Plant-Based Diet Linked to Better Sexual and Urinary Health in Prostate Cancer Survivors

Men with prostate cancer who eat the most plant foods report better sexual function, fewer urinary problems and more vitality, a study of 3,505 survivors has found.

Researchers led by Dr. Stacy Loeb, a urologist at NYU Langone Health, used data from men with non-metastatic prostate cancer in the Health Professionals Follow-up Study, who completed food questionnaires and quality-of-life surveys after diagnosis. A higher plant-based diet index was linked to better scores for sexual function, urinary incontinence, urinary irritation and hormonal health and vitality. The study is published in the journal Cancer.

It is observational and the differences were modest, but they point the same way. Dr. Loeb said:

They also clearly challenge the historical misconception that eating meat boosts sexual function in men, when in fact the opposite seems to be the case.

That is practical, hopeful news for men and their families.

It adds to earlier research linking a healthy plant-based diet to lower risk of aggressive prostate cancer, and the Stanford twin study in which the vegan twin had a healthier heart in just eight weeks.

Real men eat plants!