To begin with, men simply do not like going to doctors. There’s nothing funny about it. But when you go into a doctors office, a General Practitioner or a Family Doctor, you’ll find that most of the patients are women and children.

Men just don’t want to be there. Why? Perhaps it’s their egos or perhaps it’s their fear of someone knowing something about them. But we’re going to try to keep much of this article on the light side while you figure out why you avoid the finger (the digital exam).

We’re talking about prostate health and care. At a certain point in a man’s life, usually in his 40’s or 50’s, he’s got to become responsible for having this ‘Man Gland’ within him. He may not know exactly where it is, but, during his 4th or 5th decade in life changes are occurring in the prostate and perhaps he’s feeling a little weird ‘down there’ near his family jewels.

Communicating with a man about health isn’t the easiest thing to do, especially when the thought of his masculinity being affected is the subject. Perhaps that’s the reason for the avoidance of medical exams. But that’s simply not the right approach. Not for prostate health and care anyway. And certainly not for personal well-being and longevity.

For many decades the health and care of the prostate gland has been in crisis situation because of this avoidance and confusion. Then, there is this apathetic audience that cares little and does less for their own health. Too many guys have had no interest in reading about, listening to, or watching videos about their health. And when it comes to prostate health, a majority of men will avoid listening to anything at all.

What can we, as writers of medical research and dispensing sources of information, do to get men interested in caring about their GLAND? We really need to put them on alert status of how important it is to keep a healthy body and mind, and encourage them to manage their prostate health NOW!

According to statistics from the AUA (American Urological Assn.) prostate cancer kills well over 30,000 America men a year - and these are needless deaths. 11% of them are from California. So, California men take careful notes of what we are saying.

Maybe if we make the subject humorous, put in a hysterical picture, perhaps we could reach more men with this information. If men could see cartoons, or hear jokes ... maybe the message will pass through their filtering system (otherwise called the ego). So, in this article we’re going to make a jab at being funny before we get serious.

We’re not saying that the prostate problems that develop with normal aging is funny - but men need something to help them remember their prostate and to have it checked starting around age 40, every two years. But, let’s try just one joke to make the situation lighter:

A man walks into his doctor’s office and sits down in the waiting room. While he is waiting his turn to be seen, a friend walks in and sits down next to him. The friend asks “W-w-what are y-y-y-you d-d-d-doing here?” The man replies, “ I am waiting to see the doctor.” “W-w-why d-d-do y-y-y-you n-n-need to s-s-s-see hhim?” The man replies, “Well, if you must know, I have a prostate problem.” “A p-p-prostate p-p-p-problem, w-what’s t-t-that?” “Well, if you must know. I pee like you talk.”

We don’t even know if trying to make light of prostate problems that occur for 90% of us, is an effective method of reaching men. So, we’re going to experiment a little and ask you to read, laugh, and talk to other men about the prostate in an attempt to get every man informed and act because it’s too late.

Now, in the US, one of the hardest things for a wife or girlfriend to do is to get her stubborn husband to get away from the TV and football to talk about going to the doctor. Imagine this: a wife, or girlfriend, trying to tell her man while he’s got a beer in his hand, a few more waiting to be consumed, and he’s screaming while his football team is at the 10 yard line ready for a goal. The lady is saying “you need a digital rectal exam, a prostate specific antigen blood test before you have problems”.

This is NOT what this guy wants to hear, especially while he’s screaming his bloody head off as the Steelers reach the goal line. Instead of hearing what she said: “Dear, you need to go to the doctor for your DRE and PSA,” he hears the crowd screaming in the stadium, his own yelling and screaming, and some woman’s voice saying - “the doctor wants to put his finger up your butt and have the vampire suck your blood”. Do you think he’s really listening?

Men just aren’t all that attentive to the potential health problems. No matter how brilliant and successful they are, they simply won’t go to the doctor, and they don’t tell their spouses why. Some will even lie and said they went and the test was negative and they are fine.

