Pygeum, also known as African Plum, is an herbal supplement which has anti-inflammatory, anti-estrogenic, anti-fibroblastic, and anti-oxidative properties. It is used to treat a variety of conditions especially sexual and prostate problems: impotence, BPH and prostate cancer.
Healthy erections and a healthy sex life are all about the blood flow. While Viagra may help, natural is always better. Would you like to naturally improve your prostate health, enhance the blood flow to your penis and invigorate your sex life? Pygeum can help you do just that as well improving many other conditions.
Pygeum extracts have been used in traditional medicine for treating prostate gland inflammation, urinary problems, Weakened Immune System, liver problems, hair loss and other conditions. It is also used to alleviate pain caused by inflammation, kidney disease, malaria, stomachache, and fever.
Before we start with the list of Pygeum benefits, allow us to remind you the plant has been used for decades in different parts of the world.
Pygeum has been imported from Africa to Europe since the 1700s and is still used today as an alternative treatment for benign prostatic hypertrophy or BPH. Once Europeans learned of the usefulness of the plant for what they called “old man’s disease”, it became a widely popular remedy for treating BPH in Europe. It is especially popular in France where the use of African pygeum for BPH is reported to be about 80%.
- Benign Prostatic Hyperplasia, BPH
BPH is a common and serious health problem among men. Taking pygeum can reduce symptoms of BPH such as low urine flow, night urination (nocturia), frequent urination, incontinence, and help rid the prostate of cholesterol deposits. When Pygeum is taken with pumpkin seed oil, Epilobium parviflorum, lycopene, and saw palmetto once daily, it boosts its effects to decrease the number of times men with BPH need to urinate during the day and night.
Pygeum is primarily used to treat BPH, a condition which affects men as early as their 40s, but increasingly with age: 30% of men in their 50s; 50% of men in their 60s; and nearly 80% of men 70 and older. According to the Gale Encyclopedia of Alternative Medicine, it has been found to be useful in related conditions such as chronic prostatitis, with and without prostate related sexual dysfunction, and infertility due to reduced prostatic secretions.
- Prostatitis
Pygeum is a popular alternative in treating prostatitis. The extract may help prostatitis due to its anti-inflammatory benefits on the urinary system. It is believed to help relieve prostatitis symptoms in the same way it helps relieve BPH symptoms. This includes urination frequency, night urination, prostatic pain and inflammation which are often associated with prostatitis.
- Prostate cancer
Pygeum has gained a reputation for possibly reducing the risk of developing prostate cancer. A 2010 study in the National Institutes of Health’s Database found that prostate growth was ultimately controlled because pygeum acts on androgen receptors which is a type of nuclear receptor that is activated by binding any of the androgenic hormones, including testosterone and dihydrotestosterone (DHT) in the cytoplasm and then translocating into the nucleus. A 2012 study also in the National Institutes of Health’s Database showed Pygeum’s BPH benefits also showed protection against cancerous prostate cells.
Although they do not officially consider BPH as a risk factor for prostate cancer, the two conditions often coexist.
- Urinary Problems
Pygeum helps shrink the prostate to relieve urinary problems such as poor urine flow and nighttime urination in men with enlarged prostates.
According to a Cochrane Review in a double-blind placebo-controlled study which involved 263 men on a dose of 100 mg per day of African pygeum extract for 60 days, the improvements below were observed:
- 31% decrease in “nocturia,” or night-time frequency.
- 5% decrease in “residual urine,” the amount of urine left in the bladder after urination.
- 2% increase in urine flow.
50% increase in overall relief and feeling of wellbeing.
- Anti-Inflammation
Inflammation is a natural defense or self-healing process your body uses to fighting against harmful or pathogenic attacks such as toxins, infections, and injuries. When there is cellular damage your body releases certain chemicals causing your immune system to produce an inflammatory response.
Pygeum’s phytosterols are anti-inflammatory and immune booster, which makes it attacks not only the inflammation but the root cause of the problem. Therefore, Pygeum extract is also used to reduce edema which is the swelling caused by an excess of fluids.
