A new peer-reviewed study has found that daily supplementation with the natural antioxidant Pycnogenol French maritime pine bark extract can reduce symptoms related to enlarged prostate within 60 days.
“Symptoms of enlarged prostate are often painful and can interfere with daily activities – even disrupting sleep,” says Dr. Steven Lamm, medical director at NYU Langone Preston Robert Tisch Center for Men’s Health.
“Most of my patients experience urgency of urination, weak flow and inability to fully empty their bladder. Some report pain while urinating. Enlarged prostate affects nearly all men and most pharmaceuticals take up to six months to show results. This initial study shows measurable benefit from Pycnogenol within 60 days – a natural option without side effects.”
The prostate is a gland in the male reproductive system that surrounds the upper portion of the urethra. Benign Prostatic Hypertrophy (BPH) is a common condition for men that causes the prostate gland to increase in size and block flow of urine out of the bladder.
The study, published in Minerva Medica, tested 75 men between the ages of 55 and 75 over the course of 8 weeks. Three test groups were included in the study: a control group using a standard management routine of exercise, hydration, and a low-sugar and low-salt diet, a second group taking the common pharmaceutical treatments finasteride and dutasteride, and a third group supplementing with Pycnogenol.
After 8 weeks, participants were monitored using ultrasound investigations to determine residual urinary volume in the bladder and prostate size. Results showed that supplementation with 150mg of Pycnogenol daily provided “immediate” improvement of major symptoms, including:
- Significant improvement of residual bladder volume by 51 percent (vs. 35 percent improvement in the control group / 41 percent improvement in dudasteride and finasteride group)
- Significant improvement of bladder emptying by 42 percent (vs. 9 percent improvement in the control group / 6 percent improvement in the dudasteride and finasteride group)
- Reduction in frequency of urination by 37 percent (vs. 12 percent improvement in the control group / 14 percent improvement in dudasteride and finasteride group)
- Improvement of urinary straining by 31 percent (vs. 20 percent improvement in the control group / 6 percent improvement in dudasteride and finasteride group)
- Reduction in frequency of nocturia by 31 percent (vs. 18 percent improvement in the control group / 9 percent improvement in dudasteride and finasteride group)
- Reduction of intermittency by 31 percent (vs. 9 percent improvement in the control group / 19 percent improvement in dudasteride and finasteride group)
- Improvement of weak flow by 24 percent (vs. 9 percent improvement in the control group / 17 percent improvement in dudasteride and finasteride group)
Supplementation with Pycnogenol was not found to produce any unwanted side effects, such as erectile dysfunction, a key concern of other common prostate health treatments.
“This study on prostate health builds on four decades of research on Pycnogenol including other studies on men’s health issues. The antioxidant properties of Pycnogenol continue to show an impressive range of measurable benefits,” said Dr. Lamm.
One in three men over 50 experience prostate enlargement. Photo by Shane Rounce on Unsplash
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