How could something as small as a golf ball be responsible for so much pleasure, so much discomfort, so much pain?
The prostate—property of men only—produces the fluid that sperm cells swim in. During ejaculation, the prostate squeezes its fluid into the urethra and in the process contributes to the pleasure that men feel right before and during orgasm. The gland is, alas, exquisitely rich with nerve endings.
Every real estate salesperson in the world knows that if you buy in the wrong location, you’ll have problems later on. You have some say in where you buy a house. However, you’re stuck with the location of your prostate gland. And, oh, boy, is it ever in a location almost certain to cause problems if it chooses to act up in any way. Unfortunately, most prostate glands do tend to act up in a variety of ways as men age.
Located just below the bladder, the prostate needs to be right where it is. The bladder empties urine into the urethra, the narrow tube that sends urine out through the penis. Because the urethra serves double duty, also serving as the exit ramp for semen, it needs to be close to the prostate gland. It’s close all right. The urethra, a tiny, delicate tube, passes right through the prostate gland.
You could say that this is an unfortunate piece of plumbing. When a boy is born, his prostate gland is the size of a pea, explains Mark McClure, MD, a urologist in private practice in Raleigh, North Carolina, and author of Smart Medicine for a Healthy Prostate.
The prostate gland remains pea size until a young man hits puberty, says Dr. McClure. Then, under the influence of male hormones, the prostate begins to grow, and it grows until it’s about the size of a golf ball. Fine so far. In most men, the prostate gland stops growing and stays about golf ball size for a couple of decades. Then for many men, something really uncomfortable happens. Along about age 30 or so, the prostate gland starts to grow again. And it forgets to accommodate the urethra that passes through it. So that tiny tube gets squished and squeezed.
The result? Most men past the age of 50, and some much younger, can tell you all about it: the urge to urinate that just won’t quit, an inability to empty the bladder completely, leaking urine on your jeans after you thought you were done, sleep disrupted by numerous nighttime trips to the bathroom, and, often, discomfort that edges into outright pain. And that’s just benign prostate enlargement (BPE).
Prostatitis, inflammation of the prostate gland, also causes swelling, discomfort, and similar symptoms. Half of all men over 50 experience either prostate enlargement or prostatitis (or both), according to Dr. McClure. And if they live long enough, he says, almost every man eventually will get prostate cancer.
Note: All men should have regular prostate examinations. If you’re diagnosed with prostate cancer, you need to be under the care of a physician. Many forms of prostate cancer are slow-growing and can be managed with careful monitoring and lifestyle changes only. How to manage prostate cancer is a decision you’ll need to make with your doctor.
All of these prostate problems—benign prostate enlargement, prostatitis, and prostate cancer—are grouped together in this chapter, because all, according to Dr. McClure, can benefit from the same dietary strategies and the same nutrients.
Several dietary strategies can help prevent prostate enlargement and other prostate problems. And if you’ve been diagnosed with prostate enlargement, prostatitis, or prostate cancer, these strategies can also be used as an adjunct to regular medical treatment and may improve the condition or keep it from getting worse, says Dr. McClure. One of the main keys is putting out the fire of excess inflammation in the body. Here’s what’s helpful.
Back off on sugar. Refined sugar increases the body’s production of arachidonic acid, a substance that contributes to inflammation, says Dr. McClure. Keeping inflammation at bay also helps prevent heart disease and obesity, so there are plenty of reasons to limit sugar consumption.
Keep your weight down. “We used to think that fat just hung around and didn’t do anything,” says Dr. McClure. Now we know that excess body fat actually contributes to inflammation, and therefore increases the likelihood of prostate problems, he says.
Besides watching what you eat, you need to be active. “Men who watch more than 40 hours of TV a week have twice the problems with enlarged prostate,” reports Dr. McClure.
Limit caffeine and alcohol consumption. Both are diuretics, flushing water from the body and adding to the urge to urinate, explains Dr. McClure. Plus, caffeine acts as a stimulant to both the bladder and the prostate. You’ll find some relief by choosing water or green tea instead, he says.
Love those fruits and veggies. If you go on a plant-based diet, you’ll decrease your body’s arachidonic acid production by 30 percent, says Dr. McClure. Also, plant foods offer a cornucopia of antioxidants, substances that offer protection from a variety of diseases and conditions.
If you can’t go completely vegetarian, Dr. McClure recommends limiting your consumption of red meat and eating more fish instead. Choose wild-caught, deep-water fish, which contain helpful omega-3 essential fatty acids. Farm-raised fish are fed with corn, he says, and therefore contain more omega-6 fatty acids, which can contribute to inflammation when we consume excess amounts.
In any case, Dr. McClure recommends getting five to nine helpings of fruits and vegetables daily. If you can’t quite do that, simply start eating more of these important foods. “This is a journey,” he says, “so start where you are. I tell people to avoid empty calories, junk food. Even small changes can make a big difference over time.”
Ask for medium rare. Oddly enough, when you do choose to eat red meat, you might want to request that it be prepared rare or medium rare, not well done. In a 2005 study done at the National Cancer Institute, researchers actually looked at the role that meat preparation may play in prostate cancer risk.