- Fever
Pygeum has been used to bring down fevers and reduce fever-related symptoms. Pathogenic attacks are often the cause of fever. When viruses, bacteria, fungi, and parasites invade the body, signals are sent to the brain which triggers a fever to fight off these conditions. That’s why urinary tract infections and malaria tend to associated with feverish reaction. When the cause is treated, the symptoms disappear. Using Pygeum can help to reduce fever and the symptoms associated with it while boosting the immune system as the same time.
- Malaria
In African traditional medicine, pygeum is sometimes used to relieve symptoms when treating of Malaria. Thanks to its powerful antioxidant property, Pygeum reduces the effect of free radicals and degradative enzymes. When someone has Malaria, free radicals are attacking the red blood cells in order to destroy them. This is one of the reasons why Pygeum benefits people with having or experiencing symptoms of malaria.
- Kidney Disease
Thanks to their million functioning units, the nephrons, Healthy kidneys filter blood removing wastes and extra water to make urine. This is a life-sustaining process vital to health and life. Therefore, it is harmful when the kidney cannot filter the blood and handle body fluids. They react by causing pain, inflammation, frequent urination, night urination, sometimes more serious symptoms, including death.
Urinary infections are a common cause of kidney problems because they can travel from the urinary tract to the kidneys. Pygeum may help quite a bit to alleviate or get rid of these symptoms when taken regularly.
- Improved Sex Life
Pygeum can boost libido in males suffering erectile dysfunction related to prostate problems. Some clinical trials show that patients who use Pygeum extract have an improvement in sexual performance. Pygeum has phytosterols and ferulic acid which can help increase secretions in the prostate and its functions. The quality of semen improves when the prostate is well nourished and this leads to an improved fertility rate.
- Stomachache
When abdominal distention and pain are caused by inflammation, pygeum may help due to the unique anti-inflammatory properties. It is often used in traditional treatment gastrointestinal disorders like gastritis where the acid levels increase.
In traditional medicine, Pygeum is also used as a stomach soother in other stomach problems. But research has yet to prove whether pygeum can indeed cure stomachaches or gastric disorders.
- Hair Loss
Pygeum has an androgen-blocking capacity that can improve hair health. Men who suffer from hair loss because of High levels of androgen or DHT may improve their hair growth and stop the progression of the hair loss when supplement with Pygeum. Studies find DHT can shrink hair follicles, causing hair to become thinner, more brittle, and fall out faster. DHT can also make it more difficult for the follicles to grow new hairs once old hairs fall out.
There are many therapeutic benefits of using Pygeum including inhibit cellular increase, lowering cholesterol, regulating insulin activity, thereby regulate blood sugar levels and the immune system.
- Hepatitis C and HIV
Due to its actions as an immune regulator and anti-inflammatory, pygeum is also being studied for use as an herbal treatment for hepatitis C and HIV. The results of the few small and relatively short clinical trials of pygeum in the treatment of Hepatitis C and HIV+ infections have been statistically significant; further trials are under way in South Africa.
- Wrinkles and Skin Aging
Pygeum is rich in ferulic acid. The action of ferulic acid is essential for the many plants that produce it. Indeed, the acid actively participates in the solidification and protection of the walls of their cells. Thus strengthened, plant cells are armed to resist the harmful action of free radicals and environmental stress. The organic compound does the same to our skin. Thanks to its rich antioxidant properties, ferulic acid fights against the oxidation of the skin cells responsible for premature wrinkles. It promotes the resistance of skin cells against free radical attacks and thus ensures their health and longevity.
Remember, Since the 1960s the most used form in Europe is the standardized herbal extract. The process of extracting Pygeum is designed to target the active oils. The extract form of African pygeum is widely used instead of the whole plant. This may derive from the discovery that the plant’s activity is primarily due to its alcohol soluble phytosterols.
Remember, it is important to be patient when using Pygeum. It may take several weeks to see the benefits especially when treating BPH.
Thank you for reading until the end. Please leave your comments below especially if you have used Pygeum to treat any of the conditions above.
