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If you think that older or middle-aged women are the only ones who have to deal with urinary incontinence, you are wrong here. Young women who have never conceived can also suffer from this issue. Therefore, urinary incontinence is not a condition merely caused due to ageing or pregnancy.
We spoke to Dr.Nagaveni R, Consultant Obstetrician & Gynaecologist, Motherhood Hospitals, Bangalore to know more about the causes of urinary incontinence and how to deal with the condition. Excerpts follow
Urinary incontinence refers to the inability of the bladder to control urination. Due to loss of bladder control, women suffering from urinary incontinence experience a slight loss of urine either due to sneezing, coughing or laughing. Although men can suffer from this issue, it is more common among women.
Urinary incontinence is considered to be "embarrassing" and can affect women physically, emotionally and sexually. However, there is a common misconception that only pregnant and older women can suffer from this issue. The problem of bladder leakage is much more common than you think. Teenage girls, as well as women in their 20s or 30s, struggle with bladder leakage too.
Types of Urinary Incontinence
Women are affected by four types of urinary incontinence:
Stress Incontinence
Any activity which puts too much pressure on the bladder like coughing, sneezing or laughing can cause a little leak. This is due to stress incontinence.
Urge Incontinence
Urge Incontinence happens when there is an urgent need to rush to urinate without any control on the bladder.
Overflow incontinence
If you cannot empty your bladder and experience constant dribbling with a sensation of more, you might suffer from overflow incontinence.
Mixed incontinence
If you suffer from more than one kind of incontinence issue, you may have mixed incontinence. People with mixed incontinence generally have both stress and urge incontinence.
Teenagers and young women involved in sports are more likely to suffer from urinary incontinence. Women who are parachuters and gymnasts suffer from urinary incontinence as hitting the ground might cause weakening of the pelvic muscles. Some pre-existing or genetic issues also cause this problem. Weak pelvic muscles can run in the family. Activities like running or weightlifting can also make the pelvic floor muscles weak.
According to research, women who are sexually active also are more likely to report similar issues than women who are sexually inactive.
This clears up the common misconception that only pregnant and older women can suffer from this issue. Women who have not experienced childbirth can have weaker pelvic muscles too. But their issue can get worse after pregnancy. The risks of urinary incontinence are more among young women whose mothers suffer from similar problems.
Urinary incontinence can more or less become an obstacle in day-to-day activities. Women suffering from this problem can use absorbent pads for bladder leakages. Also, instead of drinking too much water at once, you can drink a little from time to time.
Some lifestyle changes can also help in dealing with the issue. Through muscles training, you can learn to tighten your pelvic muscles every time you cough or laugh to avoid stress incontinence.
Kegel exercises, specifically designed for urinary incontinence, can help. Kegels can help you identify your pelvic muscles, manage them to avoid leakages and strengthen them.
Also, taking dietary fibre can help in preventing urinary incontinence. You can eat lentils, berries, beans and avocados, which are good sources of fibre. They will help in improving bowel health.
Bladder training is one of the effective ways to control your urge. Start by making frequent trips to the bathroom to urinate within equal time gaps. This way the urge to urinate will minimize. Continue doing so and when you notice that the urge is reducing, go to the bathroom in increased time gaps. Go to the bathroom even if you do not feel any urge to urinate. For example, if you are going in every 45 minutes, keep doing that until it increases to 3-4 hours.