But as a man who’s been there and done that, I know why. Men are locked in fear behind their ego. The ego mascarades as a sign of strength -- bravado. Maybe just a few jabs at humor will help them break the hold that fear has on them.

Think humor could help? Women, don’t have prostates, but they have other health problems and they go to doctors. But some of their tests, like self-examining the breasts for lumps isn’t as humiliating as a digital rectal exam. In fact, if men could play doctor and examine their womens breasts, they’d see that there was a lot of fun in the experience.

But the prostate is a completely different story. A woman can examine her breasts monthly in the bath or shower, and if something were found, she’d go to the doctor. But how could a man examine his own prostate. Is this even a possibility?

Experimenting with humor might help. And there are a couple of websites I’d like to introduce to you at this point that might help you see the find the humorous side of your G-Spot (prostate, your male GLAND) so that you’ll be more educated and see the funny side.

One is: www.malegland.com, and the other is www.pupsnprostate.com.

I know numerous horror stories about women who didn’t go to the doctor when they discovered a lump in their breasts, and are now six feet under, even after having both breasts removed.

I know similar stories about men who had difficulty urinating, or blood in their urine and just told themselves it would ‘go away’, who are now pushing up daisies.

The reality is that the little pin-prick of a PSA blood test is nothing compared to the pain a woman feels giving birth, or that a man feels when he gets hurt playing indoor football and crashes into the coffee table or a wall.

So the fear of the exam is based on a little pinch of pain, or the fear that the doctor is going to ‘get fresh’ when doing the DRE (digital rectal exam) is all just fear. Nothing more! Is this your fear? Digital rectal exams only take 10 seconds or so, and they will help your doctor determine if you have tumors, swelling, or abnormalities to your prostate.

And after the doctor is finished with the DRE, it’s over for two years and there has been no violation of your rectal virginity.

Here’s some interesting DRE jokes you can tell your doctor while he search for the gold:

“Take it easy, Doc, you’re boldly going where no man has gone before.” “Find Amelia Earhart yet?” “Can you hear me NOW?” “Oh boy, that was sphincterrific!” “Could you write me a note for my wife, saying that my head is not, in fact, up there?” “You know, in some states, we’re now legally married.”

“Any sign of the trapped miners, Chief?” “You put your left hand in, you take your left hand out.. You do the Hokey Pokey....” “Hey! Now I know how a Muppet feels!” “Hey, Doc, let me know if you find my dignity.” “You used to be an executive at Enron, didn’t you?” “Are we there yet? Are we there yet? Are we there yet?”  

So, put aside the worry -- and move along to the next step. The little pin-prick of the PSA test. If you haven’t taken the time to read about the importance of the PSA test, click here right now.

Author and commentator Gregg Stebben, while writing a book on men’s health interviewed some of the most famous men who had prostate cancer. The list included Millken, Guliani and Swartzkopf. Stebben stated that when interviewing these men who were intelligent, worldly, and very wise, they admitted that they had never read anything about the prostate gland or even thought about prostate health. They said that it was the wives who were the ones who got them to doctors for a PSA-Test.

Thank god for the women. If not for them, we’d really be in trouble. But here goes .... the PSA test. You go to your doctor, or a laboratory, and the draw a little blood from you and you get your results back fast. The test has been controversial but has saved many lives. And, there are tens of thousands of men alive today who can attest to the value of the exams.

Maybe if our laptops opened up with a screensaver HAVE YOU HAD YOUR PSA EXAM YET?, instead of the standard Windows or Macintosh screen, we’d all be a little more aware of the prostate. But, that isn’t the case at all. In fact, to many men it’s rather embarrassing for them to talk about the prostate --- and for more, their embarrassed to even think about it.

How about you? Do you know enough about your what contribution the prostate makes to a healthy sex life? In order to get you to a doctor for your exam do you need to be put in a straight-jacket and dragged into an ambulance for this simple test that could save your life?

To improve the condition of your prostate you must be active. Prostate swelling, BPH and inflammation (protatitis) happens more frequently to those who do not have an active life. Those who sit on their derrieres at work, or ride bicycles, or sit at home, and don’t exercise, don’t walk, are the most likely to be plagued by prostate problems.

