Men’s Health: More than prostates and libido

Saturday, June 18th, 2011

by Dr. Greg Eckel

Nature Cures Clinic physician

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Any quick Internet search on men’s health will lead one to believe that prostate health and libido are the top health concerns out there for men. The actual short list is much different — consisting of heart disease, cancer and unintentional injury.  Not too sexy and they don’t sell many magazines.

In honor of Men’s Health Month this June, I will attempt to cover a man’s approach to healthy aging — which includes the sexy and the not-so-sexy.  In general, health is health.  If you’ve been viewing our vodcasts or listening to our podcasts you’ll know that there aren’t many secrets to achieving good health.  I’ll share with you my approach with some tips to keep you reading.

Starting with unintentional injury, the risks associated with physical labor, chores, driving and casual sex come to mind.  I encourage you guys to use your seat belts, drive within the limits, (never mind how tempting it is to drive like an Indy racecar driver) follow safety precautions while doing maintenance around the house and practice safe sex. Seems pretty straighforward, right?

On to cardiovascular disease, in which the mainstream media — via big pharma — has us convinced that cholesterol levels are the key to good outcomes.  My typical recommendations start with changes to your diet and exercise to bring down cholesterol levels but I recommend the focus to be on simple carbohydrates rather than cholesterol intake.  While it is important to look at the quality of fat in your diet, rarely does lowering your fat intake have any appreciable effect on cholesterol levels.  We will always look to the amount of triglycerides in your blood work (carbohydrates break down into fatty acids, which then become triglycerides) as these are what become your cholesterol of tomorrow.

Now another not-so-sexy one — diet. It plays such a crucial role in your health, that at our clinic we address all patients’ nutritional intake and make specific recommendations from this evaluation. We run therapeutic cleanses and elimination diets, test food allergies in blood tests, and have a nutritionist, Maria, who is here to support all of these investigations and support you through the process.

Cancer is such a huge topic unto itself that I will direct you to contact Dr. Greg Nigh who is becoming one the country’s leading naturopathic thinkers around treatments and outcomes regarding cancer.

One huge area that goes often overlooked for men is hormone balance. It is very evident that women go through menopause as they age; but we men also go through a similar change called andropause.  Testosterone therapy has become more in vogue as the baby boomers participate in more health care and are looking to increase their quality of life as they age. Testosterone is well known for its effect on libido.  It is also very beneficial in preventing cardiovascular disease, improving muscle mass and strength, maintaining stronger bones, and improving mood, memory and cognitive function.  Not only that, it has also been shown to improve prostate function.  So no male workup (over 40 years old) is complete without an evaluation of hormone balance.  It really is necessary to test hormone levels before embarking on any treatment regime with bio-identical hormones.

This leads us into prostate health.  Most men will develop prostate issues over their lifetimes.  On autopsy of men over 80 years old, there was a high presence of prostate cancer — though the cancer was not the cause of most mens’ deaths.  Vitamin D is a great marker of prognosis of prostate health.  In research, men with adequate levels of vitamin D had better outcomes than men who did not have adequate amounts of vitamin D in their system.  At Nature Cures Clinic, we do run a prostate specific antigen (PSA) test — a general test to screen for prostate cancer.  This test is fraught with issues and it’s not definitive — think of it more as just a screening test, albeit the best we have at the moment. If you have a high PSA, this leads to more blood work.  What happens to most men with a high PSA is the recommendation of a biopsy of the prostate to see if there is cancer there.  This is not always to the best way to go.  If you or a loved one find yourself in this situation please call us and get some information.  Know you have some options.

Lastly — drum roll — libido.  When all of the above aspects are addressed you have a higher likelihood of a healthy libido.  Still, an often-overlooked aspect of a healthy sex life is intimacy.  Yes, intimacy.  It puts you in a vulnerable and open space with your loved one.   This has the aspect of enhancing your sex life as a way to share more of your true self with your partner.  This can be a very powerful way to enhance your sex and love life.  I invite you to step out of the confining box of malehood and explore this aspect of closeness with those that matter most in your lives.

Men’s health is health.  The physiology and biochemistry of the body responds well to correct diet, exercise, and specific nutrients and botanicals.  We strive to individualize our treatments to each person.

With cardiovascular disease, cancer and unintentional injuries being the top three issues for men, popular media and most men focused on libido and prostate health, this leaves us with a beginning place to enrich our lives and optimize our health.  To the journey!

Tags: aging, andropause, Dr. Greg Eckel, healthy aging, hormone balancing, libido, male hormones, Mens Health, prostate
Posted in Articles by our Doctors, Dr. Greg Eckel | Comments Off