5 Natural Ways to Prevent Urinary Incontinence
Urinary incontinence is an uncomfortable and embarrassing condition that is characterized by a temporary or permanent incapacity to hold urine in.
The intensity of the condition varies from leaking urine when coughing or sneezing to feeling the need to urinate so much that it’s impossible to get to the bathroom in time.
The main cause of incontinence is the loss of the pelvic muscle tone. However, it can also be caused by childbirth, vaginal infections, and prolonged use of some medications.
It’s most common during old age. However, it can happen at any stage of life, especially if the person leads an unhealthy lifestyle.
Developing urinary incontinence problems can significantly affect your quality of life and emotional health. That’s why we want to review the main causes and some recommendations to reduce your risk of suffering from it.
Causes of urinary incontinence
Urinary incontinence is not considered as a disease, but a symptom. It’s more common in women than in men due to the specific anatomy that characterizes females.
These symptoms come from certain habits, some diseases, and physical problems.
Some of the causes include:
- Pregnancy and childbirth
- Being overweight and obesity
- Impact sports
- Urinary infections
- Constipation
- Consuming sugary and acidic foods
- Consuming caffeine and alcohol
- Medications for blood pressure and the heart, sedatives, and muscle relaxants
- Use of diuretics
- Obstruction in the urinary system
- Neurological or cerebral problems
- Dementia or other mental health problems
- Muscle and nerve problems
- Weakness in the pelvic or urethral muscles
Symptoms of urinary incontinence
Some people have minor and sporadic leaking. However, other people suffer from continuous incontinence and leak much more urine.
Symptoms include:
- Urine leaks whenever there is pressure on the bladder when coughing, sneezing or laughing.
- Mild or moderate urine leaks when exercising or lifting heavy objects.
- Sudden and intense need to urinate, followed by an involuntary urine leak.
- Frequent urine leakage.
5 ways to prevent urinary incontinence naturally
There are some causes of urinary incontinence that can’t be avoided. However, there are some habits and advice which, in some cases, help reduce your risk of suffering from it.
1. Train your bladder
First of all, simply training your bladder involves establishing a timetable to empty it. This allows you to strengthen the pelvic floor muscles. Then, this gradually reduces the continuous desire to urinate.
- To begin with, it’s advisable to wait about 10 minutes whenever you feel like urinating.
- Then, the idea is to increase the time little by little until an appropriate schedule is established.
2. Practice Kegel exercises
Kegel exercises or any other pelvic floor strengthening routines can help reduce your risk of this condition.
These exercises improve the strength of pelvic floor muscles. Thus, they help control involuntary urine leaks.
- Plus, you can do them in short periods of time, two or three times a day.
- In addition, you can do them anywhere, waiting for the bus, driving, in the office, etc…
3. Reduce your consumption of irritants
Believe it or not, there are various foods and drinks that irritate the bladder . To avoid weakening your bladder, you should limit your consumption of irritating foods and beverages.
Overall, the most common irritants are:
- Coffee
- Alcoholic drinks
- Hot spices
- Soft drinks
- Citrus juices
- Chocolates
- Sweeteners such as aspartame
We recommend reading: 10 Immediate Effects of Alcohol on Your Health
4. Maintaining a healthy weight
Likewise, excess body weight increases the pressure on the bladder and surrounding muscles. This is especially true when coughing, sneezing or if there is any other type of additional force.
To avoid developing this problem, you should change your habits to help you reach a healthy weight.
- To do this, you should seek professional advice. A personal trainer and a nutritionist can really help.
5. Consuming horsetail
Thanks to its silicon content, horsetail is an alternative remedy that controls bladder spasms.
In addition, this acts as a urinary astringent. Plus, it has diuretic properties that help eliminate retained liquids in the body.
Also, it helps to slow down the growth of bacteria in the urinary tract. This reduces your risk of infections.
It’s available as a tablet and as a supplement. However, you can also prepare it as an infusion.
Want to know more? See: Learn About The Amazing Effects of Horsetail
Do you have any of the risk factors related to urinary incontinence? Have you ever had involuntary urine leaks? Consider all the recommendations in this article and include them in your routine as a preventive method.
All cited sources were thoroughly reviewed by our team to ensure their quality, reliability, currency, and validity. The bibliography of this article was considered reliable and of academic or scientific accuracy.
- 2. Martin JL, Williams KS, Abrams KR, Turner DA, Sutton AJ, Chapple C, et al. Systematic review and evaluation of methods of assessing urinary incontinence. Health Technol Assess. 2006 Feb; 10(6): 1-132, iii-iv.
- 3. Dumoulin C, Hay-Smith EJ, Mac Habée-Séguin G. Pelvic floor muscle training versus no treatment, or inactive control treatments, for urinary incontinence in women. Cochrane Database Syst Rev. 2014 May 14; 5: CD005654.