminole Indians in Florida as food for thousands of years. Presumably average life span in this population group was not long enough for them to notice the efficacy of Saw palmetto in deterring the enlargement of prostate and hair loss. Saw palmetto's benefits for prostate enlargement or benign prostatic hypertrophy (BPH) and hair regrowth were unnoticed even by American Settlers. By the mid 20th century, the medicinal value of Saw palmetto berries for urinary problems were vaguely recoginzed. It was only late 20th century when Saw palmetto berry extract was widely recognized as an efficient phytomedicine for the prevention and treatment of BPH. Phytotherapeutic agents for BPH treatment have a long history of use in Europe, and French researchers in 1960s initiated the analysis of the chemical composition of Saw palmetto berries, leading to the development of the proprietary Saw palmetto extract (Permixon, Pierre Fabre, France), which contains fat-soluble part of Saw palmetto berries. This lipophilic extract of Saw palmetto berries rich in sterols and fatty acids are approved for BPH treatment by both French and German governments.