7 Things You Didn’t Know About Incontinence
As people age, so do their bodies and their organs. One of the
most embarrassing issues that accompany aging organs is urinary
incontinence. This issue affects approximately 20 million
Americans and 25% of all women. The causes are varied, but
basically boil down to age and previous pregnancy. While
incontinence can be an embarrassment for many sufferers, there
are treatment options that should be discussed with your
physician; this is not just another sign of old age that you
cannot do anything about.
1- When many people feel the urge to urinate often, they assume
that they are suffering from urinary incontinence, when in fact;
they could very well be dealing with issues that arise from
other, more simply, ratified issues. Actual urinary incontinence
needs to be diagnosed by a physician.
2- For example, more people are health conscience and therefore
drinking more water, sometimes as much as ten liters a day. This
amount of water in itself is enough to give the impression of
incontinence. Simply cutting back on the amount of water that is
consumed will help to eliminate some of the issue.
3- Caffeine is another culprit that leads people to believe that
they are experiencing incontinence. The reason for this is that
too much caffeine stimulates the bladder muscle to contract and
feel fuller than it really is. Again, simply cutting back on the
intake of caffeine loaded products such as coffee, soft drinks,
tea and dark chocolate may help with the issue of incontinence.
4- There are two types of urinary incontinence, stress related
and urge related incontinence. With stress related incontinence,
the bladder is stimulated by certain activities, such as
running, coughing or sneezing. During these activities, urine
may leak out of the bladder. It is suspected that the loss of
estrogen as a woman ages is the reason for this. Urge related
incontinence differs in that the bladder itself is contracting,
causing the urge to urinate.
5- There are some basic steps that can be taken to minimize some
of the affects of urinary incontinence. One simple thing that
can be done is to do Kegel exercises, these help to strengthen
the pelvic muscles, which hold the bladder in place. Some women
learn to squeeze the bladder before coughing or sneezing, this
also holds the bladder and helps to eliminate urine leakage.
6- The use of medicines can also help to eliminate the urge to
urinate that accompanies urinary incontinence. The use of an
E-ring provides the body with a small amount of estrogen. This
is just enough to replace the amount needed to help the body
regain control of the bladder. The E-ring is placed in the
vagina for up to three months and does not interfere with normal
urination or intercourse.
7- An over the counter method that works for some sufferers of
mild incontinence is pseudophedrine, which is a decongestant.
This drug stimulates the receptors that are in the bladder and
help to control the urge to urinate. If your incontinence is
caused by known activities, it would help to take two
pseudophedrine pills a half hour before. This may be all that is
needed to control the bladder.