What’s one of the most common problems that men have that usually goes undiagnosed and untreated?
I’ll bet you that at least 10% of the men reading this report right now have the condition and don’t know it. They think it’s just normal. Or they have been incorrectly told that it’s due to a swollen prostate. Or the symptoms are not quite bad enough to see a doctor. They might even think the problem is psychological.
I’m talking about a condition called chronic non-bacterial prostatitis, or CNBP. And it can cause a number of problems.
Why does CNBP go undiagnosed so often? It’s for two reasons. First, the symptoms are often minor and are often attributed to other conditions.
For example, one of the symptoms of CNBP is erectile dysfunction. Probably the first thing men think of when they have ED issues is testosterone. But while testosterone is effective at increasing libido, it usually doesn’t help with ED. Why?
In many cases, it’s because the cause is CNBP, not a lack of testosterone. And until that is addressed, all the testosterone in the world won’t make a difference. Many men are taking treatments for ED when their condition is really caused by CNBP.
Another common indicator of CNBP is a bladder infection. Bladder infections in women are common. They usually happen from intercourse, some anatomical defect such as a prolapse, and/or hormone deficiencies. But bladder infections in men are not common. When a man develops a bladder infection, the first thing I think of is CNBP. It’s the most common cause.
CNBP also can cause low back pain. If you have low back pain that doesn’t respond to rest, massage, and physical therapy, maybe it’s because the problem is CNBP. Men and their doctors can waste a lot of time treating low back pain as though it’s a back problem when, in fact, it may be due to CNBP. One tip-off that CNBP is the cause of your low back pain is if it comes with pain or discomfort in the pelvis, penis, or testicles.
And finally, CNBP can also cause symptoms that are exactly like the symptoms you get from an enlarged prostate. Symptoms like a weak urine stream, frequent urination, and having to get up more than two times a night to urinate are common to CNBP. CNBP can also raise PSA levels. How many men are taking drugs for enlarged prostates when their problem is really CNBP? I suspect the number is a lot higher than we know.
The other reason that men can have CNBP without knowing it is that it’s impossible to accurately diagnose it. There are no tests for it. Doctors only suspect it when all the other tests are normal. So if a man has any of these symptoms and his doctor says the tests are normal and his prostate is only slightly enlarged, there is a halfway decent chance he has CNBP. Men who have an elevated PSA with a negative prostate biopsy often have CNBP.
What’s more, CNBP is not just a problem for old guys. In fact, it’s the number one reason why men under the age of 50 see a urologist. According to the National Institutes of Health, CNBP may account for up to 25% of all office visits from young and middle-aged men for complaints involving the genital and urinary systems. I just saw a 55-year-old man in the clinic the other day. He had developed a bladder infection with some left-sided back pain. It all went away after taking an antibiotic. Now, it’s coming back. Odds are good he has CNBP.
The conventional treatment for CNBP is a course of antibiotics for four to six weeks. Of course, that makes no sense at all, because CNBP, by definition, is not caused by bacteria. But doctors do it anyway, just to see if the symptoms improve. There is a 3% chance that the symptoms are not caused by CNBP but by another condition called chronic bacterial prostatitis.
Chronic bacterial prostatitis, as the name indicates, is caused by bacteria. The symptoms of CNBP and chronic bacterial prostatitis are often the same. So one way of diagnosing which condition a man has is to give a trial of antibiotics. If they don’t work, then the condition is CNBP. So what then? What is the treatment for CNBP?
Would you believe nothing? That’s right. Once the diagnosis of CNBP has been made, conventional medicine offers only medications for symptoms, such as Flomax (tamsulosin), Proscar (finasteride), Hytrin (terazosin), and Cardura (doxazosin). But that doesn’t mean that there aren’t natural ways to cure CNBP. One of those ways is really simple – cranberry juice.
A study published in the British Journal of Nutrition looked at the efficacy of cranberry (Vaccinium macrocarpon) powder in 42 older men with proven CNBP. The researchers gave half of them 1,500 mg of dried powdered cranberries daily for 6 months. The other half received a placebo.
