Pumpkin seeds – for treating benign prostate enlargement

Pumpkin seed has long been used to treat micturition disorders and has found a place in the medical treatment of lower urinary tract symptoms due to benign prostatic hyperplasia over the past decades.

Pumpkin has been cultivated in Mexico and North America since at least 14,000 B.C. It was reported that roasted pumpkin seeds would improve the nutritional value of seeds, for example, the increases of the sterols and vitamin E.

According to a 2014 study, both pumpkin seed oil and a combination of pumpkin seed oil and saw palmetto oil may improve benign prostatic hyperplasia (BPH) symptoms. (Nutr Res Pract. 2009 Winter; 3(4): 323–327)

In the study, researchers used a dose of 320 mg per day over the course of 12 months. The pumpkin seed oil was more effective than the placebo in improving symptoms and quality of life.

Pumpkin seeds contain many nutrients which help to reduce an enlarged prostate. They contain protective compounds called phytosterols, which have been found to help reduce an enlarged prostate. Their rich zinc content is another reason why pumpkin seeds are considered to be good for prostate health.

Zinc is critical to normal prostate function. In fact, a normal prostate has the highest levels of zinc in the body. Results of a 2011 study showed that malignant prostate tissue and prostate tissue from men with BPH had significantly less zinc than normal prostate tissue.

Pumpkin seeds are rich in zinc. One cup provides almost half the recommended daily allowance (RDA).

Other researches showed that the oral administration of high doses of pumpkin seeds and pumpkin seed oil reduced prostate weight in experimental animal models of prostate growth. The injection of pumpkin seed oil caused reproducible effects on urodynamic parameters in rabbits. Prostatic inflammation has been shown to aggravate Lower Urinary Tract Symptoms. Therefore, anti-inflammatory effects of pumpkin seed oil as observed in the rat arthritis model may also contribute to clinical improvement.
Pumpkin seeds – for treating benign prostate enlargement

Saw palmetto and benign prostatic hyperplasia

Saw palmetto, also known as Serenoa repens or Sabal serrulatum, is an herb that is most commonly used to treat problems related to benign prostatic hyperplasia (BPH).

The herb is widely used in Europe, where half of German urologists prefer prescribing plant-based extracts to synthetic drugs. Saw palmetto appears to have efficacy similar to that of medications like finasteride, but it is better tolerated and less expensive.

The medicinal element of saw palmetto is taken from the partially dried ripe fruit of the American dwarf palm tree, which is indigenous to the coastal regions of the southern United States, from the Carolinas and Florida to California.

Historically, Native Americans were known to use the fruit of saw palmetto to treat urinary and reproductive system problems.
Saw palmetto and benign prostatic hyperplasia

Pumpkin seeds

Pumpkin comes from Cucurbita pepo, a plant cultivated for medicinal, nutritional and other practice use.

Pumpkin seeds are a powerful, reliable and safe way to destroy internal parasites. Sometimes called a ‘Male Tonic’, pumpkin seeds are a natural way to revitalize the process gland, treat inflamed bladder and stimulate male hormone production.

The pumpkin seeds are taken principally as a safe de-worming agent. In many cultures, people eat small amounts of pumpkin seed daily to prevent worm infections.

Roasted pumpkin seeds

In Central American herbal medicine, seeds are also used as a treatment for nephritis and other urinary problems, and as a tonic to the bladder.

In Bulgaria, Turkey, and Ukraine, some people eat handful of pumpkin seeds every day to treat benign prostate enlargement.

Pumpkin seed is also diuretic, helpful in maintaining normal urinary function, which is challenged by BPH, with its typical symptoms of a need to urinate frequently at night, dribbling, and constricting pain in the bladder. This use of pumpkin seeds for prostate, and associated urinary issues is ‘official’ in British and German herbal medicine.
Pumpkin seeds