Ever feel a little bit of pee slip out when you didn't plan on it? No need to blush—it happens to millions of women, and not just the ones in your grandma's bridge circle. A recent study published in the journal Female Pelvic Medicine & Reconstructive Surgery found that 10.3% of women between the ages of 19 and 30 experience urinary incontinence (that's the medical term for unintentional leakage).
Urinary incontinence generally falls into two categories: urge incontinence, which means your bladder fully empties before you're safely over the toilet, and stress incontinence, which usually involves a smaller amount of urine that leaks when pressure is applied to your bladder. Something as simple as sneezing during an allergy fit or jumping during a cardio workout class could cause urine to leak out, says Dr Philip Buffington.
Around 40% of those affected by urinary incontinence experience both of these types, estimates Buffington, though it's difficult to get an accurate picture of just how many women suffer from it. "Women can leak a little bit of urine and put up with it for years, and it doesn't really bother them that much," says Buffington. "It's much more common than you hear reported."
Since the secret's out, here are four reasons why it's happening and what you can do to stop it.
Weak pelvic muscles
"Normally, your urethra will close tight enough that even if you have an increase in abdominal pressure, you would not leak," says Buffington. "Stress incontinence means that mechanism isn't closing strongly enough, and that's why you leak." These weakened muscles could be the result of childbirth or simply because of the genes you were dealt.
Your solution: Kegels—yep, the same exercise that can strengthen your orgasms—can build your pelvic floor muscles. "Doing kegel exercises is probably the most effective thing you can do," says Buffington. Make sure you're doing them right by contracting the pelvic floor muscles—the ones that help you stop the flow of urine—rather than the buttocks or the abdominal muscles. "If you're doing a proper kegel exercise, you'll feel the vagina pull up inside you," says Buffington. "That's the sensation you want to feel." Set a cue, like when you're stopped at a red light or sitting through commercials, to remind you to perform the exercises, ideally four times a day, he suggests.
Low bladder capacity
"When your bladder fills up, it should not contract until you're ready to urinate," says Buffington. But if you're battling urge incontinence, it doesn't wait until you're ready and will release against your will, leaving you in a sticky situation.
Your solution: Kegels will help here, too. "They help both types of incontinence," says Buffington. "By doing them every day, several times a day, you're much more likely to help your bladder with the urgency and stress incontinence." It's a good habit to get into even before you really need it. "Kegel exercises work best for people who have mild incontinence," says Buffington. The American College of Physicians also recommends treating urge incontinence with overactive-bladder medication. Fesoterodine, in particular, has been proved effective, note researchers.
Body weight
>A study published in the Journal of Urology found that every five-unit increase in BMI increases your risk of urinary incontinence by 20 to 70%. Researchers say this could be because the extra body weight puts additional pressure on the bladder, which then causes frequent leaks. Or it could be the result of excessive stretching that weakens the pelvic floor muscles in a similar way that pregnancy does.
Your solution: Drop a few kilos. Another study published in the Journal of Urology found that women who successfully lost weight decreased their weekly stress incontinence accidents by 65% after one year.
Diet
What you eat could also seriously affect your bladder habits, says Buffington. Watch out for what he calls the 4 Cs: citrus, carbonated drinks, caffeine, and chocolate. All of those are bladder irritants, says Buffington.
Your solution: Time to swear off Mountain Dew. Make a few diet swaps to cut back on your intake of these four culprits, and you could overcome—or at least lessen—the issues.
Newsletter
