The right diet can help you prevent and manage prostate inflammation. The combination of proper diet and exercise has numerous health benefits, including reducing chronic inflammation not just in the prostate, but in the body overall. Eliminating or reducing your consumption of pro-inflammatory and low-nutrient foods, and replacing them with antioxidant-rich foods is a powerful step toward lowering prostate inflammation.
Inflammation
Inflammation is a defense mechanism the body uses to protect itself against infection and injury. However, in his 2004 book, "The Inflammation Cure," Dr. William Joel Meggs, M.D., writes that inflammation not only destroys germs, but can also destroy organs. Chronic inflammation is associated with arthritis, diabetes, Alzheimer's, heart disease, multiple sclerosis, cancer and prostate conditions.
Meats
In their 2009 booklet, "Nutrition, Exercise and Prostate Cancer," The Prostate Cancer Foundation reports a chronic prostate inflammation can be triggered by charred meat. Saturated fats from such foods as beef, pork and butter increase the body's inflammation levels. Overcooking meat at high temperature, and charbroiling red meats or chicken, produce carcinogens known to elicit cancer in animal studies.
Dairy
The Cancer Project website notes that the risk of prostate enlargement doubles with regular milk consumption. The prostate gland is controlled by hormones, so reducing your intake of dairy and meats -- foods that often contain hormones -- may lower the hormonal stimulation of the prostate, and may help to prevent negative health conditions associated with prostate inflammation and abnormal growth.
Simple Sugars
The Prostate Cancer Foundation reports that many cancers need sugar as an energy source. Excess consumption of simple sugars is connected to poor prostate health by two pathways: high sugar intake stimulates tumor growth by providing a food source, and an excessive consumption of processed sugar increases your insulin levels. High insulin levels are linked to diabetes, heart disease and prostate cancer growth.
Proper Nutrition
Take control of your prostate health by eliminating and/or reducing dairy, simple sugars and high-fat meats from your diet. Decrease your overall caloric and fat intakes, and eat more fish such as mackerel, salmon and albacore tuna. Consume numerous types of brightly colored fruits and vegetables every day to increase your body's disease-fighting abilities. Red-colored foods such as tomatoes, watermelon and pink grapefruit contain a powerful antioxidant called lycopene, and should be increased in your diet.
References
- The Cancer Project: Nutrition and Prostate Health
- Prostate Cancer Foundation: Nutrition & Wellness
- "The Inflammation Cure"; William Joel Meggs, M.D.: 2004
