Many experts now recommend the "watchful waiting" approach. As the name would suggest, means keeping a close eye on any signs of the disease progressing, but holding off on extreme treatments, such as drugs, surgery and chemotherapy, unless absolutely necessary. That is why statistics show that a healthy 60-year-old man has an average life expectancy of another 18 years.

If contracted prostate cancer, who does NOT have prostate surgery, has a life expectancy of another 16 years, while one who DOES have surgery has a life expectancy of another 17 years. Not much of a difference? So your best course of action may very well be no action at all. There probably is no rush for you to the surgeon, at least not until you carefully weigh your alternatives.

Trace Your Hereditary

Some men are more at risk for developing prostate cancer than others due to hereditary while others are environmental. For example, you may be more at risk for prostate cancer if a male relative had prostate cancer or female relative has had a brush with breast cancer.

Some studies were made in Sweden had a diagnosis of prostate cancer between 1959 and 1963 traced the records of 5,496 of their sons and confirmed that there is a higher risk of developing prostate cancer among men whose fathers had the disease. As for environmental factors, social stress, work site environment may affect the prostate as well.

Nutrients

Lately, more doctors are coming to believe that an enlarged prostate can be treated or deterred by feeding the body the nutrients it lacks. They understand that some foods, herbs and nutrients influence prostate enlargement and some of them may also influence cancer spread or development. While, pharmaceutical and surgical treatments are more or less effective in relieving symptoms, they in no way address the underlying causes of prostate disease. Dietary, lifestyle, environmental and emotional factors are known for stressing the prostate. Doesn't it make sense to take advantage of safe nutritional guidelines which may deter prostate enlargement or prostate cancer? For example, high fat diets and high cholesterol have been directly linked to prostate cancer and other illness. By reducing the fats in your diet will help ward it off.

Herbal Therapies

As reported in the Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA) in September, 1998, researchers found that more than 60% of United States medical schools now offer courses that include alternative medical topics such as acupuncture, chiropractic and herbal therapies. And no wonder why. Three adults in the United States use chiropractic, acupuncture, homeopathy or other alternative therapies. So don't feel like a weirdo by exploring alternatives to herbal remedies, toxic medicines or surgeries.

If your doctor doesn't understand or approve, it should be easy enough for you to find a competent one who does. By saying that, many doctors still consider only drugs and surgery as the "medically approved" treatments for prostate disorders and erectile problems. Most will not recommend a treatment program based on nutrition or supplements that many physicians who know how some simple-to-follow guidelines can prevent, slow down or if not eliminate prostate problems.

The above reasons are good enough for you to change your living habits. Example; give up tobacco, cut down intake of caffeine and alcohol, eating habits (cut back on high fat food, sugar rich food, spicy food), do regular exercise and etc. There are also some medicines to watch out for as it can harm some men, for instance taking large doses of cold medicines that contain antihistamines and decongestants. Decongestants can cause the muscle at the bladder neck to constrict, restricting the flow of urine. Antihistamines can actually paralyze the bladder. When consuming the cold remedies follow the directions on the label and don't take more than is recommended.

STRESS MANAGEMENT

Stress plays a major role in prostate-related discomfort, because the bladder neck and prostate are both very rich with nerves, when you're under stress there are more of those hormones floating around which cause more difficulty in urinating. Stress also triggers the release of adrenaline in your body, prompting a fight-or-flight response. Just as it is difficult to get an erection! It can make urination difficult, too.

MORE SEX

One way to help ease urination problems is to massage (see kegel exercise) the prostate. Men with mild to moderate voiding difficulties, an alternative way is to have more sex. Most of them notice that the more they ejaculate, the easier it is to urinate. That's because the ejaculation helps empty the prostate of secretions that may hinder urination.

TESTOSTERONE

When a man gets older, the active testosterone in the blood decreases, leaving a higher proportion of estrogen in the body. Studies done with animals have suggested that Benign Prostatic Hyperplasia or BPH (see below) may occur because the higher amount of estrogen within the gland increases the activity of substances that promote cell growth.

URINATION

Failing to empty the bladder allows bacteria to collect, and can cause an infection in the urinary canal or bladder. Besides urine retention, strain on the bladder can lead to urinary tract infections, bladder or kidney damage, bladder stones, and incontinence (involuntary leaking). Left untreated, an infection can progress to the urethra and kidneys. In a worse case scenario urine can show up in your blood, and that can be very bad.

If your urination is:

- hesitant, interrupted, weak stream.
- urgency and leaking or dribbling.
- more frequent urination, especially at night.

These are most common symptoms of BPH involve.