Natural Remedies for Prostate Health

In this health video you will learn about some natural remedies for prostate health.

Raena Morgan: Hi, I'm Raena Morgan with iHealthTube, visiting with Dr. Aaron Katz, who wrote Prostate Health, and the exciting thing about this book Dr. Katz, is it offers a lot of natural alternatives to mainstream medicine and I would like to ask you to explain some of those natural remedies. Dr. Aaron Katz: Sure, well, saw palmetto has been used extensively throughout the world. It's probably the number one herbal supplement that men use to relieve urinary conditions. It's been studied, specifically in Europe, as well as here in the United States. What we can say, I think, definitively about this herb, is that it's non-toxic, there is no side effects and I think that's a concern for many health care practitioners when prescribing something like this to their patient, is there any toxicity and we have not seen that. And then the second thing that we look for is, is it effective and what we have found at our center is that it's probably most effective in the men that are starting to have those early warning signs that we talked about. Where they're starting to notice their stream may not be as strong as it was that they're getting up at night a few times. So they're seeking the advice of a healthcare practitioner which - and we advise that and strongly encourage men to make sure that we're not dealing with something like a urinary tract infection or like a prostate cancer. And then the question is, does the male need treatment or can he just be watched, if it's a benign enlargement. The treatment -- the traditional allopathic treatment would be medication. But many of the men in this country don't want to go on medication, and that medication A) can have side effects and B) has to be taken for life. It's a life-long commitment; it's not just something you're going to take for a few months and then stop. So the question is, is there some herbal supplement that can relieve or keep this condition stable. I think saw palmetto falls into that category. I don't think it's for the male that has severe urinary tract symptoms and in the studies that recently were published have shown that men with mild to moderate symptoms it's not going to necessarily help them over a placebo. But for the men that have these early warning signs, I think that this saw palmetto is a very nice supplement that they should consider. Raena Morgan: Anything else besides saw palmetto? Dr. Aaron Katz: Well, there have been a number of different herbs and supplements that have been studied in literature stinging nettles, zinc, there's a compound africanum, pygeum which can affect overactive bladder conditions, those has been researched at major academic institutions here in the United States, in Pennsylvania, to show that it can reduce that bladder, overactive bladder condition and may be an initial compound that men may want to consider when starting to have these lower urinary tract symptoms. Vitamins can also be very helpful, as well as altering the amount of sugar in your diet and the fat content that we take in. Especially men that are overweight that have a higher body mass index. Men tend to gain weight around the midsection, where the bladder is sitting, and we've seen many men have relief of their overactive bladder condition just by going on a weight reduction program. Raena Morgan: Really? Dr. Aaron Katz: Absolutely. Also we can monitor or help improve their urinary symptoms by monitoring the amount of fluid that they take in. Are they taking in too many caffeinated beverages during the day, Are they drinking a lot of alcohol after dinner, which can serve and act as diuretic. So we try to reduce the amount of fluids that they're taking in after dinner especially if men are complaining about getting up too many times at night. So it's also a dietary modification, a fluid modification, as well as some of these herbs and nutrients that can all be helpful in relieving some urinary tract symptoms. Raena Morgan: Okay, well, that's very beneficial information. And this would be for the early stages of some concern. Dr. Aaron Katz: Yes, correct. I mean when men start to have severe symptoms, when men start to have the inability to urinate at all, then we need to integrate these with the best of the conventional medications some of those medications that we were talking about to shrink prostate size and reduce the pressure in the bladder. Raena Morgan: Okay, well thank you, Dr. Katz. Dr. Aaron Katz: Thank you.