Austin, Texas, Sept. 03, 2025 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- The nonprofit American Botanical Council (ABC) announces the premiere of its new educational video, “Saw Palmetto: Safe and Effective Herb for Prostate and Men’s Urinary Health.” The video is available on ABC’s YouTube channel, HerbTV, and is the second in a series of informative videos that are part of ABC’s Adopt-an-Herb Video Program.
Saw palmetto (Serenoa repens) is a small palm tree native to the southeastern United States, primarily in Florida, Georgia, and South Carolina. The fruits, commonly called berries, have a long history of traditional use as both food and medicine. Modern scientific research, including human clinical studies, has documented the health benefits of saw palmetto berry extract for the male urinary system, particularly in relieving lower urinary tract symptoms (LUTS) associated with benign prostatic hyperplasia (BPH), or enlarged prostate.
The new ABC video features broadcast-quality videography and graphics, along with commentary from experts in integrative medicine, academia, and the botanical sciences. It provides information about the history, traditional and modern uses, research, cultivation, processing, and consumer buying tips related to this phytomedicinal tonic for men’s urinary and prostate health. The HerbTV saw palmetto video was made possible by an educational grant from ABC Sponsor Member Valensa International, a manufacturer of authentic saw palmetto extracts based in Eustis, Florida.
“Enlarged prostates and the associated symptoms impact quality of life for many middle-aged and older men,” said ABC Founder and Executive Director Mark Blumenthal. “For many years, consumers around the world have been relying on saw palmetto to help alleviate the effects associated with BPH. While some saw palmetto products have been clinically demonstrated to assist urinary flow, others on the market are ineffective due to excessive dilution or, in some cases, the use of lower cost adulterated, fraudulent ingredients.
“For this video, ABC is pleased to have partnered with Valensa International, an ingredient supplier that has invested in sustainable harvesting, research, and manufacturing to produce authentic, clinically supported, standardized saw palmetto berry extract with an all-important bioactive free fatty acid profile,” Blumenthal added. “We hope this new saw palmetto video provides viewers with a solid understanding of how and why authentic quality saw palmetto products can provide safe and beneficial relief for men with lower urinary tract symptoms.”
Umasudhan Palaniswamy, CEO and president of Valensa International, said: “Over 14 million men in the United States experience clinically bothersome lower urinary tract symptoms — including urinary frequency, urgency, reduced flow, and incomplete bladder emptying — that significantly impact quality of life. Prostate enlargement affects 50%–60% of men in their 60s and up to 80% of those in their 80s, contributing to more than $4 billion (USD) in direct health care costs annually, according to a 2023 Mayo Clinic analysis.
“A lipidosterolic extract of saw palmetto that meets the US Pharmacopeia (USP) monograph — delivering a clinically effective dose of 320 mg with 85%–95% total fatty acids — has been shown to significantly improve quality of life in men and enhance men’s urinary health,” he continued. “Valensa’s USPlus® Lipidosterolic Extract of Saw Palmetto is produced in Florida from sustainably sourced berries using clean CO₂ extraction and is independently verified by USP.”
ABC Chief Science Officer Stefan Gafner, PhD, cautioned that some dietary supplement products claiming to contain “saw palmetto” are sometimes made from lower-cost adulterated ingredients that do not deliver their claimed or implied health benefits. “ABC has documented such fraudulent practices in publications from the ABC-AHP-NCNPR Botanical Adulterants Prevention Program (BAPP),” he said. “Over the past 14 years, BAPP has published extensively peer-reviewed and authoritative technical documents that provide industry quality control and regulatory experts proper guidance on identifying and preventing the sale of fraudulent ingredients, including in saw palmetto products.
“Specifically, BAPP’s Saw Palmetto Botanical Adulterants Prevention Bulletin (free registration required for viewing) documents the presence of low-cost fraudulent ingredients in some so-called ‘saw palmetto’ extracts and dietary supplement products,” Gafner added. “Such adulterants include low-cost vegetable oils, as well as animal fats that are combined to try to mimic the natural component ratios of true saw palmetto extract.”
The approximately 13-minute video — the second in ABC’s series of short-form, herb-centric videos — is part of ABC’s new Adopt-an-Herb Video Program. This initiative is an extension of ABC’s longstanding Adopt-an-Herb Program, through which adopting organizations help ensure that the most current scientific and clinical information on their adopted herb is available in ABC’s extensive HerbMedPro research database. The first video in this series, on milk thistle, is available on HerbTV.
The video release coincides with National Prostate Health Month, observed each September. Additionally, Prostatitis Awareness Week takes place September 10-16, followed by Benign Prostatic Hyperplasia (BPH) Awareness Week from September 24-30.
The Adopt-an-Herb Program adoptions provide consumers, researchers, educators, media, health practitioners, government agencies, and members of industry with easy access to research abstracts (and often full articles) from the US National Library of Medicine’s PubMed database. These entries summarize the latest scientific and clinical publications that explore the many aspects, properties, and health benefits of the adopted herbs. As of August 2025, the Adopt-an-Herb Program has had 105 adoptions by 81 companies.
MEDIA CONTACT: Frank Lampe, HerbTV Program Manager
About the American Botanical Council
The American Botanical Council (ABC) is an award-winning, independent, science-based nonprofit research and education organization dedicated to providing accurate and reliable information for consumers, health care practitioners, researchers, educators, industry professionals, and the media. ABC’s educational materials cover science-based and traditional uses of herbs, medicinal plants, phytomedicines, herbal teas, essential oils, medicinal fungi, and other natural products. The organization also regularly addresses topics related to quality control and sustainability.
ABC’s publications and online resources are extensively peer reviewed and include a wide selection of articles from ABC’s quarterly journal HerbalGram, as well as periodicals, books, monographs, safety reviews, continuing education materials, searchable databases, and more. These offerings also include HerbTV, ABC’s herb-focused YouTube channel, and the ABC-AHP-NCNPR Botanical Adulterants Prevention Program (BAPP) — the world’s leading nonprofit consortium producing educational content to combat adulteration and fraud in the global market for herbs, botanical extracts, and essential oils. ABC is an international organization headquartered in a historic building surrounded by 2.5 acres of medicinal plant gardens in Austin, Texas. For more information, visit herbalgram.org.
About Valensa International
Founded in 1999, Valensa International is a leading innovator in pure, sustainable, and science-based nutraceutical solutions proven to support health and wellness. For over two decades, Valensa has partnered with nutraceutical, food, and pharmaceutical companies to deliver condition-specific solutions for human and pet well-being. A US leader in supercritical CO2 clean extraction–based botanical extracts, Valensa produces authentic, clinically tested saw palmetto berry extract and other high-quality ingredients. Valensa’s commitment to safety, quality, and environmental stewardship is demonstrated through United States Pharmacopeia (USP) Dietary Ingredient Verification, FDA Good Manufacturing Practice compliance, and sustainable sourcing practices. For more information, visit valensa.com.
Attachments
- Saw Palmetto: Safe an Effective Herb for Prostate and Men's Urinary Health
- Saw Palmetto: Safe an Effective Herb for Prostate and Men's Urinary Health
Riane Roldan American Botanical Council 512-926-4900 ext. 129 riane@herbalgram.org
