Did you know? Answers to your questions about incontinence.

Did you know, that almost half a billion of the world's population is incontinent at some point in their lives?² While it is more common in women, urinary incontinence is far from being solely a ‘female problem,’ with up to 5 % of men suffering from the condition at some point in their lives.³ This is a high number while most of them keep it a secret.

Luckily, a few easy lifestyle changes and solutions to help can alleviate the problem for many people.

Facts about urinary incontinence

Urinary incontinence is not a disease, but a symptom of a bigger problem. While this underlying problem may be a medical condition, it can also simply be due to a habit that you are not aware is harmful – such as obesity, smoking, or constipation.

If you are suffering from urinary incontinence, the first thing you need to do is to book an appointment with your doctor. The treatment can be as “simple” as maintaining a healthy weight or strengthening your pelvic floor. For more severe cases, medication or even surgery can be a way to alleviate the symptoms.

Talking about bowel incontinence is difficult and feels embarrassing, so many suffer in silence, limit social contacts, and withdraw more and more from life. Yet nowadays there are advanced treatments and high-quality products that make it possible to live a good life with bowel incontinence.

Learn more about the symptoms, causes, treatment options, and products that can help you take back control of your well-being.

Causes & treatments of bowel incontinence

Impacted stool, long-lasting diarrhoea, inflammatory bowel disease, haemorrhoids, colorectal cancer, nerve or radiation damage are some of the reasons for bowel incontinence. But it is best not to presume but see a doctor. If the problem has persisted for a time, then it is quite unlikely to get better on its own.

The good news is, that most reasons for bowel incontinence can be treated, e. g. with dietary changes, exercise, or surgery.

Furthermore, is not something you should have to put up with on your own. So, go, seek help – it is a sign of strength, not weakness to face such health issues.

Typically, a person urinates between 6 and 7 times within a day and you’re more likely to experience frequent urination if you’re pregnant, middle-aged or elderly, and/or have an enlarged prostate. Ideally, keep a diary over a few days, recording both the amount of fluids drunk and the amount of urine.

But even as this number varies, urinary incontinence may be the culprit if you notice a distinct change in your toilet habits. The causes range from a weakened pelvic floor to more severe organical issues.

Causes of frequent urination

One of the most common causes of frequent urination is an overactive bladder, which isn’t a disease but rather a collection of symptoms. These may have been brought on by damaged nerves, neurological diseases, bladder stones, cancer, or side effects of certain drugs. Furthermore, urinary tract infections can lead to a more frequent urge to urinate.

And last but not least, there is urinary incontinence, which itself has multiple different causes depending on the type you have. Learn more about this further down the page.

There are different types of incontinence and they can be as simple as struggling to hold urine or faecal matter in before you get to the bathroom. At its most extreme, incontinence can lead to a total loss of bladder and bowel control.

Understanding urinary and faecal incontinence can lead to helping you find the right treatment to manage your condition. We have put together some information to help you learn more about the various types of incontinence.

Most common types of incontinence

Do you leak urine when you cough or sneeze? This might indicate so-called stress incontinence, which is quite common, especially in women. Urge incontinence, on the other hand, is described as the inability to sufficiently control your bladder or bowels, usually requiring a rush to the toilet. Men and women are equally affected. Besides more types such as overflow or functional incontinence, there are also mixed types. Particularly in old age, several causes and thus also types often come together.

Ideally, a doctor will get to the bottom of the cause of incontinence to determine your type and, more importantly, your treatment.

Contrary to popular belief, incontinence can be treated. The treatment plan depends on the cause, the type of symptoms, the severity of the bladder weakness and also your specific living conditions.

The good news is that, along with any therapy measures recommended by your doctor, you can also do a number of things to make your treatment truly effective.

Treatments of incontinence

The wide range of products, medication, and surgery options available in the market can make choosing the correct treatment for your needs a challenge. Our recommendation: Talk to your doctor and experiment with different products before investigating surgery and medication!

Did you know that certain exercises – from pelvic floor exercises to bladder control practice – could help strengthen the muscles in your pelvic floor and therefore improve incontinence? Furthermore, eating a plant-based, high-fibre diet should be part of every incontinence exercise program as well as losing some weight in case you are overweight. Start today!