The men in the cranberry group showed statistically significant improvements in their International Prostate Symptom Scores and overall quality-of-life scores. They also showed statistically significant improvements in their urine-flow rate and ability to fully empty their bladders. And that’s not all. They also had lower PSA levels at the end of the six months. All of this is compared with the placebo group, which showed no improvement in any measure.
Another study looked at the bioflavonoid quercetin. Quercetin is a nutrient you’ll find in many fruits and vegetables. In this study, the researchers tried quercetin in a group of 30 men with CNBP. They chose quercetin because it is known to have anti-inflammatory effects in most tissues, and CNBP is associated with significant inflammation. They gave half of the men 500 mg twice a day. They gave the other half a placebo.
The study lasted only a month. But even in that short period, the quercetin group showed a significant improvement in their Chronic Prostatitis Symptom Index, while the placebo group showed no improvement. By the way, cranberries contain a lot of quercetin.
But as good as cranberries and quercetin supplements are, there is no treatment with as many success stories as the herb Pygeum Africanum. In one study, researchers gave 100 mg of Pygeum Africanum extract daily to 47 patients with chronic prostatitis. Of these, eight had bacterial prostatitis, and 39 had CNBP. In just two months, an amazing 89% of them had a complete cure of all their symptoms.
In another study, researchers looked specifically at 18 men suffering from sexual disturbances either from an enlarged prostate or from CNBP. The researchers gave the men 100 mg of Pygeum Africanum extract twice a day. Some of the men also had an antibiotic. All of their urinary symptoms improved. In addition, they also reported improved sexual function.
So here’s my advice. If you have any of the symptoms mentioned above, you might very well have CNBP. But before you try a long course of antibiotics or get started on drugs for the rest of your life, why not try some natural therapy?
Get some freeze-dried cranberry powder, which you can find online. And take ¼ teaspoon twice a day. That will give you about 2,500 mg per day. A little more than the study. But in this case, more is probably better. Do this for at least six months.
Then get some quercetin. I like the product D-Hist from Orthomolecular Products. Each capsule contains 200 mg of quercetin, stinging nettle, and bromelain. Stinging nettle is effective for prostate disorders, and bromelain is a natural anti-inflammatory. Take three capsules twice a day for at least three months.
Lastly, get Solaray’s Pygeum Africanum. The extract is standardized to the same strength used in many studies. Each capsule is 100 mg. Take one capsule twice a day for at least three months.
When your symptoms are resolved, you can probably cut back to a maintenance dose. You can get both D-Hist and Solaray Pygeum Africanum online.
By the way, the most effective antibiotics for chronic prostatitis are fluoroquinolones. They go by the names of Cipro, Floxin, Levaquin, and Avelox. While they are very effective when others aren’t, they also carry the nasty side effects of acute tendon rupture and severe neurological and kidney disorders. If you have to take them, fine, but try the natural way first. The natural remedies are completely safe and have no side effects at all.
Yours for better health,
Frank Shallenberger, MD
REF:
Andro, M.C., J.P. Riffaud. “Pygeum africanum extract for the treatment of patients with benign prostatic hyperplasia: a review of 25 years of published experience.” Curr Ther Res. 1995;56:796-817.
Carani, C., V. Salvioli, A. Scuteri, et al. “Urological and sexual evaluation of treatment of benign prostatic disease using Pygeum africanum at high doses.” Arch Ital Urol Nefrol Androl. 1991 September;63(3):341-5.
http://www.webmd.com/men/guide/prostatitis
Shoskes, D.A., S.I. Zeitlin, A. Shahed, and J. Rajfer. “Quercetin in men with category III chronic prostatitis: a preliminary prospective, double-blind, placebo-controlled trial.” Urology. 1999 December; 54(6):960-3.
Vidlar, A., J. Vostalova, J. Ulrichova, et al. “The effectiveness of dried cranberries ( Vaccinium macrocarpon) in men with lower urinary tract symptoms.” Br J Nutr. 2010 October;104(8):1181-9.