Yes, it's true: Restoring and protecting the Everglades - the largest tract of U.S. wilderness east of the Rockies - can help protect men's prostates.
That's why Euromed USA (www.euromedusa.com) and its customers recently donated $10,000 to the non-profit Everglades Foundation, which is working to conserve and restore the fragile damaged "River of Grass."
"Older gentlemen all over the world rely on saw palmetto to keep their prostates healthy, and saw palmetto comes from just one place in the world - Florida," says Euromed president and general manager Joe Veilleux, a registered pharmacist.
"The Everglades in South Florida is a fascinating, one-of-a-kind environment that has sustained a lot of serious damage from us humans," he says. "We chose it as our mission because we want to be part of its restoration and raise awareness about its value as a national treasure. We chose the Everglades Foundation because it does a fantastic job - it's a very large, very well-organized group."
Euromed's Glade-iator program (www.glade-iator.org), which launched last year, makes a donation to the Everglades Foundation in the purchaser's name every time a customer buys its saw palmetto extract. The customers - large companies that produce pharmaceutical products and nutritional supplements - are also encouraged to become Glade-iator's official partners and raise awareness with promotional materials provided by Euromed. Those partners now include GNC, Gaia Herbs and Tishcon, among others.
"Our customers have been enthusiastic about this program," Veilleux says. "Most have signed up as partners. They see it as an unusual situation where business interests and the environmental interests all line up."
The Everglades Foundation is also enthusiastic. The 19-year-old organization conducts scientific research, helps fund work that benefits the unique ecosystem, and supports legal actions to protect it.
"Contributions like the one from Euromed will propel our restoration and preservation efforts in the coming year," says Susan Ervin, the foundation's vice president for development. "Our board covers 100 percent of our administration and fundraising costs, so all donations go directly to science and conservation."
The Everglades is home to about 20,000 acres of saw palmetto in pineland forests that comprised more than 160,000 acres before South Florida was developed. It's also home to many endangered species, including manatees, American crocodiles, and the colorful roseate spoonbill.
Euromed harvests saw palmetto berries from all over Florida using sustainable methods that don't damage the mother plant. The berries contain free fatty acid and sterols that help patients with the bothersome effects of benign prostate enlargement (BPH), a common problem for men over 40. Saw palmetto is the most popular natural remedy in the world for that purpose, according to a Mayo Clinic report that says it appears to address hormonal issues associated with aging and has anti-inflammatory properties.
About Euromed USA
Euromed USA supplies standardized botanical and herbal extracts and natural active substances for use in the pharmaceutical, health food and cosmetics industries. By extracting the necessary chemicals, the company can guarantee its products meet the precise chemical specifications necessary. Euromed was founded 40 years ago. Its parent company is the 100-year-old Rottapharm-Madaus based in Italy.
