Dear Reader,
Not long ago J.T. came into my office frightened out of his wits…
His urologist had him on testosterone lowering drugs to treat his enlarged prostate. He’d lost the ability to have sex and developed an ugly rash. When he complained to his doctor he told him instead of the drugs, he could go under the knife.
He wanted to know – Were these his only options?
In case you haven’t yet got word, today I want to tell you what the medical establishment won’t: The real culprits behind enlarged prostate and natural ways to treat it.
For years, convention believed that testosterone caused benign prostatic hyperplasia (BPH), the scientific term for enlarged prostate. It seemed to make sense. The prostate is controlled by hormones. For this reason, many doctors still think testosterone’s the culprit behind BPH.
Turns out there’s a twist to this story. Testosterone is what makes a man a man. If it’s also the reason 400,000 American men submit to painful surgery every year that’s a cruel trick of nature?
In fact, you need normal levels of testosterone to maintain prostate health. The primary cause of an enlarged prostate is actually testosterone’s conversion product DHT or Dihydrotestosterone. It’s produced by an enzyme called 5-alpha reductase, which converts testosterone into DHT. DHT is nine times more powerful at stimulating prostate growth than testosterone.
The typical treatment for BPH is finasteride, the same drug used to prevent male balding under the name “Propecia.” It’s been proven to reduce DHT by inhibiting 5-alpha-reductase. The problem with it is a host of side effects, from impotence to rash, swelling, and pain in the testes.
Fortunately, there are natural substances that are just as effective… without the nasty side effects. The first natural line of defense is saw palmetto, an plant native here in South Florida. I grow it in my own back yard. It helps block the production of DHT. It’s also rich in omega-3 fatty acids and plant sterols, both powerful prostate allies.
Despite its pro-drug bias, the prestigious Journal of the American Medical Association acknowledged back in 1998 that “extracts from the saw palmetto plant, S. repens, improve urinary tract symptoms and flow measures in men with BPH.”
But buyer beware: not all products containing saw palmetto are the same. Many manufacturers cut corners mixing in the leaf of the plant instead of extracting its fatty acids from the berry of the plant, which are the key active ingredients.
I recommend at least 300 mg of high-quality saw palmetto berry extract daily. Other natural supplements rich in similar plant sterols I’ve used with good success include pumpkin seed and pygeum bark extract– 200 mg of each per day will produce real results.
I’m currently working on a prostate formula that brings all three of these plants together in high potency extracts – plus a few important minerals lacking in our modern environment that your prostate needs but your doctor has probably overlooked…
In future Doctor’s House Calls, I’ll be telling you more about these missing minerals.
To Your Good Health,
Al Sears, MD
1 Wilt et al, “Saw Palmetto Extracts for Treatment of Benign Prostatic Hyperplasia A Systematic Review,” JAMA, 280(1998):1604-1609.