New Health Challenge: Prostate health

So, I was diagnosed with BPH- benign prostatic hyperplasia. Just for a convenient guideline, 50% of 50-year-old men have it, and 80% of 80-year-old-men have it. It doesn't necessarily lead to cancer; in fact, there are some lifestyle changes that can slow down or even prevent its development. Apparently there isn't hard evidence that the symptoms of BPH can be reversed, so basically once you develop it, it's more or less a matter of managing the symptoms.

What causes it? Once again, Science is inconclusive, but evidence suggests the Standard American Diet, lack of exercise and being overweight- the western office worker trifecta- is the main culprit. In a nutshell, the SAD diet produces inflammation, and acidifies the urine. Both situations irritate the prostate and cause the cells to grow. Eventually the urethra, which is right next to it, is  crowded to the point that it becomes harder to completely evacuate when you pee. This can result in nasty, painful infections. It can also eventually lead to impotence. Yay.

There are official treatments for the symptoms. The pills involve relaxing muscles and spawning a dieuretic effect. Both can have adverse reactions which can lead, paradoxically, to the same symptoms caused by BPH. So I am going to try to manage this with diet and exercise. Foodwise, the basic strategy is eating in the Mediterranean and Asian foodways. Stay tuned!

Low Acid Vegan Afro-Asian Fusion: Sweet potato peanut noodles

I've had vocal cord damage for about a year now, so it seems clear if I don't be pretty strict with myself, I'll never recover from my LPR episode. I was in the mood for something easy and comforting tonight, and one of my go-to comfort foods is peanut rice noodles. I was going to use palm sugar to sweeten it, but I had just made a batch of sweet potato to put in the puppy's dinner, among other things, and I felt a sudden urge to use some as the sweet element in my recipe. In no time I had visions of a variation of peanut noodles with some African flair. Peanuts, sweet potatoes, and coconut all find themselves in African cooking, so it seemed natural. I have to say the result was delicious, so I felt compelled to share.

Ingredients

One sweet potato, peeled and diced
1/2 box rice noodles for stir fry
peanut butter and dry roasted peanuts
unsweetened coconut flakes
soy sauce
fresh cilantro, chopped

Preparation

Steam the sweet potato until tender. Meanwhile, cook the rice noodles according to the package instructions. In the bottom of your individual serving bowl, spoon a tablespoon of peanut butter, two tablespoons of dry roasted peanuts, two tablespoons of coconut, and a tablespoon of soy sauce. When the sweet potato is done, use 2-3 tablespoons of the sweet potato water to mix your ingredients into a sauce. add chunks of sweet potato and partially mash, if you want. Otherwise just put a serving of rice noodles on top of that. Top with a generous pinch or two of cilantro and serve.

If I didn't have acid issues, I'd mix in some lime juice, chili flakes or chili-garlic paste, and fresh garlic if you didn't use the paste. If you're not vegan or vegetarian, a teaspoon of fish sauce would be nice, too. This made a pretty smooth sauce, but coconut milk would make this recipe super-creamy. I just didn't have any handy. Whatever you decide, I hope you find this recipe inspiring.