Prostate awareness month: Changes in lifestyle can bring positive changes in BPH patients, says Dr Javaid Magray

Srinagar, Sep 18: With September being observed as the prostate awareness month, a senior Urologist, on Tuesday said changes in lifestyle can bring positive changes in benign prostatic hyperplasia (BPH) patients.
With the life span increasing, the absolute burden of BPH is expected to continue to rise in the coming years, highlighting the importance of monitoring and seeking treatment once diagnosed.
Dr. Javaid Ahmed Magray, Consultant Urologist, S.S. Hospital Shireen Bagh, GMC Srinagar, said “BPH generally describes an enlarged prostate gland in men, which tends to get bigger as men age. The enlarged prostate can press on the urethra, narrowing it and thus obstructing the ability of the bladder to pass urine or fully empty.”
Elaborating about the symptoms of BPH, he said, “When the prostate is enlarged, it can bother or block the bladder. Needing to pass urine often is a common symptom of BPH”.
Other symptoms include the sensation that your bladder is still full even after urinating, the need to urinate often, typically every one to two hours, the need to stop and start multiple times while urinating, feeling a sudden and intense need to urinate, as if you can’t wait, a weak or slow urine flow, difficulty starting to urinate or needing to push or strain to urinate, and waking up more than twice at night to urinate.
“If you’re 40 years and older, that’s a risk. Other factors that make it more likely a man can develop symptoms of BPH include a family history of BPH, having medical conditions such as obesity, heart and circulatory disease, and type 2 diabetes. Lack of physical exercise and erectile dysfunction are other factors as well,” Dr. Magray, added.
An enlarged prostate left untreated may lead to worse symptoms such as urinary tract infections, urinary incontinence, blood in the urine, the development of bladder stones, kidney failure, and finally the inability to urinate.
Generally, treatment is based on the severity of the symptoms and how much the symptoms impact your daily life. Lifestyle changes like practicing meditation or yoga to reduce tension and stress, which can aggravate BPH symptoms, choosing healthier food options to keep your prostate healthy, and avoiding beverages that stimulate the kidneys to produce urine (such as caffeinated and alcoholic drinks), can bring about positive changes.
“Your urologist may also prescribe medications that help open the prostate channel or shrink the prostate, or reduce symptoms associated with BPH,” he said.