How Lifestyle Choices Impact Your Bladder Health—and What to Do About It

November marks Bladder Health Awareness Month, a time to shine a light on the often-overlooked issues surrounding bladder health. With millions of people experiencing bladder-related conditions, this month serves as an opportunity to raise awareness and encourage open conversations about urinary health.

From common issues, such as incontinence, to more complex disorders, understanding bladder health is essential for maintaining overall well-being and improving quality of life.

Maintaining bladder health involves a combination of lifestyle modifications, behavioral strategies, and sometimes medical interventions.

Key practices for bladder health

1. Fluid management: Adequate hydration is essential, but excessive fluid intake should be avoided to prevent bladder overload. Limiting caffeine and alcohol, which can irritate the bladder, is also recommended.

2. Diet and Bladder Health: Eating a balanced diet that avoids foods that can irritate the bladder, like spicy foods, artificial sweeteners, and sour fruits, can help keep your bladder healthy. For people with bladder conditions like interstitial cystitis or bladder pain syndrome, doctors recommend adjusting their diet in specific ways to help manage symptoms.

3. Pelvic floor muscle exercises: Doing exercises that strengthen the muscles around your bladder can help you have better control and reduce problems like leaking urine. The American Urological Association (AUA) suggests these exercises for people who have bladder issues caused by nerve problems or an overactive bladder.

4. Bladder training: A schedule of voiding, or emptying of the bladder, and gradually increasing the time between voids to improve bladder capacity and control is part of bladder training. The AUA strongly recommends bladder training for patients with overactive bladder.

5. Behavioral therapies: This strategy includes timed voiding, double voiding, or waiting a short time after urinating to try to empty your bladder again, and managing toileting environments to reduce urgency and frequency.

6. Maintaining a healthy weight: Obesity is a risk factor for bladder dysfunction, including urinary incontinence. Weight management through diet and exercise can improve bladder health.

7. Avoiding smoking: Smoking is associated with an increased risk of bladder cancer and other bladder conditions. Smoking cessation is crucial for bladder health.

8. Hygiene practices: Proper perineal hygiene, which involves washing the genital area after every visit to the toilet, can prevent urinary tract infections, which are detrimental to bladder health.

These strategies, supported by clinical guidelines and research, provide a comprehensive approach to maintaining bladder health.

Visit UFHealthJax.org/urology or call 904.633.0411 for more information about urology services.

About the author

Mark Bandyk, MD, MPH, MS, is a University of Florida associate professor of urology and a board-certified urologist at UF Health Jacksonville. Dr. Bandyk is a urologic oncologist with a special interest in bladder cancer. He is an expert in robotic and open surgery.

References

Ginsberg DA, Boone TB, Cameron AP et al: The AUA/SUFU Guideline on Adult Neurogenic Lower Urinary Tract Dysfunction: Diagnosis and Evaluation. J Urol 2021; 206: 1097.

Ginsberg DA, Boone TB, Cameron AP et al: The AUA/SUFU Guideline on Adult Neurogenic Lower Urinary Tract Dysfunction: Treatment and Follow-up. J Urol 2021; 206: 1106.

Cameron AP, Chung DE, Dielubanza EJ, et al. The AUA/SUFU guideline on the diagnosis and treatment of idiopathic overactive bladder. J Urol. Published online April 23, 2024. doi:10.1097/JU.0000000000003985. https://www.auajournals.org/do...