Lifestyle Changes for Urinary Incontinence Help Delay or Prevent Surgery

Q: What lifestyle changes can I make for urinary incontinence to help avoid starting medication or surgery?

A: Not all incontinence is avoidable. But there are lifestyle changes that both reduce the risk of developing urinary incontinence, and may improve symptoms you already have.

Tips for keeping urinary incontinence in check

1. Maintain a healthy weight.

For women, being overweight is linked with incontinence due to the added strain on pelvic floor muscles and bladder. On average, a 10% body weight loss improves stress and urinary incontinence symptoms by up to 50%. In men, the link between weight and incontinence is less documented. However, men with Type 2 diabetes who lose weight are less likely to develop incontinence.

2. Don’t smoke.

Smoking nearly doubles the likelihood that a woman will develop stress incontinence, perhaps because it can lead to more frequent and vigorous coughing. In studies involving men, current or former smoking is associated with several bothersome urinary symptoms, including urgency incontinence, but the increase in risk is not as striking as that for stress incontinence in women.

3. Stay active.

High-impact exercises (such as jumping jacks) or specific maneuvers (such as a golf swing) can elicit leakage if you have stress incontinence. But don’t let fear of leaks keep you from being physically active. In the Nurses’ Health Study, middle-aged women who were most physically active were least likely to develop incontinence.

4. Cut back on caffeine.

Caffeine can increase the urge to urinate, even when the bladder is not full.

5. Minimize bladder irritants.

Several foods have been linked to urgency incontinence. Carbonated drinks, the artificial sweetener aspartame (NutraSweet), spicy foods, coffee, black and green tea, and citrus fruits and juices cause urgency in some people.

6. Don’t ignore the call.

When you get your body’s signal that the bladder is full, it’s normal to wait until you can conveniently reach a bathroom. But when you delay, it can make matters worse.

7. Don’t strain with bowel movements.

Years of forcing can weaken a man’s or a woman’s pelvic floor muscles. Increasing the fiber in your diet and drinking adequate fluids can help prevent constipation and straining.

8. Consider the risk of incontinence when making medical decisions.

When considering any type of pelvic or abdominal surgery (e.g., hysterectomy, prostate removal, hemorrhoid treatment), ask about the risk of incontinence and alternatives to a surgical procedure.

9. Get help early.

Early symptoms are a warning sign. Don’t wait for symptoms to worsen. Report symptoms to your doctor. Ask about physical therapy to learn ways to strengthen and stabilize your pelvic floor muscles to regain bladder control and improve your quality of life.

©2024 Harvard University. For terms of use, please see https://www.health.harvard.edu/terms-of-use . Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.

Howard LeWine, M.D., is an internist at Brigham and Women’s Hospital in Boston and assistant professor at Harvard Medical School. For additional consumer health information, please visit www.health.harvard.edu.

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