How to Reduce Prostate Cancer Risk

About 1 in 8 men will be diagnosed with prostate cancer during their lifetime. But a high risk doesn’t mean the disease is inevitable. While you can’t change certain risk factors like your age or family history, healthy lifestyle choices may reduce your chances of developing prostate cancer.

Eat a balanced diet, exercise regularly, and maintain a healthy weight. Making these simple changes can help you improve your prostate health and lower your risk of cancer. 

Read on to learn how you can protect yourself and start taking steps toward better long-term health.

7 Healthy Habits That Support Prostate Health

While there’s no guaranteed way to prevent prostate cancer, healthy lifestyle choices may help lower your risk. Here are some habits worth adopting: 

1. Eat a Healthy, Plant-Rich Diet

A diet rich in vegetables, fruits, whole grains, legumes, nuts, and seeds provides nutrients that support overall health and may help lower the risk of certain cancers, including prostate cancer. 

Cooked tomatoes are rich in lycopene, an antioxidant studied for its potential role in prostate health. Lycopene is more easily absorbed when tomatoes are cooked and consumed with a source of healthy fat, such as olive oil. Cruciferous vegetables such as broccoli, Brussels sprouts, cabbage, and kale contain compounds such as sulforaphane that may support the body’s natural detoxification processes and have shown potential anticancer effects in laboratory studies. Regular fish consumption (high in omega-3s) is also associated with lower risks in some populations.

Berries are also rich in antioxidants, which help protect cells from oxidative stress and support overall health. Consider swapping white bread and pasta for quinoa or oats. Emphasizing plant-based foods may help reduce chronic inflammation and support overall prostate health. 

2. Reduce Red and Processed Meats 

Beyond heart disease, limiting red and processed meat consumption is a key strategy for lowering prostate cancer risk. One study involving 1.9 million men found that eating processed meat increases your risk of developing prostate cancer. That study found that each 50-gram portion of processed meat consumed daily will increase your risk by 4%. While there is no single agreed-upon number for prostate cancer, you should try to limit red meat consumption to less than 2-3 servings per week.

Cooking meat at high heat can create carcinogens. And processed meats are also packed with N-nitroso compounds and nitrates. It’s best to limit processed meats such as bacon, sausage, hot dogs, and deli meats while moderating your intake of red meats like beef, pork, and lamb. Swap them out for skinless chicken, fish, or plant-based protein sources.

​3. Maintain a Healthy Weight

Excess body fat, particularly visceral fat stored around the abdominal organs, can alter hormone levels and promote chronic inflammation. Obesity is associated with higher levels of insulin, insulin-like growth factor-1 (IGF-1), and chronic inflammation, all of which have been studied as possible contributors to the development and progression of prostate cancer. 

Research suggests that obesity is more strongly associated with aggressive or advanced prostate cancer than with overall prostate cancer incidence. Men with obesity may also have a higher risk of dying from prostate cancer than men with a healthy weight. 

Losing excess weight can improve insulin sensitivity, reduce inflammation, and provide many health benefits. A balanced diet that emphasizes vegetables, fruits, whole grains, lean protein, and healthy fats, combined with regular physical activity and strength training, can help you achieve and maintain a healthy weight. 

​4. Exercise Regularly

Regular exercise helps regulate hormone levels, improve insulin sensitivity, reduce inflammation, and support healthy immune function. This benefit is independent of your weight. Spend at least 150 minutes of moderate-intensity aerobic activity or 75 minutes of vigorous-intensity aerobic activity each week.  

Aim for two strength-training sessions per week to build lean muscle. Strength training also helps preserve muscle mass, support a healthy metabolism, and improve blood sugar control. 

Don’t feel discouraged if you have trouble exercising because of age or physical limitations. Low-impact workouts can be as effective. Simple exercises for seniors such as chair yoga, light weightlifting with resistance bands, water aerobics, or balancing with a chair can help promote circulation and regulate blood sugar without putting stress on your joints.

5. Quit Smoking 

Quitting tobacco is one of the best things you can do for general cancer control. Research shows that smokers are 42 percent more likely to die of prostate cancer compared to nonsmokers. Smoking exposes the body to carcinogens that damage DNA, promote chronic inflammation, and impair the immune system’s ability to detect and eliminate abnormal cells. 

Quitting smoking reduces exposure to carcinogens, improves cardiovascular and lung health, and may improve outcomes if cancer treatment becomes necessary. Quitting also lowers your risk of developing deadly, aggressive cancer in the long run.

6. Eat Healthy Fats 

Replacing saturated and trans fats with healthier unsaturated fats may benefit your overall health and reduce chronic inflammation. Healthy fat sources include extra virgin olive oil, avocados, walnuts, chia seeds, flaxseeds, and fatty fish such as salmon. These foods provide omega-3 fatty acids and other nutrients that support heart health and may contribute to a healthier inflammatory balance. While research on dietary fats and prostate cancer continues, choosing healthier fats over heavily processed foods is a smart choice for overall wellness.

​7. Know Your Family History

Family history is a major risk factor. Knowing your family tree is key. If your father, brother, or son has had prostate cancer, especially if diagnosed before age 65, your own risk is significantly higher. Having a father or brother with prostate cancer roughly doubles risk. Your risk increases even more if they were diagnosed at an early age or if you have a family history of BRCA mutations. 

Knowing your family history allows you to discuss earlier or more individualized prostate cancer screening with your healthcare provider. They may recommend PSA testing at an earlier age based on your personal risk factors. 

Conclusion 

Although there is no guaranteed way to prevent prostate cancer, healthy lifestyle habits may lower your risk and improve your overall health. Making gradual changes can help you live a healthier life. These habits are also associated with a lower risk of many other chronic diseases, including heart disease, type 2 diabetes, and certain other cancers. Eat more plant-based foods and less processed meat, exercise regularly, and pay attention to your family’s health background. 

Knowing your risk factors and adopting healthy habits can help support your overall health and may reduce your risk of developing aggressive prostate cancer.