Saw palmetto is a supplement made from the fruit of the Serenoa repens tree.

It’s often used to treat enlarged prostate, improve urinary function, and enhance hair growth. Some also use the supplement to boost libido and fertility and reduce inflammation. Finally, saw palmetto is claimed to have anticancer effects.

The saw palmetto fruit has long been used by Native Americans for its nutritional, diuretic, sedative, aphrodisiac, and cough-reducing properties.

Saw palmetto may help fight male and female pattern baldness. A study also reports a small increase in hair count in about half of the men treated with a saw palmetto hair lotion.

Test-tube research suggests that saw palmetto may help kill and slow the growth of certain cancer cells including of the prostate.