To arrive at the surprising conclusion that how long you grill your meat may make a difference, researchers analyzed data taken from the Prostate, Lung, Colorectal, and Ovarian Cancer Screening Trial, which included 29,361 men. Among those men, they found 1,388 cases of prostate cancer in various stages. And when they looked at the food questionnaires that these men had completed over the duration of the study compared to those of the men who did not have prostate cancer, they found that men who consumed more than 10 grams a day of very well-done meat had an increased risk of developing prostate cancer.
Researchers explained the risk by pointing out that as meat becomes well done, it develops a number of potentially cancer-producing substances (mutagens). The mutagen that gave them particular concern is known as PhIP.
Spice your food. Several tasty spices—ginger, garlic, and turmeric—help reduce arachidonic acid production, says Dr. McClure. Find ways to use more of these in your daily meals. You can also take them in supplement form, he says. Simply follow the directions on the package.
Enjoy more soy. “Soy has a number of benefits for helping prevent prostate cell growth,” says Dr. McClure. “In one study, two glasses of soy milk daily decreased risk of prostate cancer by up to 70 percent.”
In addition to soy milk, explore other ways to get more soy, including dishes made with tofu, tempeh, edamame, and soy-based yogurt and cheese.
In addition to all of these dietary strategies, a number of individual nutrients can be helpful in dealing with prostate problems. To begin with, says Dr. McClure, it’s a good idea to take a multivitamin to cover all of your nutritional bases, in case something is missing from your daily diet.
The phytonutrient lycopene, found in tomatoes, helps protect the prostate and is available in supplement form. Dr. McClure suggests taking a 10-milligram oil-based capsule twice daily. And remember to add plenty of fresh tomatoes to your diet.
Even if you’re eating fish a couple of times a week, it’s helpful to take a fish oil supplement, says Dr. McClure. Fish oil contains omega-3 fatty acids, which help control inflammation. He suggests taking 1 to 2 grams daily, but you can take up to 6 grams daily, if you find that it is helpful, he says.
If you’re taking capsules rather than liquid oil, you need to make sure that the product you buy is not rancid. Break open a capsule and smell it. If it smells like a fish you wouldn’t eat, try a different brand.
The bioflavonoid quercetin is particularly helpful in quelling inflammation. Getting more of this vital nutrient is helpful for men with prostatitis, says Dr. McClure. Quercetin is plentiful in onions, tomatoes, and citrus fruit. You might also take a supplement. Dr. McClure recommends taking 500 milligrams twice daily.
The mineral selenium offers powerful protection against prostate cancer, says Dr. McClure. In 1996, one study showed a two-thirds decrease in prostate cancer in men using selenium. Dr. McClure suggests getting 200 micrograms daily. You don’t want to go above 600 micrograms daily, he cautions, as this mineral is toxic in higher doses.
Vitamin A helps cells stay normal and not turn into cancer cells, says Dr. McClure. So it’s a good nutrient for anyone who is at risk for prostate cancer or who has been diagnosed with prostate cancer. Dr. McClure recommends that men get their vitamin A from beta-carotene, which turns into vitamin A once it’s inside the body. He suggests getting 25,000 IU daily, not from supplements but by eating a rainbow of colorful fruits and vegetables every day. Some studies have shown that beta-carotene in supplement form can increase the likelihood of getting lung cancer in smokers and ex-smokers.
Good food sources for beta-carotene include tomatoes, carrots, cantaloupe, spinach, peas, and apricots. Note that a lot of them are orange and yellow, a color you’ll want to focus on when shopping for fruits and vegetables that are high in beta-carotene.
“Vitamin D is a key player” in protecting the prostate, says Dr. McClure, adding that our ability to absorb this important vitamin lessens as we age. Like vitamin A, he says, vitamin D helps cells stay normal and not turn into cancer cells. He suggests taking 800 to 1,000 IU. When men come to see him with prostate problems, Dr. McClure always does a blood test for vitamin D levels. For his patients who are depleted of this vitamin, he suggests much higher amounts for a short time.
Ask your doctor about having a blood test for vitamin D.
Smart Medicine for a Healthy Prostate: Natural and Conventional Therapies for Common Prostate Disorders by Mark W. McClure, MD
Vitamin E offers antioxidant protection and also helps prevent prostate cancer, says Dr. McClure. One Finnish study, he says, showed that as little as 50 IU daily can decrease prostate cancer risk by 40 percent. He suggests taking 400 IU in the form of mixed tocopherols.
Studies have shown that the mineral zinc helps inhibit the growth of prostate cancer cells, according to Dr. McClure. He suggests taking 30 milligrams daily.
If you’re experiencing prostate problems, you should be under the care of a physician. Consider taking a multivitamin to make sure that you’re getting all of the nutrients that may be missing from your daily diet.
Beta-carotene |
25,000 IU from food sources |
Lycopene |
10 milligrams in an oil-based capsule, two times a day |
Omega-3 fatty acids |
1 to 6 grams of fish oil* |
Quercetin |
500 milligrams, two times a day |
Selenium |
200 micrograms |
Vitamin D† |
800 to 1,000 IU |
Vitamin E* |
400 IU of mixed tocopherols |
Zinc |
30 milligrams |
*Fish oil has a blood-thinning effect. So does vitamin E. If you’re taking any kind of blood-thinning drug, talk to your doctor before taking these supplements.
†If a blood test shows that you are low in vitamin D, your doctor may have you take much higher amounts for a short period of time.