Dr. Elson Haas, a preventative care medical doctor in California feels that our modern lifestyle of stress, sitting for long hours, driving or watching TV watching, eating junk food and stuffing our emotions, fast-food, extensive meat and dairy products, use of sugar, caffeine, and alcohol, all combined with toxic environments sets the stage for chronic, debilitating, degenerative diseases including prostate inflammation (BPH) and even prostate cancer.

What does that tell you? Get off your duff, become active, eat healthy food, get away from junk food and stress, and television and you’ll be healthier. It’s a good idea to do this for the improved health of your entire life.

 

Prostate Health

Gotta Go Pee Too Often? If you wake up during your sleep to make excursions to the bathroom, or, if you realize that you run to the bathroom more than other men your own age, you could have BPH (begin prostate hyperplasia). There are many medications that can help the problem, or, if you like alternatives - you can use herbs, minerals, and diet. It’s really your choice. We’ll talk about them for a minute and then continue to prostate care and well being.

One of the Biggest Problems: Too many men do not know the function of the Prostate gland. As part of the male reproductive system, the prostate gland’s primary function is to secrete a slightly alkaline fluid that forms part of the seminal fluid, a fluid that carries sperm. This fluid lubricates the male urethral canal, and part of it cleanses urine and other debris from the urethra before and during the male orgasm. The muscular glands of the prostate help to propel the prostate fluid, in addition to sperm that is produced in the testicles, into the female partner’s vagina, mouth, or wherever it is aimed.

And when masturbating, the fluid leaves the penis and goes into unknown territory. The semen/sperm combination leaves the body through the opening in the tip of the penis when ejaculation occurs.

You’ve now got some basic information on the function of the prostate gland and how it does it’s job. But things go wrong, when you are inactive, sedentary, have a diet that is not supportive of health, and here’s one indication that you can see in other men as you notice them in public. Imagine this scenario.

Imagine that you are in a noisy restaurant. You see a couple of guys that are starting to make some strange gyrations with their trouser legs, moving them back and forth, like they are communicating with each other. Actually, they are spelling out words in a strange language called trouser talk.

When they are talking like that it’s about having to go urinate too often, they probably have BPH — and also low urine stream flow, and they just do not know it. Of course, the trouser talk might also mean -- I gotta pee right now.

When BPH occurs, the feeling in the penis is discomfort. It’s not something you want to live with. Low flow, weakened orgasms, are just some of the problems that occur. Often an urinary infection will creep in because of the proximity of the swollen prostate to the bladder, and even the proximity to the bowel, E-coli could occur in the prostate. Other infections also. Prostatitis and BPH are easily treated and here’s just a few ways of dealing with it.

 

Medications

PROSTATITIS: Antibiotic treatment for bacterial prostatitis include the use of a tetracycline, trimethoprim-sulfamethoxazole (TMP-SMX [Bactrim, Septra]) or a quinolone. Men at increased risk for sexually transmitted disease might benefit from Trimethoprim-sulfamethoxazole (Bactrim, Septra), Doxycycline (Vibramycin), Ciprofloxacin (Cipro), Norfloxacin (Noroxin), Ofloxacin (Floxin). Other medications that are used for treatment of prostatitis include carbenicillin (Miostat), cefazolin (Ancef), cephalexin (Keflex), cephradine (Velosef) and minocycline (Minocin).

BPH: Pharmaceutical treatments are available. Finasteride (brand name: Proscar) and dutasteride (brand name: Avodart) blocks a natural hormone that makes the prostate enlarge, but it does not help all patients. Another kind of medicine, called alpha blockers, also can help the symptoms of BPH. Some of these drugs are terazosin (brand name: Hytrin), doxazosin (brand name: Cardura), tamsulosin (brand name: Flomax) and alfuzosin (brand name: Uroxatral).

Alpha blockers have been used for a long time to treat high blood pressure, but they can also help the symptoms of BPH, even in men with normal blood pressure.

