Anyone experience ED after using Saw Palmetto?

Yes, it absolutely can contribute to ED. Saw palmetto is a naturally occurring and fairly potent 5-alpha reductase inhibitor, so it blocks the conversion of Testosterone into DHT, a stronger androgen that plays a large role in the male reproductive system during puberty and development and in adulthood it has metabolic functions, binds with androgen receptors to regulate gene transcription, and generally maintains sexual organ/tissue health and function. Finasteride and Dutasteride are common examples of drugs that are 5-AR inhibitors and yes, all of these including saw palmetto are notorious for causing ED due to the fact DHT is drastically lowered with continued use. DHT is the active androgen involved in the Nitric oxide production which is directly responsible for your ability to get an erection. similarly to PFS, a syndrome where some men who take finasteride develop permanent negative side effects including ED, many case studies have shown that saw palmetto can actually produce the same result. It is unfortunate that risks are not more clearly defined to the consumer.

this conflicts with what i have read,i thought it improves ed

I know it’s an old thread but it’s worth a shot. Almost 3 years ago I started using vitamin packs that included saw palmetto and I took them for about 6 months I never had an issue with ed in my life then out of nowhere ed hit hard. I had stopped taking all supplements I was taking at the time and about a year ago I started regaining competence, well i started taking a new multivitamin pack that contained saw palmetto I’ve only taken for 2 weeks and ed and loss of feeling is back. Little did I know saw palmetto was the root cause. Whole time I thought it was my age or genetics . I hope it doesn’t take too long like last time for the effects to go away and get my life back. Never again will I take that supplement. Forgot to add that it had something to do with hypertonic pelvic floor. Pain was nearly gone but since I started taking it again it’s coming back and I’ll tell you it is not pleasant at all.

No, absolutely not. All 5 alpha reductase inhibitors diminish erectile health and function and are even know to cause permanent ED in some patients amongst a plethora of other debilitating system wide side effects

I developed PFS (post finasteride syndrome) from taking finasteride for hair loss for about 24 months. I got off the drug over 3 years ago and I still have permanent sexual dysfunction, genital numbness, anhedonia, no motivation, executive function, extreme brain fog and memory problems. I am an entirely different person than i used to be. Absolutely devastating, I also became infertile from that drug and I am only 32 and unmarried. This started when I was 28. I am also a pharmacist now (I was about to start school when I developed side effects that never went away. I am good friends with an anesthesiologist who developed this same permanent condition just from taking saw palmetto for a few months. He has been suffering for almost 5 years.

Also, in all of the research I have done in the last several years and all the treatments I have tried from
The best doctors, I got very specific pelvic floor physical therapy and my therapist eventually said he sees nothing to treat. And basically told me I never had a hypertonic pelvic floor upon all examinations. The reason for the pelvic floor dysfunction is because these tissues are rich in androgen receptors and in the absence of DHT, the receptors can compensate via severe mechanistic upregulation and can remain chronically overexpressed, stuck in a broken feedback loop due to the chemical assault they endured in the the face of extreme and unnatural androgen deprivation. The lack of DHT-Androgen receptor binding can disrupt normal gene transcription thereby inducing epigenetic changes through gene methylation for genes that encode for proper Androgen receptors function as well as proper neurosteroid production. Conveniently, the drug insert omits this information, along with proper informed consent opportunity.

I’ve been to tons of drs and none were able to help. One of them did deep tissue massage on my pelvic floor through the anus and it was hell that pain was terrible but it loosened up the tensed muscles a lot. The last dr I seen was a urologist and he recommended cialis 5mg daily and it slowly but surely started bringing the feeling and erection back. I can personally tell you that my penis was smaller than my normal size when I had all that pain. The cialis helped and continues to help. I am now 37 but I’ve been dealing with this for a few years

Now that makes sense I wished I never took saw palmetto. I’ve always had urine issues and I thought this would be ok to take since it came in my vitamin packs. One of the worst mistakes of my life

I have never experienced any such effect and have used it for 25 years. It does wonders for my hair. Probably doesn't help the BHP problem very much.