Incontinence: not an ‘age-old’ problem
Experts have warned ‘you are never too young’ to learn healthy bladder habits as new research shows bladder troubles are now affecting young women, despite many believing incontinence to be a problem people only experience in old age. The study looked at 1,000 healthy young women aged 16 to 40 years, with the findings revealing one in eight had incontinence.
Experts have warned ‘you are never too young’ to learn healthy bladder habits as new research shows bladder troubles are now affecting young women, despite many believing incontinence to be a problem people only experience in old age.
The study looked at 1,000 healthy young women aged 16 to 40 years, with the findings revealing one in eight had incontinence.
For 6.2% of the females surveyed, the problem was related to stress incontinence, which is accidentally leaking urine when coughing or sneezing; 4.5% of women suffered with urge incontinence which is the feeling of needing to suddenly go to the toilet but not getting there in time, and an additional 1.9% experienced both types of incontinence.
The study’s co-author Professor Susan Davis of Monash University, told ABC Health & Wellbeing, about half of the women with incontinence found the condition to be a “significant problem”.
“About 40 to 50% of the women who had incontinence weren’t really bothered that much, but the other 50% reported being bothered at least somewhat through to very much,” Professor Davis said.
Researchers predict some women develop urinary incontinence at an early age due to characteristics they were born with, such as weak pelvic floors which often form a sling-like band at the base of the pelvis and support the bladder and bowel and help control the openings of these organs.
Do you have any healthy bladder tips? Share your ideas in the comment box below.
