Urinary incontinence is a disease that affects more and more people, but unfortunately still too little known. This disorder can very often also be linked to nutrition; let’s see together how.
Despite being one pathology which affects about two million people, l‘urinary incontinence it is also called “silent disease” precisely because those who suffer from it rarely talk about it. The inability to control the urination it is unfairly labeled as a condition of lack of personal hygiene and old age; this contributes enormously to creating a wall of silence around those who suffer from this I disturb which will inevitably face social isolation and loss of self-esteem.
This pathology creates a unease such as to considerably affect the quality of the various aspects of a person’s life, potentially generating problems of both a psychological, work, relational and sexual nature. People affected by this disorder especially avoid going to places they do not know for fear of the absence of toilets or are afraid that, in their vicinity, they may eventually smell urine or, worse still, feel uncomfortable for the need to wear a sanitary napkin. They often give up their sex life for fear of losing urine during intercourse.
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Of incontinence both men and women suffer, especially after the age of 60, but the latter have more problems; in particular, 3-14% of the female population are affected with a higher incidence (30-40%) in women over 60 years of age. This discomfort can also affect young people: about 20% of the population under the age of 30 suffer from it and about 40% of subjects in the age group between 30 and 50 years.
There are several types of incontinence:
- from effort: when the loss of urine occurs as a result of physical exertion which causes an increase in abdominal pressure. In this case, even a cough, a sneeze or even a laugh can cause small losses of urine.
- by urgency: when the loss of urine is preceded by a sudden and non-postponable desire to urinate;
- mixed: when urine loss is caused by multiple types of associated incontinence; for example, it can occur due to both exertion and urgency.
- functional: occurs when the person is unable to recognize the urge to urinate or has motor limitations that do not allow him to go quickly to the bathroom.
The causes of incontinence
The main causes responsible for the‘urinary incontinence are many: constipation; infections urinary tract and bladder; side effects of some medications, in particular antidepressants, antipsychotics, anticholinergics, diuretics, analgesics, central narcotics, sedatives, etc. Possible causes include accidents, chronic diseases such as diabetes, vascular-cerebral problems such as stroke; even pregnancy, especially if the birth occurs naturally and surgery.
They can then cause urinary incontinence congenital malformations, developmental diseases such as l’Alzheimer, neurological diseases such as multiple sclerosis and Disease Parkinson. The menopausemoreover, during which the reduction of estrogens, also involved in the maintenance of muscle tone determines the reduction of muscle tone also at the pelvic level, it can be the cause of urinary incontinence.
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Nutrition and incontinence
Also nutrition has a major impact on this issue. In 2010 an American study published in the American Journal of Epidemiology showed how the improvement from the eating habits and the weight reduction reduce incontinence. The study involved 2060 women between 30 and 79 years old who were asked for information regarding both their lifestyle and diet, the frequency of incontinence episodes; finally, their anthropometric characteristics (weight, height, waistline and IBM) were evaluated.
Thanks to this research it was found that women suffering from mild-moderate incontinence followed a diet with which they introduced a high caloric intake based mainly on a high consumption of saturated fats.
Other studies have shown how a 5-10% reduction in body weight has the capacity of about the 74% from reduce symptoms related to urinary incontinence. The loss of fat mass especially at the abdominal level he was seen to be capable of to decrease notably the intra-abdominal pressure and therefore the pressure on both the bladder and the pelvic floor.
To reduce incontinence it is therefore necessary to lose weight and reduce the calories consumed daily. Among other factors that greatly affect the frequency of urination is the consumption of sale. In fact, it has been shown that the reduction in sodium intake leads to a reduction in urinary volume and therefore, the frequency to urinate by about 9%. There are also some foods and drinks that must be excluded from the diet.
It is basic to reduce or better still eliminate coffee, also decaffeinated, onions and alcohol because they have the ability to increase diuresis by stimulating the bladder. Also carbonated drinks, citrus fruits, grapes, sugar, eggs, dried fruit, aged cheeses, tea, vinegar, tomato and tomato juice, strawberries, pineapple and pineapple juice, blueberry and cranberry juice, apple and apple juice, grapefruit , chocolate, sweeteners, spices and spicy foods they must be avoid because they are capable of irritate the urinary tract.
Often those who suffer from incontinence tends to reduce excessively l” fluid intake, this wrong behavior in turn determines the onset of constipation; it is therefore necessary to address this further problem by increasing the intake of vegetable fibers by eating fruit and vegetables. Also by drastically reducing your water intake you are likely to experience dehydration and to cause a hyperconcentration urine, all this favors both the development of bacterial infections and an increase in the frequency of urination. At this point, it is necessary drink at least 1.5 liters of water throughout the day, but it is preferable to stop two hours before going to sleep to avoid urination at night.
Ma al food change it is also necessary to support a change in the lifestyle: it is advisable to stop smoking, because nicotine has an irritating action on the bladder, and to do physical activity by carrying out specific exercises whose purpose is to strengthen the pelvic floor muscles.
Another valuable help can also be given by the green teaAnd. This discovery came about thanks to a study conducted by the American researcher A. Lee in collaboration with Japanese researchers, published in the journal Neurourology and Urodynamics. The research was based on evaluating the effects of green tea on Japanese women between the ages of 20 and 74.
It was calculated that 28% of women suffered from urinary incontinence, but those who periodically consumed 4 or more cups of green tea a day had a lower incidence of the problem than others. Probably the positive effect of green tea is to be found in the ability of antioxidants to protect the bladder. Among these antioxidants, the beneficial action of the epigallocatechin contained in the you capable of inhibiting the formation of urinary stones and reducing the onset of bladder cancer.