What fruits to eat for prostate health

There is currently no "special fruit" that can directly prevent and treat prostate disease, but based on my clinical experience with patients with prostate disease for almost 10 years, daily consumption of fresh fruits that are low in sugar and rich in lycopene, anthocyanins and the trace element zinc can indeed help reduce the risk of prostate inflammation and hyperplasia, and help improve mild bloating and frequent urination discomfort.

The 43-year-old online ride-hailing driver Lao Zhou who was just reviewed last week had suffered from chronic aseptic prostatitis for 3 years. After sitting for an hour, he would become bloated and urinate at least 3 times at night. Before, he only took medicine and it would happen again and again. Later, I asked him not to keep carbonated drinks and sweet milk tea in the car, but to use small tomatoes and kiwi fruits as snacks. He should eat about 200g a day. There is no need to pay special attention to how to eat, just chew it raw. When he came for a follow-up check this time, he said that he had not had much pain in the past two months, his nocturia had basically dropped to once, and the levels of inflammatory factors in the prostate fluid had also dropped by almost 20%.

Many people have asked me before whether cranberries are a magic fruit for treating the prostate. In fact, this conclusion is not yet unanimous in the academic community. A small sample study said that the A-type proanthocyanidins in cranberries can reduce the adhesion of bacteria to the urinary tract, and it does have some relief for prostate discomfort associated with urinary tract infections. However, if it is aseptic inflammation or prostatic hyperplasia, eating more cranberries will not shrink the hyperplastic glands. You still have to take medicine when you should. Don't use fruit as medicine to delay treatment.

In fact, eating the right fruits is equivalent to "daily maintenance" for the prostate, just like adding glass of water to your car regularly. You cannot directly repair the engine, but it can help reduce minor problems. Instead, be careful not to eat fruits that are too sweet and too hot. I met a 28-year-old man in the past two months who was about to recover from prostatitis. He was greedy and ate a whole durian for three days in a row. As a result, he started to urinate frequently and urgently on the same day, and the reexamination index went up again. Especially for people who are prone to heat and dampness, they really need to eat less of mango, lychee, durian and other high-sugar hot fruits.

You don’t need to get too hung up on a specific type. You don’t have to buy expensive imported blueberries. Our local fresh grapes, strawberries, and mulberries, as long as they are low-sugar and fresh, will work. Oh, yes, some people ask whether tomatoes must be eaten cooked to replenish lycopene. In fact, it doesn’t have to be so serious. Fat-soluble means that it is better absorbed with some oil. You can absorb it even if you eat it raw and then eat an oily vegetable for lunch. Whatever is convenient, it is better to insist on eating.

Of course, there are also many patients who say that I haven't seen any improvement after eating these fruits for a long time. That's normal. Most prostate problems are caused by bad habits. If you sit for 10 hours a day, stay up until two or three o'clock, and drink heavily every now and then, no matter how much fruit you eat, you can't offset these harms. Fruit is an auxiliary bonus. If you really feel uncomfortable, see a doctor first. Don't rely on eating fruit to cope with it.