This blog is part 6 of an 11 article series of 11 New Year’s resolutions that actually work and WILL improve your pelvic health. Get the full list of all 11 New Year’s resolutions HERE.
One popular adage says, “You’ve got egg on your face” … if you’ve got women’s urinary incontinence, the saying should probably say, “You’ve got food in your underwear!” Why? Because certain food and beverages can be bladder irritants, worsening symptoms like urinary leakage, frequency, and urge. One of the simplest lifestyle changes that women with urinary incontinence can make is to modify their diets to avoid bladder irritants.
What Are Bladder Irritants?
Bladder irritants are any foods or beverages that tend to make the urine more acidic, irritating areas of the bladder and urethra that are already inflamed. Mostly, bladder irritants include foods and beverages that:
- are acidic
- contain caffeine
- have alcohol
- contain tyrosine, tyramine, tryptophan, aspirate, and phenylalanine
- you are allergic to
Avoiding these types of food and beverages can improve symptoms of urinary incontinence, especially with urinary urgency and frequency.
What To Do If You Cannot Avoid Bladder Irritants
While you can make every effort to avoid bladder irritants in your diet, there will be certain times when you simply cannot avoid these foods or beverages. For instance, suppose you find yourself at a dinner party where almost every item served is a bladder irritant. What’s a woman with urinary incontinence to do? Luckily, there are several strategies that can help you in these situations.
1. Use Prelief
Prelief is an over-the-counter medication that removes acid from the foods and beverages. Simply supplement meals that are acidic in nature with Prelief to avoid irritating your bladder.
2. Use a Coffee Substitute
If you absolutely must have your morning cup of joe to start your day, try a coffee substitute like Kava. Another option Postum, which is a low-acid instant drink similar to coffee. Caffeine-free herbal teas are another great way to start your morning.
3. Drink Plenty of Water
If you happen to eat or drink something that suddenly increases your urinary urges or frequency, drink plenty of water. The water will dilute the effect of the bladder irritants and reduce urine acidity.
Experimenting with Diet Modification
Once you remove all the offending foods and beverages from your diet, you will probably find that your symptoms of urinary urgency and frequency improve. This usually occurs within a few weeks of changing your diet. Once your symptoms improve, you can experiment by adding single foods or beverages back into your diet, noting which ones irritate your bladder and which do not.
Some people find immediate relief from this kind of diet modification, while others find this type of program too difficult to follow over a long period of time. Regardless, diet modification is a proven conservative therapy for women’s urinary incontinence, especially those with urge or mixed incontinence.
If you enjoyed this post, we invite you to check out our book, leave a comment, contact us, download our free ebook, or interact with us on Twitter and Facebook.