It is an embarrassing condition when your urine leaks out during laughing, coughing or sneezing. This unintentional loss of urine known as urinary incontinence can also be caused by other physical activities such as running and lifting weights.
Just stress alone can cause incontinence. Stress urinary incontinence (SUI) is more common among women than man.Most people do not like to talk about it, therefore they continue to suffer.
They don't even talk to their doctor and may reduce or stop socializing. When they really get embarrassed in one of the social situations, that is when they talk about their urinary incontinence to get help.
The urinary incontinence is caused by urinary muscle spasm as a result of being overweight, genetic weakness, multiple pregnancy and/or stress.
Depending on the severity of the conditions medicines or surgery can solve the problem, but in most cases of stress urinary incontinence can be treated naturally by alternate methods and herbs.
1. Dietary Changes to Stop incontinence
These dietary changes are not as effective in stress urinary incontinence as they are in other causes of incontinence, but they will certainly help if other precautions to reduce anxiety and stress are taken.
Eat fiber rich food. This will have a positive effect on the bowel movement resulting in less strain on pelvic muscles. This indirectly improves bladder muscles which do not involuntarily get irritated.
2. Avoid Pollutants and Other Cough inducing irritants
If you are a smoker then stop smoking. Avoid all sorts of environmental pollutants that can induce coughing. This does not solve the urinary incontinence but reduces the trigger that might lead to incontinence. It is more of a precautionary measure than a treatment to reduce the frequency of involuntary urination.
3. Lose weight and Do Pelvic Exercises
Losing weight certainly help in reducing pressure over the bladder and the pelvic floor muscles. Losing weight through exercise and diet control will help you to strengthen your muscles. You also should learn to exercise specific pelvic muscles under the guidance of a qualified physiotherapist.
The exercises called kegel exercises which help the pelvic muscles to stop or initiate urination. Once these muscles learn to control urination you may not need any medication or surgery.
These exercises will take 3-6 months to be effective, so have patience and commitment to get desired results.
Learn to train you bladder to delay urination. This is women specific remedy for stress urination incontinence. Men should avoid this.
When you are not under stress and feeling the normal urge to urinate, delay it by 10 minutes. Do it for a few days and when consistently successful, delay it by 20 minutes.
If you can train you bladder to delay urination by 20 minutes, then you will be reducing probabilities involuntary urination during the stress. This extra time will help you to stop getting into embarrassing condition.
4. Include Magnesium Rich food in Your Diet
Magnesium is a food for muscles. Add potatoes, bananas, corn and other magnesium rich food items in your diet. Various studies have also indicated that magnesium strengthens the muscles. Strengthening bladder muscle with the help of exercise and magnesium diet and magnesium supplements if required.
5. Get More Vitamin D
Get yourself in the sun more often. Eat and drink Vitamin D foods such as Milk and fish. Additional supplements can also be taken. Most people who remain indoors or work in an air-conditioned environment under artificial lighting lack sufficient vitamin D to stay healthy.
Learn to Reduce stress by yoga meditation and getting involved in fun social activities.