The herb was used as an expectorant in some cough formulas. Women took it to relieve painful periods and regulate the menstrual cycle. It has also been used for pelvic inflammatory disease and similar conditions. Saw palmetto is known to stimulate the production of prolactin, a female hormone that, among other things, promotes breast enlargement and milk production in breastfeeding women, says Tirun Gopal, M.D., an obstetrician and gynecologist who practices holistic and Ayurvedic medicine in Allentown, Pennsylvania. Perhaps that is where the herb got a reputation as an aphrodisiac and a tonic to increase sexual energy and revive low libido in both sexes.
Some research demonstrates that a compound in saw palmetto has aphrodisiac effects.
Ironically, some herbalists have been known to use saw palmetto to treat honeymoon cystitis, bladder irritation that results from excessive sexual activity. More Sexual matters aside, saw palmetto was widely and routinely used in the early decades of the twentieth century to treat urinary tract ailments, particularly chronic cystitis, an inflammation of the bladder. From 1906 to 1950, it was officially listed as a drug in the United States, and it was prescribed both here and in Europe as a treatment for gonorrhea. After World War II, it fell out of favor in the United States, but research continued in Europe. Scientists found that patients who consumed an extract of the berries had increased urine volume, a decrease in frequent urination, and more ease of urination.