Pumpkin Seed Oil (1000mg - One Capsule a day) Changed my life

Welcome to our community. Please fill in the following template as a way of introducing yourself, and helping others to understand your background and situation.

Where are you from (country)?
Portugal
How did you find this forum (Google search – if so, what search terms? Via link from a forum or website – if so, what page? Other?)
Reddit/Youtube
What is your current age, height, weight?
28, 190 cm, 95kg
What specific drug did you use (finasteride, dutasteride, saw palmetto, isotretinoin/Accutane, fluoxetine, sertraline, citalopram, leuprorelin, etc…)?
Pumpkin Seed Oil Orally
What dose did you take (eg. 1 mg/day, 1 mg every other day etc.)?
1000mg a day (one capsule) for 1 month
What condition was being treated with the drug?
Hairloss
For how long did you take the drug (weeks/months/years)?
1 Month
Date when you started the drug?
1st February 2022
Date when you quit the drug?
1st March 2022
Age when you quit?
28
How did you quit (cold turkey or taper off)?
Cold Turkey
How long into your usage did you notice the onset of side effects?
Testicle pain, cold hands, extreme sadness upon taking
What side effects did you experience that have yet to resolve since discontinuation?
ED, Fatigue, Sadness, Anhedonia, smaller veins on penis, feet, hands, smell, watery semen, shrunk testicles.
Check the boxes that apply. You can save your post first, then interactively check/uncheck the boxes by clicking on them. If your symptoms change, please update your list.

Sexual
[+] Loss of Libido / Sex Drive
[+] Erectile Dysfunction
[ ] Complete Impotence
[+] Loss of Morning Erections
[+] Loss of Spontaneous Erections
[+] Loss of Nocturnal Erections
[+] Watery Ejaculate
[ ] Reduced Ejaculate
[ ] Inability or Difficulty to Ejaculate / Orgasm
[ ] Reduced Sperm Count / Motility

Mental
[+] Emotional Blunting / Emotionally Flat
[ ] Difficulty Focusing / Concentrating
[+] Confusion
[ ] Memory Loss / Forgetfulness
[ ] Stumbling over Words / Losing Train of Thought
[ ] Slurring of Speech
[+] Lack of Motivation / Feeling Passive / Complacency
[ ] Extreme Anxiety / Panic Attacks
[+] Severe Depression / Melancholy
[ ] Suicidal Thoughts

Physical
[+] Penile Tissue Changes (narrowing, shrinkage, wrinkled)
[+] Penis curvature / rotation on axis
[ ] Testicular Pain
[+] Testicular Shrinkage / Loss of Fullness
[+] Genital numbness / sensitivity decrease
[ ] Weight Gain
[ ] Gynecomastia (male breasts)
[ ] Muscle Wastage
[ ] Muscle Weakness
[ ] Joint Pain
[ ] Dry / Dark Circles under eyes

Misc
[ ] Prostate pain
[ ] Persistent Fatigue / Exhaustion
[ ] Stomach Pains / Digestion Problems
[ ] Constipation / “Poo Pellets”
[ ] Vision - Acuity Decrease / Blurriness
[ ] Tinnitus (ringing or high pitched sound in ears)
[ ] Hearing loss
[ ] Increased hair loss
[ ] Frequent urination
[+] Lowered body temperature

[ ] Other (please explain)
Smaller/Less Veiny Body Veins Hands, Feet
Reduced body smell
Less Body Hair
Hair Loss Stopped
Less Beard
Stiff Neck/Tingling
What (if any) treatments have you undertaken to recover from your side effects since discontinuation of the drug?
None/ Lifestyle Changes
If you have pre or post-drug blood tests, what hormonal changes have you encountered since discontinuing the drug (please post your test results in the “Blood Tests” section and link to them in your post)?
Post Blood Only
Low Testosterone
Anything not listed in the above questions you’d like to share about your experience?
Pumpkin Seed Oil is also an 5ar enzyme inhibitor, I wish I had not taken it.
Tell us your story, in your own words, about your usage and side effects experienced while on/off the drug.
My hair started falling during the pandemic, I had no health issues prior to this, besides that. After much research on hairfall I stayed away from finasteride/dutasteride and saw palmetto has I had researched they could give this permanent side effects. So I search for a “natural” solution and I found pumpkin seed oil. I started taking it Feb 2022 and only took it a month 1000mg a day (one capsule). The label said max 6 per day so I thought I was safe. I also saw a study in which 400mg a day was effective for hairloss. To be cautious I took them, day in, day out at first. Upon taking it I noticed cold hands and feet, testicular pain and some sadness. I dismissed it since I was with covid at the same time so it must be covid side effects and will pass. The problems subsidied so I thought nothing of them anymore. Except in March I had very weak erections and orgams and had watery semen so I stopped could turkey. Upon stopping I had awful testicular pain and numbess on my penis, redness in the perineum and anus and tingling on my thighs running from my genital area. We are in May now, my penis still has reduced sensation and I have watery semen, I’m trying nofap to see if it helps. The mental sides are the worst, sadness, mental fatigue, confusion, brainfog, anxiety. Nobody around me believes it was pumpkin seed oil that caused this. I didn’t too, but I was healthy before. No one also believes me but my hand, arms and feet veins are smaller and weaker. I’m trying to live day by day, but my family wants me to go to a psycologist. I never had any sexual issues. Don’t know what to do.

Self-reporting template - ONLY USE FOR FUTURE POSTS TO REPORT ANY TRIALS OF TREATMENTS, NOT YOUR INITIAL MEMBER STORY

  1. Name of the therapy/substance:
    • Dosage:
    • How often you took it:
  2. Status
    • Still using [ ]
    • Stopped with no lasting change to initial symptoms [ ]
    • Stopped with persistent change to symptoms [ ]
  3. Duration of use: Days [ ] Months [ ] Years [ ]
  4. Response when you started:
    • Greatly improved [ ]
    • Slightly improved [ ]
    • Stayed the same [ ]
    • Slightly worsened [ ]
    • Greatly worsened [ ]
  5. Current response (if you’re still using the therapy/substance) OR Response in the time before you stopped the treatment
    • Greatly improved [ ]
    • Slightly improved [ ]
    • Stayed the same [ ]
    • Slightly worsened [ ]
    • Greatly worsened [ ]
  6. Lasting changes to initial symptoms after cessation (if you have stopped for more than 3 weeks)
    • Greatly improved [ ]
    • Slightly improved [ ]
    • Stayed the same [ ]
    • Slightly worsened [ ]
    • Greatly worsened [ ]

PFS from pumpkin seed oil, this is a really, really hard experience!
Saw Palmetto is better known to induce PFS, but I think checking the internet, you’re not the only one, who reacts to this anti androgen.
But I thought pumpkin seed oil is save. I used 50 ml as salad oil. From roasted seeds it’s common in Austria.
So no Anti Androgen seems to be save for daily therapeutical use.

1 Like

Not surprised at all. When I eat pumpkin seeds it gives me major setbacks! Its is a strong inducer.

1 Like

Really interesting. Welcome to the forum, and thank you for telling your story @Joao!

This story is another data point that shows how side effects can be severe if you’re sensitive to 5 alpha reductase inhibitors. If it wasn’t already clear – dosage, duration, and efficacy of the 5ARi doesn’t matter if you have this vulnerability.

It looks like you just recently stopped taking pumpkin seed oil, though. Chances are good that the side effects will resolve in a few months. Be patient, take care of yourself, and don’t succumb to catastrophizing thoughts.