Prostate Disease
Each day, just with ordinary activity the prostate produces from 1/10 to 4/10 of a teaspoon of prostatic fluid. During sexual arousal, four to ten times that amount is produced. When arousal is not followed by ejaculation, the fluid manufactured remains in the prostate and leads to discomfort. Sometimes the prostate does not completely empty upon ejaculation. Active sexual practice can cause chronic congestion in the prostate according to some researchers.
By age 60, about half of men have developed some enlargement of the prostate; by 80 almost all. Benign prostatic hypertrophy can result in having to arise several times each night to urinate and may eventually result in acute urinary retention, with painful dilation of the bladder and the inability to relax the urethral sphincter. These attacks of acute retention often follow exposure to cold or consumption of alcohol, antihistamines, or for no known reason. Massage of the prostate can afford a great deal of relief and can postpone surgery, and in some cases, prevent it. Painful urination and pelvic heaviness may also be sign. Sometimes with regular prostatic massage, weekly or twice a month, surgery may be postponed for years (ask your doctor for this technique).
Because cancer of the prostate grows more slowly with estrogens, part of cancer treatment may be female hormones. Zinc is a trace metal needed in very small amounts and a deficiency can lead to major medical problems. Ten milligrams a day is the recommended daily allotment. Most people on a natural diet will receive that much from their food. Zinc is found in high concentration in sperm and seminal fluid. The prostate gland contains more zinc than any other organ in the body. Excessive sexual practice leads to neurologic and mental disorders, as nerve tissue is also dependant for proper functioning on this trace mineral. Many prostate patients who have taken high zinc foods or zinc supplements, report improvement. Some patients with benign prostatic hypertrophy have actually had a reduction in size from taking zinc, and many have a reduction in congestion in prostatitis. Zinc rich foods include nuts, pumpkin seeds, sunflower seeds, wheat bran, wheat germ, brewer’s yeast, onions, molasses, peas, beans, lentils, and gelatin. It is almost nonexistent in refined, processed foods. If the soil is low in zinc, fruits and vegetables grown on it will also be. Lecithin, essential fatty acids and vitamins A and D, C and E. are helpful for prostatic health. (Ref. What Every Man Should Know About His Prostate by Monroe Greenburger and Mary Ellen Siegel, Walker and company, New York, 1983). These nutrients are abundant in whole grains, vegetables and fruits, except for vitamin D which can be obtained from adequate sun exposure (at least a six inch patch of skin exposed to the sun 15 minutes twice a week. The time is cumulative and can be stored up in summer). (Ref. The American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, 34:2641, 1981).
Causes of Benign Prostatic Hypertrophy
- Alcohol is a prostatic irritant. A little less than 5% of the alcohol imbibed is excreted in the urine where it acts as a prostatic irritant. It may be that malt, hops and juniper berry, involved in the manufacture of certain alcoholic drinks, may also be specific prostatic irritants. (Ref. JAMA 224(5):637, April 30, 1973).
- The patient should drink six to ten glasses of plain water, spread throughout the day, except at mealtimes, at a rate of one-half glass every half hour. He should intentionally urinate every one and a half to two hours, avoiding overdistention of the bladder which can lead to acute retention. The male hormone, testosterone, breaks down to dihydrotestosterone. It is known that this product can cause the prostate to enlarge in dogs and probably in men as well. (Ref. Science News, May 19, 1979, p. 328, vol. 115). Male hormones increase with sexual stimulation.
- Hydrotherapy in acute prostatitis can take several forms: hot and cold sitz baths; hot retention enemas (water); a ten minute sitz bath twice daily with hot jets of water playing on the lumbosacral region and perineum, the feet also being in hot water, finishing the treatment with a 20 second cold shower; the entire body scrubbed with a scrubby or loofa, ending with a hot shower (under pressure if possible) at about 40-44°C. (104-114° F.). (Ref. JAMA, May 20, 1922, 78:1578).
- One group of 25 men, being studied for infertility, was selected because of enlarged prostates. They were given ten sessions of prostatic massage during three to four weeks and the fluid expressed and analyzed for citric acid. The hypertrophy was seen to recede in almost all cases. Citric acid concentrations fell in only six of 25 cases analyzed, and in the others remained stable. Apparently, the citric acid, acid phosphatase, and spermine all follow about the same pattern, and when one is elevated, others are also; when one falls, others do too. (Ref. Andrologia 12(1): 30-33. 1980).
- Venous blood drainage may be encouraged from the pelvic region by having the man lie on his back, hips on a pillow to raise the hips higher than the shoulders. The skin on the low abdomen may be slightly reddened by a mustard plaster. A hot-water bottle applied to the perineum and help in place by snugly fitting clothing can be helpful. (Ref. Urology14(6):545, 179).
- Forty-five cases of uncomplicated benign prostatic hypertrophy had night urination (nocturia) relieved or reduced in 95% of cases, urgency in 81%, frequency in 73% and delayed urination in 70% by the administration of three amino acids, glycine, alanine, and glutamic acid. (Ref. Journal of American Geriatrics Society, 10:426-30, May. 1962).
- Bee pollen is a richer source of amino acids than of vitamins, and contains small amounts of estrogens. It has been used in 25 patients for prostatitis with good results. (Ref. Medical World News, February 3, 1961).
Complications of Prostatic Surgery
There is increased rate of metastatic carcinoma of the prostate after a transurethral resection, by a 2.4 fold increased risk. (Ref. Medical News, February 20, 1984. p.7).
What is called the “TOR reaction” (transurethral resection is typically characterized by apprehension, irritability, confusion, headache, nausea, vomiting and cardiac manifestations as well as visual disturbances. (Ref. GU, May, 1979, p.5)
“Healthy Lifestyle Matters in Prevention of Diseases”
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Silvia Rojas Reyes, N.D., Health & Life Couch
(Specialist in Lifestyle Medicine, Harvard)
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