Prostate Health Complete Book

90% of male prostate problems do not require excessive medical treatment. Mild cases do not even require medication. They can be controlled or even completely reversed by adjusting lifestyle and targeted intervention.

Last week, I met a 32-year-old Internet backend in the clinic. He sat at his desk for 12 hours every day. He had been suffering from frequent and urgent urination for half a year and did not dare to come in for a check-up. He searched online to buy anti-inflammatory drugs and kidney-tonifying pills and took them for three months. Finally, he was diagnosed with aseptic prostatitis. After taking medicine, the intestinal flora was disturbed and he had diarrhea for almost two weeks. It was really not a problem.

Many people's first impression of the prostate is that it is "unspeakable". It is completely unnecessary to think about sexually transmitted diseases, kidney deficiency, and cancer whenever there is frequent urination or urgency. In fact, prostate problems in different age groups are not the same thing at all. Problems in young men in their twenties are most likely due to congestive inflammation caused by "holding it in" or "sitting out". Sitting for six or seven hours in a row playing games, eating a meal of spicy crayfish and ice beer, or holding in urine for two or three hours may cause the prostate to swell like an inflated grape. Squeezing the urethra will cause the feeling of frequent urination and inability to urinate. There is no need to take antibiotics at all in this case, and the response ideas in different fields are different: Traditional Chinese medicine generally recommends soaking some honeysuckle and dandelion in water to clear away dampness and heat, while Western medicine will prescribe some α-blockers to quickly relieve discomfort. Rehabilitation departments also recommend doing a few sets of exercises to relax the pelvic floor muscles, which can relieve the pain in a few hours. Just choose the one that suits you, and there is no need to worry about which one is more "authoritative".

After the age of 40, many physical examinations will detect prostate hyperplasia. As soon as they see the word "hyperplasia", they panic and ask whether they should have an operation and whether it will turn into cancer. In fact, there have been different voices in the academic circles on this issue: The conservative view is that as long as it does not affect your life and no more than 2 nocturia occur, you can have annual physical examination and observation without taking medicine or intervention. ； Radical clinicians will recommend using low-dose drugs to control the proliferation rate as early as possible to avoid the need for surgery when the obstruction is serious when you are older. My own experience is based on personal experience. If getting up at night does not affect your sleep and there is no obvious difficulty in urinating, there is no need to worry about it. If the urine line is so thin that it looks like a drip, it is completely late to consider intervention.

For men over 60 years old, the PSA (prostate specific antigen) item is basically added to the physical examination. Many people feel weak in the legs when they see that the indicator exceeds the reference value, thinking that they must have cancer. Let me make it clear here: elevated PSA does not mean prostate cancer. Having sex the day before, having just had a digital rectal examination, or even having to pass a stool recently due to constipation may cause the indicator to temporarily rise. The current common judgment standard is to look at the ratio of free PSA to total PSA. If the ratio is lower than 0.16, further puncture examination is required. Otherwise, drink more water and rest for two weeks for reexamination. Most of them will fall back to the normal range. Last year, there was a 62-year-old patient who had just celebrated his birthday and had sex with his wife. The next day his physical examination showed that his PSA was three times higher. He was so frightened that he did not sleep well for a week. The re-examination results were all normal, which was a false alarm.

As for the prostate care tips that have been widely circulated on the Internet, let me be honest and not exaggerate. Ripe tomatoes are indeed useful. A 10-year large-sample cohort study was conducted in Europe. People who ate some fried tomatoes and tomato and egg soup every day had a 20% lower risk of prostate hyperplasia than those who rarely ate them. But if you spend hundreds of dollars to buy imported lycopene supplements, it is really unnecessary. Earlier clinical controlled trials in the United States have long confirmed that there is no significant difference between the effects of purified supplements and placebos. There are also pumpkin seeds that have been passed down for many years. The current research results are that they can slightly relieve the uncomfortable symptoms of frequent urination. It is okay to eat as a daily snack, but don’t expect to rely on it to cure diseases. There is also the prostate massage that everyone is curious about. It is a standard operation performed by the urology department of a regular hospital. It is indeed helpful for patients with chronic aseptic prostatitis to discharge accumulated prostate fluid. However, do not go to external health clubs to perform random massage. I have encountered several cases of gland bleeding and retrograde infection after external massage. The gain outweighs the loss.

The three tips I usually tell outpatients the most are based on my many years of experience in seeing patients: First, don’t insist on frequent urination for more than two weeks. Go to a community hospital for a urine routine and prostate ultrasound. A few dozen dollars can rule out major problems.； Second, don’t hold your urine, especially when driving long distances or playing in qualifying matches. Holding your urine once will stimulate the prostate more than eating three spicy hot pot meals. ； Third, if you really find out the problem, don’t blindly search Baidu. Nine out of ten searches will feel that you have a terminal illness, and you are simply looking for trouble for yourself.

To be honest, the prostate is the "exclusive cold gland" of men. There will be some minor problems in life. There is really no need to regard it as some hidden disease, and don't be overly anxious. If you usually sit for 40 minutes and stand for two minutes, drink less cold beer and stay up less meaningless nights, it will be more effective than any men's care package costing thousands of dollars. If you really feel uncomfortable, go to the urology department of a regular hospital. There is no shame in it.