By far the most common type of baldness (alopecia) in males is called male-pattern baldness or androgenic (androgenetic) alopecia. When this condition develops, the hair is lost in a well-defined "M" pattern (hence the name.) Women also suffer from androgenic alopecia; in females this condition is known as female-pattern baldness.
Hair loss develops when the level of dihydrotestosterone (DHT) in the scalp is too high. Dihydrotestosterone binds itself to the hair follicles, decreasing the amount of nutrients they can extract from blood. The follicles gradually shrink and the hair growing from them becomes thinner. If nothing is done to treat this condition, the hair disappears completely.
To prevent and treat hair loss, the level of DHT in the body must be decreased. This can be accomplished in different ways. There are prescription drugs designed to inhibit DHT (such as finasteride also known as Propecia.), which block conversion of free testosterone into dihydrotestosterone. Being synthetic substances, prescription drugs for treating hair loss often have serious side effects, such as gynecomastia and even erectile dysfunction.
Saw Palmetto (a palm plant native to North America), on the other hand is a herbal DHT inhibitor. It has similar mechanism of action to finasteride, but it doesn't affect the rest of the organism and thus have no side effects associated with finasteride and other prescription drugs.
Since ancient times, Saw Palmetto has been used by Native Americans to treat urinary disorders in men. It is considered an effective alternative treatment to benign prostate gland enlargement. Only recently it was found out that Saw Palmetto can also treat hair loss! It turned out that it blocks the 5-alpha-reductase enzyme, which is responsible for converting testosterone into DHT, thus preventing and reversing hair loss.
