Movember: grow your beard for a healthy prostate

If during the coming weeks, you see more beards than usual around you, then it’s surely due to the “Movember” celebrations in November, a global initiative launched by the Movember Foundation to raise awareness on the importance of male health.

Movember is a portmanteau of the words moustache and November, and it calls all men to grow their beards for this month as a sign of support for initiatives to raise awareness and prevent prostate cancer and other diseases that affect men.

Prostate cancer is the second-most commonly diagnosed tumour in men all over the world, but it is also one with the best prognosis if detected early and treated in time. While we still don’t know what causes it, we do know that increased testosterone, sedentary habits and fatty diets can speed up its development. There’s also a genetic component, and it is estimated that almost 10% of all cases are hereditary. Therefore, you should be even more careful if someone in your family has had prostate cancer.

How do I know if my prostate is healthy?

With age, the prostate increases in size and men may have problems urinating due to the pressure exerted by the prostate on the urethra. But this doesn’t necessarily mean that there’s a tumour, it may also be due to other problems of the prostate.

The best way to make sure that your prostate is fine is to have an annual check-up with the urologist so they can monitor its status and clear any doubts if there are any unusual symptoms, such as difficulty when urinating or pain when engaging in sexual relations.

One of the tests performed by the doctor to check the health of your prostate is a simple test to determine the level of prostate-specific antigens (PSA), a protein produced by the prostate in elevated levels when there are any problems.

When should I consult a urologist?

You should go to the urologist if you detect any of these signs and symptoms:

• Increased frequency of urination, both during the day and at night (nocturia).
• Urgent need to urinate or even involuntary leakage of urine.
• Pain and burning sensation when urinating.
• Difficulty in starting or stopping the flow of urine.
• Weak or intermittent flow of urine, or flowing in drops.
• Sensation that the bladder has not been fully emptied.
• Breast size increase or pain.
• Painful testicles.
• Blood in urine or semen.
• Erectile dysfunction.
• Painful ejaculation and decreased amount of ejaculate.
• Haematuria or blood in urine.
• Lower back pain, hip or pelvic discomfort.
• Lack of appetite and inexplicable weight loss.
• Fatigue.
• Changes to intestinal habits.
• Discomfort while sitting down.

How can I prevent prostate cancer?

There’s no infallible formula to prevent prostate cancer, but its risk may be reduced by following a few health-related recommendations:

Eat a healthy diet, low in fats, with moderate protein intake and rich in fruits and vegetables. Reduce the consumption of salt and sugars and avoid saturated fats, alcohol, tobacco and other toxic substances.

Avoid weight gain and obesity. Some studies indicate that obese men are at higher risk of developing prostate cancer.

Exercise. Apart from controlling one’s weight and preventing obesity, frequent physical exercise reduces the risk of numerous diseases such as cardiac ailments, diabetes and some types of cancer.

Visit the urologist. After 50 years of age, it is recommended to make an annual visit to the urologist to assess prostate health and if there are any changes to its structure.