Receiving a diagnosis enlarged prostate is a concern for most men as they age and with good reason. As much as eighty percent of men that reach the age of eighty will develop enlarged prostate problems. While the prospect of living with the symptoms of an enlarged prostate can be daunting, men should take heart in that there are many treatments available.

The majority of men will develop a condition called benign prostatic hyperplasia, which is more commonly known as BPH. Most men will be relieved to learn that this is a non-cancerous condition, but the symptoms that go along with it are nothing to sneer at. Painful urination, incontinence and even sexual dysfunction are among the symptoms, although which symptoms will appear will be different for every patient.

The good news is that there are plenty of avenues for finding the right treatment for everyone. More and more patients are turning to alternative treatments thanks to a number of factors. For example, alternative treatments are a great way to avoid taking synthetic drugs. Why is this important? Synthetic drugs often are very efficient in treating the problem, but usually come with worrying side effects that can be just as detrimental as the symptoms the medicine is treating. Common diet supplements used to treat BPH, such as lycopene and saw palmetto, rarely produce negative side effects.

Another reason that men are turning to alternative treatments is that there is no invasive surgery involved. Traditional treatments can end up with the patient in an operating theatre for severe BPH. Not only does surgery involve a considerable amount of recovery time, but patients run the risk of developing incontinence, impotence and even infertility issues as a result.

A third reason alternative treatment can be beneficial is that men can avoid the opposite extreme of surgery: doing nothing and waiting. Traditional treatment often recommends that doctors “wait and see” what happens when diagnosis enlarged prostate is first given. This can be a frustrating and stressful experience for many men dealing with the first symptoms of enlarged prostate.

Thanks to strong clinical evidence that herbal supplements can help relieve the symptoms of enlarged prostate and even help reduce the growth of the prostate, more men are adding these supplements to their diets. In addition to previously mentioned saw palmetto and lycopene, supplements including flaxseed and zinc have also been proven to be helpful in fighting BPH and may even help prevent BPH from developing in the first place.