Today we will be answering questions related to lifestyle factors, that all have an effect on stress incontinence.

Does running make stress incontinence worse? Yes, it can. The impact caused by running as well as the fact that the muscles that support your pelvic floor and keep your urethra (urinary tub) closed can start to fatigue after a while, which can lead to leaks. The surrounding muscles, like hip, gluts (your bottoms muscles) and core muscles, all help the pelvic floor stabilize, but when they start to tire this stability lessens. The core muscles work in a very well-coordinated way, along with breathing and the diaphragm. Strengthening our pelvic floor using exercises that include the surrounding muscles and correct breathing can help.

Is there a link between caffeine and stress incontinence? Caffeine is a diuretic which means that it can lead to increase urination, it is also a bladder irritant. Caffeine is usually linked more to urge incontinence than stress incontinence, as it increases the frequency and volume of urination, but has been shown to have an influence on all types of incontinence.

Does smoking worsen stress incontinence? Smokers are at a higher risk for developing incontinence. This due to the fact that smoking irritates the bladder. Many smokers develop a chronic cough leads to a large amount of pressure on the pelvic floor which causes them to weaken. A weak pelvic floor is the most common cause of stress incontinence.

Does exercise help or worsen stress incontinence? The extent of the effect that exercise has on stress incontinence is dependent on the type of exercise. High impact exercise that involves running and jumping can worsen stress incontinence. This impact as well as the fact that the muscles that support the pelvic floor and keep the urethra (urinary tub) closed can start to fatigue after a while. This leads to urinary leaks. A controlled focused exercise program that strengthens the core and pelvic floor on the other hand is one of the mainstays of treatment for stress incontinence. General body strength and fitness is always important!

What effect does body weight have on stress incontinence?Increased body weight can lead to weakness of the pelvic floor as a result of the increased pressure in the abdomen. Loosing excess weight can therefore decrease the severity of stress incontinence.