Men, beware of these dangerous drugs intended to treat an enlarged prostate

Overweight men with elevated blood sugar need to watch out for a major, unexpected risk…

Of course, carrying around some extra weight and having high blood sugar are two metabolic issues that obviously put men at higher risk of type 2 diabetes. But what’s less apparent is a second risk you might never imagine would be linked to metabolism…

That additional risk is benign prostatic hyperplasia (BPH), more commonly known as an enlarged prostate — a common condition in men past age 50.

In BPH cases, most doctors are quick on the draw with their prescription pads, ready to dole out a course of drug treatments.

But a new study shows why doctors need to exercise much more caution with these drugs — and why men should strongly consider non-drug solutions.

We’ll talk more about that in a moment. But first, let’s look more closely at this metabolic puzzle and how men can free themselves from it.

The unexpected double whammy of BPH

A few years ago, University of California, San Diego (UCSD), researchers revealed BPH’s metabolic connection.

They observed around 400 men whose ages ranged from late 20s to mid-80s. About one in four men had enlarged prostates.

Analysis revealed two important results:

  • Obesity and elevated blood glucose sharply increased the risk of developing BPH.
  • Men with diabetes were more than twice as likely to have BPH compared to those without diabetes.

To make matters worse, another new study illustrates a vicious cause-and-effect cycle for men with enlarged prostates. In the study, researchers from the UK’s University of Edinburgh analyzed health records of about 55,000 men who had used BPH drugs for 11 years.

Overall, the drugs boosted type 2 diabetes risk by around one third.

For any men who may be using a BPH drug, here are the key specifics:

  • Men who used dutasteride (Avodart®) were 32 percent more likely to develop type 2 diabetes compared to those who took tamsulosin (Flomax®).
  • Men who took finasteride (Proscar®) had a 26 percent increased type 2 diabetes risk compared to those who took tamsulosin.
  • Among men who used tamsulosin, 60 out of every 10,000 men developed type 2 diabetes.

By now, you may have spotted the conundrum that men who cope with metabolic issues are in… As the UCSD study revealed, they’re at greater risk of BPH. And if they use a BPH drug, they’re at greater risk of type 2 diabetes!

BPH drugs have a host of horrible problems

More than half of all men experience BPH by age 60. Fortunately for most, enlargement of the prostate is minor and prompts no symptoms.

Others, however, have BPH issues that can’t be ignored.

As Dr. Marc Micozzi points out in his Insider’s Ultimate Guide to Perfect Prostate Health, prostate enlargement crimps the urethra (which carries urine out of the body), causing the bladder muscles to work harder. In time, that leads to a host of further problems:

  • The bladder muscles will contract more frequently. That means more trips to the bathroom, which can be especially annoying during social occasions and at night when your sleep is repeatedly interrupted.
  • The bladder muscles may have difficulty contracting, which can keep you from completely emptying your bladder, or lead to “dribbling,” and even painful urination.
  • In rare cases, the prostate blocks urine flow through the urethra, requiring immediate medical attention and the possible removal of excess prostate tissue.

Many men and their doctors are delighted to have drugs to treat these BPH issues. But in addition to potential life-altering side effects — such as erectile dysfunction, depression, and reduced sex drive — it’s important to point out that these drugs are considered steroids, which can disrupt the way your body regulates blood sugar, prompting a host of serious problems, as I’ve mentioned earlier.

It’s not hard to see how living with an enlarged prostate can feel so frustrating.

Fortunately, you don’t have to resort to any of those drugs in order to gain control of this issue. Instead, there are plenty of all-natural, effective alternatives that you can easily find in your local grocery store.

Start these interventions today!

Unlike most conventional doctors, Dr. Micozzi begins not with the prescription pad, but with key suggestions for lifestyle changes such as:

  • Drinking more water — he recommends 100 ounces per day for men
  • Avoiding prolonged sitting — he says you should take frequent walking breaks
  • Limiting acidic foods that can irritate your bladder

And among the food items Dr. Micozzi recommends to prevent or alleviate BPH, he puts garlic at the top of the list. He says, “The studies on garlic and BPH are particularly impressive. In fact, one recent study found that a diet high in garlic lowers the risk of BPH by 28 percent.”

Dr. Micozzi also recommends these foods for your anti-BPH shopping list:

  • Avocados
  • Bell peppers
  • Berries
  • Citrus
  • Broccoli
  • Nuts
  • Onions
  • Salmon
  • Tomatoes

It’s probably no coincidence that all of these foods are also excellent choices for helping to keep your metabolic health in line.

Not to mention, these lifestyle changes can be greatly supported with the use of a saw palmetto supplement, extracted from the berries of the plant.

Dr. Micozzi notes that saw palmetto is backed by significant clinical research, and appears to work in two key ways:

  1. By balancing of your body’s supply of androgen (male) hormones — including testosterone
  2. By reducing inflammation

Dr. Micozzi recommends 900 mg of saw palmetto berry extract daily. And he adds that a quality saw palmetto supplement should contain 100 mg of beta-sitosterol — the berry’s active ingredient.

You can find more details about saw palmetto and two additional supplements for BPH relief in the Resource Directory of Dr. Micozzi’s Insider’s Ultimate Guide to Perfect Prostate Health. Click here to learn about many other ways this comprehensive protocol can help men care for their prostate health, or to get started today.

SOURCES

“Incidence of type 2 diabetes mellitus in men receiving steroid 5α-reductase inhibitors: population based cohort study.” BMJ 2019; 365:l1204. doi.org/10.1136/bmj.l1204

“Prostate medicines linked to type 2 diabetes risk, study suggests” Science Daily, 4/11/19. (sciencedaily.com/releases/2019/04/190411101813.htm)