Prostate Health, Why Should You Keep Your Prostate Healthy?

The prostate is the gland in your body that makes your sperm all gooey and sticky (so only men possess this gland). It secretes a clear fluid that contributes to about a third of the seamen you produce when you ejaculate. It is located around the urethra and can be felt in medical exams. A healthy prostate is normally about the size of a walnut. So the two questions I am going to answer in this article are what can affect its health and how do I know if it’s healthy?

Well the biggest threat that your prostate has occurs in men aged between the ages of 50 to 70 in the form of prostate cancer. Prostate cancer is the most common cancer associated with men, and can lead to many complications, one rather large one being that you die. This is why men over the age of 50 are normally referred to a doctor for a physical every year where they’ll check the size of the prostate.

Yet if it is inside you how do they do this? Doctors can examine the prostate through rectal exams, either with a finger or a rectal camera, although do not worry, being breached rectally by a finger is not painful although slightly uncomfortable. The prostate is then examined through the wall of your rectum, and from this a doctor can determine if a prostate is enlarged.

There are other ways of determining a healthy prostate, one of them being a blood test which measures the concentration of a protein called Prostate Specific Antigen. Normally the levels are low so if there are high levels or its elevated dramatically between tests, this can be a symptom of prostate cancer.

Other symptoms of prostate cancer would include difficulty to retain or let go of urine, interrupted flows of urine, painful ejaculations and blood mixed with the seamen. If any of these symptoms occur it would be very advisable to see a doctor immediately to check it out, although they don’t necessarily mean you have prostate cancer. There are other ailments that can cause such symptoms, so a thorough exam would be undertaken to determine the exact problem.

An example of another disease related to these symptoms that can affect the prostate is Prostatitis. Like cancer, it inflames the prostate and if it becomes too large it can constrict the urethra. This causes a problem as it can make it difficult and painful to pass urine, and in the more extreme causes, impossible. Yet don’t worry too much. There are ways to treat it, and its not as critical as cancer. Antibiotics and prostate massages are normally prescribed for the mild to average cases, while surgery is used on the more extreme ones.