"Prostate health"
Today's Health tip is for the guys and the women that love them. We spoke about the ladies yesterday, so I thought it was important to address some concerns that some of the gentlemen in our lives might be facing . . . and that would be prostate problems.
The prostate is a walnut-sized gland between the bladder and the penis, with the urethra running through the center of the prostate. This piping system, if healthy . . . allows urine to flow out of the body and secrete fluid that nourishes and protects sperm.
But if the prostate is "enlarged" . . . this is called "benign prostate hyperplasia (BPH). This occurs when the cells of the prostate gland begin to multiply. These additional cells cause the prostate gland to swell, which squeezes the urethra and limits the flow of urine. And BPH is common in men older than 50 years.
In the prostate gland, testosterone is converted to another hormone called dihydrotestosterone (DHT). We spoke about this hormone the other day in the tip "Why do we lose our Hair? High levels of DHT cause the cells in the prostate to enlarge. So . . . what can cause an increase of DHT? . . . . A diet primarily consisting of fatty meat, dairy products, caffeine, spicy foods, alcohol (with the regular consumption of "beer" being a very high risk), french fries, donuts, deep fried fish and fried chicken. And anything fried increases the chances of developing prostate "cancer" by about 30 to 37%. AND . . . eggs are the richest source of "choline" and eating 2.5 or more eggs per week had an 81% increase in the risk of lethal prostate cancer
Now . . . some of the symptoms of prostate problems can be:
frequent urge to urinate
need to get up many times during the night to urinate
pain or burning urination
painful ejaculation
frequent pain or stiffness in lower back, hips, pelvic or rectal area or upper thighs
dribbling of urine
Okay . . . so how do we fix this so it doesn't turn into something more serious?
Well . . . one of the biggest factors is how much "coffee" we drink. If you have BPH or prostatitis, you need to cut back on caffeine, soda, energy drinks, fried foods, beer and eggs.
And drink more WATER! Keeping hydrated is essential to flushing out toxins and reducing the swollen cells. Most people try to drink less so they can reduce urination. Wrong!!!!
Drinking green teas or hibiscus tea are excellent for prostate health. They contain potent antioxidants and can help prevent prostate cancer from forming and may also slow the growth of aggressive prostate cancer.
Now the extract from the "Saw palmetto" fruit is used mainly for urinary symptoms associated with an enlarged prostate gland. The reason it works so well is that it slows down the production of the hormone DHT. And as an added bonus . . . we now know too much DHT causes pattern baldness in men and Saw palmetto not only helps the prostate but also helps reduce baldness.
Okay . . . so "Zinc" is another important factor. Zinc has been found to inhibit prostate cancer cell line growth. We also spoke about zinc and hair the other day.
And finally . . . as long as you're not allergic to bees . . . bee pollen helps to restore prostate health by anti-inflammatory and antioxidant effects in men with prostatitis, chronic pelvic pain and BPH - enlarged prostate.
So I hope this information helps to ease some minds that there is a way to fix prostate problems.
As always, feel free to set up a consultation for more information, just click here