{"id":23315,"date":"2020-09-12T09:45:00","date_gmt":"2020-09-12T09:45:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.bensnaturalhealth.com\/blog\/?p=23315"},"modified":"2026-07-07T11:25:36","modified_gmt":"2026-07-07T11:25:36","slug":"cycling-prostate","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.bensnaturalhealth.com\/blog\/prostate-health\/cycling-prostate\/","title":{"rendered":"Does Cycling Affect Your Prostate?"},"content":{"rendered":"The prostate gland, as a topic, unfolds many reactions in men. Most of them do not know precisely what it does.\n\n\n\n\n\nBut they are still afraid of what it may represent in their future. However, it may concern their present to a greater extent.\n\n\n\n\n\nThe prostate gland is an organ located below the bladder, beside the rectum. It embodies a fundamental role in men’s life and health. It secretes fluids into the urethra<\/a> during orgasm and intervenes in the ejaculation volume.\n\n\n\n\n\nWe usually start to think about the prostate later in life. But what if the practice of a younger man influences prostate health? For example, does cycling harm your prostate?\n\n\n\n\n
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How men’s prostate health changes with age<\/h2>\n\n\n\n\nThis small gland does not remain precisely the same throughout your lifetime. It changes shape, size, and structure many times in each phase of your life and development.\n\n\n\n\n\nThe formation of the urethral tract in embryos and fetuses has been very clearly detailed. The gland has the dimensions of a bean at birth. It grows a bit afterward, but it is only after puberty that it reaches its definite size.\n\n\n\n\n\nThroughout the life of a man, the prostate gland enlarges with age. The first stage of growth starts at puberty. Then, the growing process triggers the second phase of growth, when men turn thirty years old. Prostate tissues during this period also become thicker and lose firmness.\n\n\n\n\n\nThis is why young males tend to have a firmer and smaller prostate gland. It weighs around 6 grams, depending on the size of the individual. Through the years, it grows heavier, up to 11 grams in 50-year-old males (1,2).\n\n\n\n\n\nIn some cases, the prostate grows as much as to block the flow of urine. This is more common in older adults after age 65 years old. As the prostate surrounds the urethra, the gland clasps and obstructs the urinary system. The first symptom of such a phenomenon is a reduced urine flow.\n\n\n\n\n\nHalf of the men’s population over their fifties experience this process. It is known as benign prostatic hyperplasia<\/a> or BPH. This is a non-cancerous condition in which the prostate swells<\/a>, passing from being a little bigger than a golf ball to a tennis ball size, or even larger. For many men, this enlarged prostate also causes irritation and urgency to urinate.\n\n\n\n\n\nHowever, in this natural flow of events, we also have to mention a few risk factors. They may influence your prostate health<\/a> and dictate how soon they start showing up.\n\n\n\n\n
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Factors that can affect prostate health<\/h2>\n\n\n\n\nIt may seem clich\u00e9, but diet, exercise, and sleep are the main lifetime factors that affect prostatic health. There are many others, such as age and genetics. But you can’t do anything about that. They are beyond your control. That’s why we are focusing in this article on those risk factors you can change. These are also known as modifiable risk factors<\/a>.\n\n\n\n\n\nAs for the diet, antioxidant foods<\/a> are fundamental to keep all of the body healthy, including the prostate. It prevents many pathologies related to the years’ passing, especially those that have to do with free radicals. This fact applies to the prostatic gland, too.\n\n\n\n\n\nOne of the best protective defenses against prostatic aging processes is consuming vegetables. We especially recommend those rich in fatty acids and polyphenols<\/a>.\n\n\n\n\n\nThese polyphenols are also abundant in many fruits, especially cherries and grapes. You can find them in olives and peanuts, too. They have a protective function in plants and may give you the same benefits for your prostate (3).\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n

Exercise<\/h3>\n\n\n\n\nThe second lifestyle factor we should consider is exercise. Practicing any sport show benefits for all urogenital organs. Going deeply into the evidence, men who frequently exercise, at least six hours per week, have a reduced BHP risk<\/a>.\n\n\n\n\n\nRedundantly, the lack of physical activity leads to a bad prostatic condition. The risk of BHP doubles when men remain seated for many hours, no matter if they practiced sports regularly (4).\n\n\n\n\n\nAdditionally, exercise has many benefits for blood vessels, blood flow, and cardiovascular risk. This is where riding a bike plays an important factor. In this regard, it may appear that riding a bike<\/a> is actually good for your prostate. But it all depends, as you will see further.\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n

Sleep<\/h3>\n\n\n\n\nAs a third lifestyle factor, we can modify sleep habits, which also influence prostatic health. Sleeping soundly can even decrease the risk of prostate cancer. The relationship has to do with melatonin<\/a>, the sleep-induction hormone (5).\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n

Sexual activity<\/h3>\n\n\n\n\nAs an extra lifestyle factor, we can also name sexual activity. The prostate gland is a part of the male sexual apparatus as well. So, sexual health behavior is paramount to protect the prostate. However, we should be careful with this argument, and that’s why it’s not listed as one of the main factors.\n\n\n\n\n\nSexual promiscuity may be associated with sexually-transmitted diseases. Many of them cause an infection in the urinary tract, which in turn affect the prostate. Chronic prostatitis<\/a> may become the final stage of this process, affecting the quality of life of thousands of men worldwide. It is worth noting that, unlike BPH, prostatitis is most common in younger males (6).\n\n\n\n\n\nIn line with this idea of sexual behavior, male hormones are critical for prostate health, mainly testosterone and DHT. Balanced testosterone and dihydrotestosterone<\/a> (DHT) levels keep the connective tissue of the prostate gland healthy. But the relationship is quite elusive because higher levels may also favor prostatic growth (7).\n\n\n\n\n\nSo, if you really want to keep your prostate healthy, we recommend focusing on three lifestyle factors:\n\n\n\n\n