 

Natural Remedies

Quercetin (can be found in onions, red wine, green tea and St. John’s Wort. Potential benefits of quercetin, an antioxidant, may help fight cell-damaging free radicals. It may significantly improve the symptoms associated with two forms of prostatitis, chronic nonbacterial prostatitis and prostadynia. Zinc supplements have improved benign prostatic hyperplasia (BPH) in some males. Flower pollen may have some effectiveness in benign prostatic hyperplasia and in prostatitis. Saw palmetto is best know for its use with benign prostatic hyperplasia (BPH) but has also been used by men with prostatitis.

Studies indicate that the active constituents of saw palmetto may work to reduce inflammation. Pygeum is another herb that shows promise for helping men with prostatitis. Pau d’arco has also been used by men with prostatitis. Studies have show that pau d’arco exhibits antibacterial effects against E.coli bacteria, suggesting that it may be of benefit to men with certain forms of prostatitis caused by bacteria.

Some prepared formulas for prostate health include Saw Palmetto, Pygeum Africanum, Beta Sitosterol 50mg, Zinc Picolinate, Nettle Root, Saw Palmetto Berries. And don’t forget to use Selenium for healthy prostate also.
 

Diet

A prostate-healthy diet includes daily whole grains like whole wheat breads, cereals, grains, rice, pasta, or beans, fruits and vegetables: especially broccoli, brussels sprouts, cauliflower and others in the cabbage family. Cooked tomato products are especially high in lycopene and have an inhibiting effect on prostate cancer due to its antioxidant effect. Reduce high-fat foods: red meat and dairy products.

Eating fish with high concentration of fish oils, such as salmon, may also reduce the health risk related to the high content of Omega 3 fatty Acids. Similar sources include Vitamin E. Fatty fish such as Salmon, Mackerel, Herring, Anchovies, Sardines, plus Nuts, Seeds, and Oils (olive, peanut and canola) are also great for prostate health.

Japanese men have a 10 to 15 times lower prostate cancer rate than American men. Scientists point to soy, a major staple of Asian diets, as the likely reason why. In lab studies, soy proteins have stopped the growth and spread of prostate cancer cells. And researchers say as little as a serving a day (a half cup of soy milk on your cereal) can make a difference. Soy products: tofu, soy milk and soy beans, may also be particularly beneficial.

Soluble fiber. Oatmeal and beans are prime sources: men who ate more soluble fiber had lower levels of prostate specific antigen (PSA), a major prostate cancer marker. Most fruits and vegetables contain some soluble fiber as well-plus a healthy dose of the digestion-speeding insoluble kind; you need a total of 25 to 30 grams a day of both. Oatmeal, oat bran, legumes (dried peas and beans) are great sources of soluble fiber. Nuts also have some fiber. Limit consumption of alcoholic beverages, to one drink a day, if any.

Meats provide necessary protein, vitamins, and minerals, especially iron and zinc. These nutrients are important components of a balanced diet to promote good health. 2-3 servings/ day. Choose more often poultry, such as chicken and turkey, and remove the skin and visible fat before cooking.

Choose fresh/frozen fish more often, without sauce or canned fish packed in water rather than canned fish packed in oil.

Choose low-fat dairy products more often than those made with whole milk or cream less often. Dairy products are good sources of protein, vitamins and minerals, especially calcium, another mineral important to good health. As snacks, choose more often fresh or frozen fruits and vegetables and air-popped popcorn and less often pastries and deep fried foods.

Be physically active (30 minutes of exercise a day if at your healthy weight, 60 minutes of exercise a day if you want to lose weight) - and maintain a healthy weight.

Choose reduced-calorie or low-fat salad dressings and margarines. Choose cooking methods that don’t add fat to your food. Bake, steam, poach, roast, or use a microwave oven. Cook meats on racks that drain away fats, and drain fat from the pan before making gravy. Season vegetables with herbs, spices, and lemon juice rather than with fats and salt.

So that’s our story for today. Our next articles will include: prostate massage, locating the male G-spot, and how to milk the prostate for pleasure and improved prostate health.