2 Natural Ways To Treat An Enlarged Prostate Gland
There are various alternative or natural treatments for a swollen prostate and 2 of these are to use pumpkin seeds and saw palmetto.
It may seem odd but pumpkin seeds have several healing properties and they appear to be particularly effective for a lot of men with an enlarged prostate. Pumpkin seeds possess 3 properties which are particularly useful in this case.
The first property is that they contain fatty oil which acts as a natural diuretic and helps to improve the flow of urine and counteract the restrictive effect of an enlarged prostate gland on the urethra.
The second property of pumpkin seeds is that they have high levels of zinc so that just a half a cup of pumpkin seeds contains about eight milligrams of zinc. Studies have clearly shown that taking zinc can reduce the size of an enlarged prostate and many physicians recommend taking sixty milligrams a day. You need to take care however and it is wise to consult your doctor before raising your zinc intake to this level as it is higher than the normally recommended daily level.
The third property of pumpkin seeds is that they are high in animo acids such as glutamic acid, glycerine and alanine, all of which have again been shown to provide considerable symptomatic relief.
Saw palmetto is also often used for the treatment of an enlarged prostate. Found in the southeastern states, saw palmetto is a type of palm tree the seeds of which used to form an important part of the diet of Seminole Indians.
Saw palmetto acts by turning testosterone into dihyrotestosterone which is precisely the process used in the drug Proscar, which is one of the very few non-prescription treatments which have been approved by the Food and Drug Administration for prostate problems. Its basic benefit is that it raises the flow of urine, reduces the difficulty of residual urine and lessens the frequency of urination.
As is the case with many natural treatments views vary widely about the effectiveness of saw palmetto, but we have seen several studies carried out over the years that have clearly shown that it does produce a significant benefit. In one of these studies, a clinical study looking at more than two thousand German men suffering from benign prostatic hypertrophy, a daily dose of just 1 or 2 grams of saw palmetto seeds created a considerable easing of symptoms.
Of course these are just two of the many natural treatments available but there can be no question that these treatments can and indeed do work. Just as an example, it is thought that roughly thirty percent of American men have undiagnosed prostate cancer by the time they get to the age of sixty compared to just one percent of Arctic Inuit men at this age. Of course there may be several reasons for this large difference, but one difference which the majority of physicians believe to be especially significant is simply the fact the diet of Arctic Inuit men is high in fish oil.
Thus, if you are suffering from prostate problems then, before you turn to your doctor to sort it out, you might find that simply adjusting your diet and taking some vitamins and minerals may be all that is needed.
