An Enlarged Prostate May Be Benign, but It Can Still Significantly Affect Daily Life

Prostate enlargement or benign prostatic hyperplasia is the most common disease that troubles elderly men. The prostate usually starts to enlarge after the age of 40. This happens to about 40% of men at this age. Men in their eighties and older are very often affected by this problem, according to some data—up to 90%, which practically means almost all.

Why Does the Prostate Enlarge Over the Years?

Answer.

Prostate gland enlargement or increase, also known as benign prostatic hyperplasia, adenoma, or prostate hypertrophy, occurs due to the enlargement of prostate cells. It is believed that in an older man's body, there is an imbalance between androgens and estrogens, causing the prostate cells to enlarge and form benign prostatic hyperplasia.

As the prostate enlarges, it begins to press on the urethra, slowing down the flow of urine, weakening the urine stream, and making it difficult to completely empty the bladder. Benign prostatic hyperplasia usually causes lower urinary tract symptoms, which increase with age, but these symptoms are not exclusive to this disease. When experiencing such symptoms, it is necessary to consider other diseases, especially prostate cancer, bladder diseases (cancer), prostate inflammation—prostatitis.

The likelihood of developing benign prostatic hyperplasia is increased by suffering from sexual and prostate inflammatory diseases, obesity, and heredity. It has been established that a sedentary lifestyle (prolonged sitting), fatty foods, high levels of fat and sugar in the blood, high systolic blood pressure, untreated chronic prostate inflammation, and irregular, infrequent sexual intercourse accelerate prostate enlargement.

To distinguish it from prostate cancer, prostate enlargement is called "benign," but if left untreated or improperly treated, it can lead to serious complications, such as kidney damage. Up to 60% of patients may experience sexual dysfunction.

What Are the First Symptoms?

Answer.

Men do not feel a slight enlargement of the prostate. Symptoms appear when the prostate has already significantly enlarged. Initially, there is a weak, interrupted urine stream, dribbling urine and a feeling of incomplete bladder emptying, sexual dysfunction, painful urination, urinary retention, or frequent urination. Nocturia is particularly troublesome because the need to get up frequently—3–4 times overnight—simply makes it difficult to sleep well, disturbing sleep for close ones.

What to Do When Experiencing Symptoms?

Answer.

First of all, do not wait for the symptoms to appear; men over 40 should visit a urologist. Once you start urinating at least 1–2 times at night, prostate enlargement can be diagnosed, and it may be difficult for your family doctor or urologist to help you.

After a conversation and examination (digital rectal examination, i.e., palpation of the prostate through the rectum), the doctor, if necessary, will prescribe tests. Initially, ultrasound examinations and the so-called PSA blood test, which helps to rule out or suspect prostate cancer, will be performed. It is recommended to undergo this test once a year for all men. In Lithuania, it is performed free of charge every two years for men aged 50–75 as part of a special program.

How Is This Disease Treated?

Answer.

It usually starts with a healthy lifestyle. Physical activity is recommended, avoiding prolonged sitting. It is necessary to timely treat prostate inflammations and avoid fatty foods. Plant-based preparations are sufficient at the onset of the disease, in the case of first-degree prostate enlargement. There are various such medicines available.

It is important to know that benign prostatic hyperplasia is a long-lasting disease, so the medications need to be taken for a long time—no less than three months. The use of these preparations prevents the progression of prostate tissue enlargement, reduces bladder pressure, strengthens urine flow, protects prostate tissue from inflammation, and improves sexual performance.

Plant-based preparations can be purchased at pharmacies and taken when experiencing the mentioned symptoms, even without waiting until you need to urinate once or twice at night. In such cases, they are very beneficial.

For advanced stages, chemical drugs are prescribed. When the disease continues to progress or becomes complicated, surgery is performed. Surgery is performed by making an incision through the anterior abdominal wall or without an incision through the urethra, removing the enlarged glandular part of the prostate. Statistics show that three out of ten men will undergo surgery for prostate enlargement during their lifetime. The likelihood of surgery also increases with the patients' age, as the symptoms of the disease worsen.

What Advice Would You Give to Men Who Want to Avoid This Unpleasant Disease?

Answer.

First of all, live healthily. Excessive alcohol consumption, smoking, and prolonged sitting negatively affect the prostate.

It is important to eat properly and consume plenty of fruits and vegetables. It has been noticed that in Asian countries, where there is a high consumption of soy and rice, fish, the incidence of prostate adenoma and cancer is much lower. By the way, African Americans, on the contrary, suffer from prostate cancer much more often.

Sexual relations should be regular—3–4 times a week (for older men at least once a week). Proper nutrition also yields positive results. Striving for better prostate function, it is advisable to eat foods low in cholesterol and rich in vitamins E, D, K, A, C, and B. You can get enough of these vitamins by eating more spinach, kale, pak choi, and broccoli.

Zinc is also very important for prostate function. Therefore, it is worth supplementing your diet with soy products, nuts, bran, pumpkin seeds, eggs, boiled chicken, peas, and lentils.

Proper hygiene is also important: it is necessary to wash the genital organs once a day and after sexual intercourse. Uncomfortable, tight clothing and body chill affect the testicles and prostate negatively, so it is obvious that they should be avoided. By the way, symptoms of the disease can be exacerbated by some allergy medications, decongestants, and some others. Tell your doctor if you are taking anything.

A Brief Overview of the Prostate?

The prostate is a walnut-sized gland in men, located below the bladder and surrounding the urethra. The prostate gland consists of muscular and glandular tissue. The prostate glands produce a secretion, which together with the seminal vesicle secretion forms semen.

By contracting, the muscular tissue expels the glandular secretion and compresses the urethra above the opening of the ejaculatory duct, thus preventing urine from entering the urethra during sexual intercourse.

It is untrue that prostate hyperplasia necessarily turns into prostate cancer. These are two different diseases. It is also untrue that the larger the prostate, the more severe the symptoms of the disease. Symptoms are also influenced by other characteristics of the prostate: its shape, tone of smooth muscles, etc.