When it comes to prostate cancer, it’s fair to say no man is safe. Especially as they get older. Yet some might find they are at higher risk than others. Sure there are some things you can control like diet. But heredity, not so much Kind of frustrating isn’t it? So yeah, there are risk factors that determine why some fall prey to prostate cancer. Here are some of the more common ones.
Age: It’s no secret that age is the primary risk predictor. For one, almost no one under 40 has anything to fear here. It’s even unusual to be diagnosed with prostate cancer in your 40’s or 50’s. But when you hit 60 and above, well all bets are off. That when the symptoms and problems start to set in for many. Prostate cancer is like an active volcano that’s just dormant and waiting to erupt.
Family History: Prostate cancer logic is simple. If more than one close family member has had prostate cancer, the chance that you will get it is 1.5 to 3 times higher. So if there’s no case of prostate cancer in your family, you might consider yourself lucky.
Diet: Perhaps the most important lifestyle risk factor is poor diet. Although there is no evidence that a fatty diet can increase the risk of prostate cancer per se, there’s nothing wrong with eating healthy. This will reduce the risk of heart disease and other health conditions too.
Race: There have been studies done to see which race has a higher risk for prostate cancer. The results show that African-American men have a higher risk than Caucasians. They lead by 30%.
Obesity: Aside from the obvious problems it delays the detection of prostate cancer. This is because men who are overweight tend to have lower PSA levels than normal men. You see, PSA levels are one of the prime indicators of prostate cancer. Mess up ability to accurately read that and you mess up the chances for an accurate diagnosis.
Now that you’re better aware of some of the risk factors involved with prostate cancer, you don’t have to play the guessing game. You can sleep soundly at night and live each day to the fullest. Don’t wait until you have problems with your prostate to start acting on these. In this case prevention is much better than cure.
About the Author: Leonard Z Sennish is passionate about men’s health issues. He feels we all need to better understand early prostate cancer symptoms and know some causes of prostate cancer. If you’d like to know more maybe a visit to ProblemProstate.com would be a good next move too?