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Pygeum

Supplement botanical men's health
Aka: Prunus africana, African plum bark
Brands seen in Singapore: NOW Foods, Nutricost, Vitacost, Solaray, Oregon's Wild Harvest
Not medical advice. Check with your doctor or pharmacist before you start, stop or change the timing of anything you take.
How to use
What it’s for
Urinary symptoms of bph — 18 short trials, 1,562 men
Studied for
Trials averaged 64 days; the longest ran 122 days
Pros & cons
Pros
  • 6 placebo trials: −0.8 sd on symptoms and flow
  • Twice as likely to report overall improvement
  • Side effects were mild and similar to placebo
Cons
  • Only 1 of 18 trials reported allocation concealment
  • No head-to-head trial vs alpha-blockers or 5-aris
  • Short trials, varied preparations — hard to pool
Sources
  1. Pygeum africanum for benign prostatic hyperplasia (Wilt et al., Cochrane Database Syst Rev 2002, CD001044) · read 2026-08-27
    what it says
    “A total of 18 randomized controlled trials involving 1562 men met inclusion criteria and were analyzed … The mean study duration was 64 days (range, 30-122 days)”
  2. Pygeum africanum for benign prostatic hyperplasia (Wilt et al., Cochrane Database Syst Rev 2002, CD001044) · read 2026-08-27
    what it says
    “Only one of the studies reported a method of treatment allocation concealment, though 17 were double-blinded. There were no studies comparing Pygeum africanum to standard pharmacologic interventions such as alpha-adrenergic blockers or 5-alpha reductase inhibitors”
  3. Pygeum africanum for the treatment of patients with BPH: a systematic review and quantitative meta-analysis (Ishani et al., Am J Med 2000) · read 2026-08-27
    what it says
    “Compared with placebo in 6 studies, P. africanum provided a moderately large improvement in the combined outcome of urologic symptoms and flow measures … (-0.8 SD [95% CI: -1.4 to -0.3])”
  4. Pygeum africanum for the treatment of patients with BPH: a systematic review and quantitative meta-analysis (Ishani et al., Am J Med 2000) · read 2026-08-27
    what it says
    “Men were more than twice as likely to report an improvement in overall symptoms (risk ratio = 2.1) … Nocturia was reduced by 19% and residual urine volume by 24%; peak urine flow was increased by 23%”
  5. Pygeum africanum for the treatment of patients with BPH: a systematic review and quantitative meta-analysis (Ishani et al., Am J Med 2000) · read 2026-08-27
    what it says
    “Adverse effects due to P. africanum were mild and similar to placebo. The overall dropout rate was 12% and was similar for P. africanum (13%), placebo (11%), and other controls (8%)”
  6. Pygeum africanum for the treatment of patients with BPH: a systematic review and quantitative meta-analysis (Ishani et al., Am J Med 2000) · read 2026-08-27
    what it says
    “The literature on P. africanum … is limited by the short duration of studies and the variability in study design, the use of phytotherapeutic preparations”
  7. HSA — Guidelines on Prohibited and Restricted Ingredients in Health Supplements and Traditional Medicines, GL-CHPB-1-012 Rev 001 (Oct 2025) · read 2026-08-27
    what it says
    “85. Prunus armeniaca, Amygdalus armeniaca, Armeniaca vulgaris — Prohibited in HS and TM [that row is apricot; Prunus africana / pygeum itself is not listed in Annex A or B]”
  8. iHerb Singapore — Pygeum category (default order) · read 2026-08-27
    what it says
    “NOW Foods, Pygeum & Saw Palmetto With Pumpkin Seed Oil … Nutricost, Pygeum, 120 Capsules … Vitacost, Pygeum & Plant Sterols … Solaray, Vital Extracts, Pygeum, 50 mg … Oregon's Wild Harvest, Saw Palmetto Pygeum”
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Updated 2026-08-29. Every line above traces to a numbered source. Kozen-X is not a medical device and does not give medical advice. It lists what published sources have written down — nothing more. A pair not listed is unrecorded, not cleared. Before you start, stop or re-time anything, talk to your doctor or pharmacist.