Lifestyle changes can treat bladder and bowel incontinence

By Ashton Daigle

Bladder and bowel incontinence is surprisingly common, according to a recent article published in Harvard Medical School’s Healthbeat.

The most common causes of incontinence include injury and complications from surgery and child birth, with treatments ranging from lifestyle changes to surgery.

Incontinence can also result from bad habits that the body learns from frequent bathroom breaks. Frequent urination when the bladder isn't full teaches the body to signal its need to go to the bathroom when less volume is present. This process can continue as the bladder signals the need for a bathroom trip as less and less urine is present.

Bladder training and a bladder diary are also a way to help incontinence. Bladder training is a program of urinating on schedule that helps people increase the amount of urine that can be comfortably held.

Dr. Michael Noone, selected as a Chicago Top Doctor by TopTierMD as a top rated Urogynecologist in Chicago, is a proponent of the voiding diary for bladder training.

“The good news is that it works,” Dr. Noone said. “The simple act of keeping a voiding diary can provide benefit. Adding a strategy for specific intervals to urinate can often reduce urgency, frequency and leakage episodes. Combining these techniques with other therapies, such as pelvic floor muscle exercises or medications can provide increased benefit.”

Treatment for incontinence is reliant on the underlying factors that cause the problem and can vary from men to women. Treatments are not always 100 percent effective and, because of the many treatment types available, several methods might be attempted before finding one that works.

Dr. Michael  Noone was selected in 2010 by TopTierMD as a Chicago Top Doctor - He was named a Best Chicago Urogynecologist specializing in Minimally Invasive Surgery, Robotic/DaVinci Laparoscopy, and alternatives to Hysterectomy.  His special interests include improved methods of surgically correcting prolapse in women, and the treatment of women with Painful Bladder Syndrome. Dr. Noone is a leader in the area in the application of sacral Interstim Neuromodulation.

Other, less invasive treatments, including pelvic floor exercises, can be helpful, too, but people with incontinence issues should always consult with their physician to determine the best plan of action.