Prostate Health Care Guide

There is no "unique secret recipe" for prostate care. As long as you avoid the three high-frequency triggers of gland damage, such as prolonged sitting, holding in urine, and over-stimulation, and adjust your diet and work schedule based on your own situation, 90% of prostate discomfort in young adults can be avoided in advance. There is no need to be overly anxious about the so-called "gland nourishment" and buy health care products indiscriminately.

Last week, I met a 28-year-old programmer from a game company in the clinic. He sat at the consultation table with his pants clenched and frowning for a long time, and he said, "Doctor, I always urinate frequently, do I have prostatitis?" The prostatic fluid test and B-ultrasound were all normal. After careful questioning, I found out that he had been working on a project for two months and had been sitting for 12 hours a day without moving his chair. He drank coffee as water. In order not to interrupt the train of thought of writing code, he often held it in until he was about to urinate before going to the toilet. It was purely a functional discomfort he had "made".

Let’s talk about the most common pitfalls of sitting for long periods of time. There is no unified standard in the academic circles on this matter: one group recommends getting up and moving for 2 minutes every 30-40 minutes. The other group believes that as long as the posture is correct and there is no pressure on the perineum, it is perfectly fine to sit for an hour before moving. There is no need to block time to create anxiety for oneself, and there is no need to run out every half an hour to make up for the activity time, which will delay the business. There is also the very popular prostate cushion with a hollow center. Some doctors think it can reduce the pressure on the perineum and are recommended. Some doctors think that long-term use will cause uneven local stress and increase congestion. In fact, the judgment standard is very simple: after you put it on, you feel that your crotch is not stuffy or uncomfortable, so feel free to use it. If you feel uncomfortable, just throw it away. Don’t worry about who is right. Oh, yes, don’t cross your legs all the time, and don’t wear those slim-fitting jeans that are so tight that your crotch is stretched. There used to be a young man who wore tight pants every day to show off his legs. After three months of wearing them, he had frequent urination. After a week of wearing loose sports pants, everything was fine. You think it’s unfair or not.

Let’s talk about holding in your urine. Occasionally you’ll be on a highway without a toilet, or you’ll have to hold your urine once or twice during a ranked game or in a critical game. It’s okay to hold your urine in once or twice, and you don’t need to scare yourself of getting a chronic disease just because you hold your urine in your mouth once. However, if you repeatedly hold back urine for a long time, the overfilled bladder will continue to press the prostate. The gland is inherently fragile, and it will easily become congested and edematous if it is pressed every day. Over time, it can easily induce inflammation. Not long ago, I worked with an online ride-hailing driver who would often go to the toilet for three to four hours in order to run two extra rides. When I came to see a doctor, I had to run to the toilet every half an hour. It took two months to recover.

The issue of diet is even more controversial. Some people say that people with poor prostate must not drink spicy food or drink alcohol. Clinical follow-up shows that as long as you have no symptoms, eating a small amount of spicy food and drinking alcohol will not directly damage your glands. There is no need to quit smoking to support your glands. For example, if you are a native of Sichuan and you don’t feel uncomfortable urinating even if you eat spicy food, there is absolutely no need to avoid food. On the other hand, if you feel your stomach sinks and urinates frequently after eating hot pot and drinking cold beer, you must control your mouth. There is also the mythical "lycopene gland". Current academic research has proven that long-term supplementation of adequate amounts of lycopene can reduce the risk of prostatic hyperplasia in middle-aged and elderly people. However, pay attention to the "enough amount". You have to eat at least 10 raw tomatoes a day or take purified lycopene supplements to achieve the effective dose. The amount of tomato scrambled eggs you occasionally eat is basically a psychological comfort. You don't have to force yourself to eat tomatoes you don't like. The same goes for supplements such as pumpkin seed oil and zinc tablets. There is no harm in taking them, but don’t expect that taking them will cure prostatitis, let alone believe the nonsense that the merchants say that “taking them for three months will cure prostate problems.”

As for the gender-related precautions that everyone is ashamed to mention, the opinions are even more divergent: the older generation often said that "one drop of semen and ten drops of blood" should abstain from sexual intercourse to nourish the glands. The mainstream view of modern urology is that regular ejaculation can help clear the prostate ducts and avoid prostatic fluid accumulation and inflammation. In fact, there is no unified "standard" at all. "Accurate frequency" depends on your physical condition: if you are in your early 20s, three or four times a week, and you are still full of energy when you wake up the next day, there is no problem. If you are 40 years old, once a week, you don't need to feel that you are abnormal. On the contrary, if you hold it in for a long time, or over-indulgence leads to repeated congestion of the prostate, problems are likely to arise. By the way, don’t believe the so-called “prostate massage and detoxification” offered by health centers outside. The prostate has no toxins to detoxify at all. Massage by non-professionals with the wrong strength will damage the gland. If you really need a massage, you have to go to a regular hospital to find a urologist.

What many people don’t know is that emotions can also affect the state of the prostate. I have met several young men who only had frequent urination occasionally. After searching online and looking at the symptoms, they diagnosed themselves as "chronic prostatitis". They were so scared that they couldn't sleep well every day. As a result, the symptoms became more and more serious. After a search, they were all normal. Finally, they were prescribed some mood-regulating drugs, and they were fine after relaxing for two weeks. To put it bluntly, the prostate is a very "emotional" organ. The more you think about it every day and the more anxious you are, the more likely it is to have problems.

One last thing to mention, if you have frequent urination, urgent urination, painful urination, pain in the lower abdomen and perineum for more than a week, or even difficulty urinating or blood in the urine, don’t insist on it, and don’t randomly search Baidu to prescribe medicine for yourself. Go to a regular hospital to go to the urology department. It doesn’t cost much to check the prostate fluid and do a B-ultrasound. Don’t feel embarrassed. More than half of the patients in the urology department are looking for prostate problems, which is too common.

To put it bluntly, there really aren’t that many bells and whistles when it comes to prostate care. Just don’t treat it harshly, don’t let it be pressed, suppressed, or stimulated all the time. Keep a calm mind. If you really have a problem, go to a doctor. It’s more reliable than a physical therapy device or imported health care drug that costs tens of thousands.