Urinary Incontinence: Causes of Urinary Leaks and How You Treat Them

Last Updated on January 20, 2021

Urinary incontinence is a condition that affects thousands of people around the world, especially women over 40 years of age. And this happens for several different reasons, such as genetic predisposition, weight, eating habits, among other risk factors. If you are reading this article, it is because you are aware of the seriousness of this difficulty in the first or third person, and you know that this silent health problem causes numerous constraints on a person’s quality of life. How to treat urinary incontinence? This is what we will show you throughout this article by introducing you to risk factors, causes, types, and treatments for urinary incontinence.

1. What Is Urinary Incontinence?

In short, urinary incontinence consists of involuntary loss of urine through the urethra. It is a pathology that can affect all people of any age, but it has a special incidence in women over 40 years of age. This problem can lead to serious health problems like ulcers, kidney infections, and bladder control problems. This means that a person suffering from this condition may experience uncontrollable carelessness from one moment to the next. Thus, it is necessary that you know all the types and causes of urinary incontinence and how you can act to minimize its effects and the social embarrassment that it can cause.

2. The Main Risk Factors for Urinary Incontinence

Urinary incontinence can affect anyone, but there are some risk factors that determine the onset of this health problem. They are: A genetic predisposition for the existence of the health problem. Advanced age, since the natural aging process contributes to the appearance of this pathology. Pregnancy, childbirth, menopause, and the structure of the female urinary tract contribute to higher urinary incontinence in women than in men (about 85%). Being overweight or suffering from obesity. Being a smoker. Suffer from constipation.

3. The Main Causes Of Urinary Incontinence

Urinary incontinence can be seen as a temporary or permanent problem, and both have numerous urinary incontinence causes that explain its onset. Temporary Urinary Incontinence Temporary urinary incontinence has the following causes: The existence of bad eating habits due to the excessive intake of artificial sweeteners, chocolates, acidic foods, etc. Excessive consumption of alcoholic drinks and caffeine over a day. Excessive fluid intake, namely more than 4 liters of fluids per day. Delaying urination due to professional or leisure activities. Taking medicines for the regulation of blood pressure, immunosuppressants, and other sedatives or muscle relaxants. All this urinary incontinence treatment medication causes an increase in the volume of urine in the bladder. As this is a temporary problem, it is up to you to correct it to fully recover from this handicap. Permanent Urinary Incontinence In permanent urinary incontinence, the following causes stand out: Hormonal changes resulting from pregnancy and menopause – there is a clear decrease in estrogen in the body, and this absence results in losses in the urinary tract. The natural aging process that makes your pelvic muscles weaker. Diseases of the urinary tract, tumors, and surgical interventions, such as a hysterectomy. The existence of neurological problems resulting from Parkinson’s disease and Multiple Sclerosis that cause damage to the nerves that control the bladder. The existence of drugs with high levels of bilirubin that impair the functioning of the bladder and other internal organs of the body. How stop urinary leaks? As it is a permanent problem, you should make corrections to your eating habits, practice more physical exercise, and respect all treatments so that you can minimize and delay the negative consequences of this problem. All of these causes can generate a frequent need to urinate, a feeling of the full bladder after you have urinated, and even the loss of strength of the urinary stream. Therefore, you must identify the type of urinary incontinence that is affecting you and then define the best treatment.