If you're an older man, you may be struggling with this very real but very embarrassing problem of having to keep track of the nearest washroom, just in case you need to go, suddenly and unexpectedly.
So let's look at this issue of men having an overactive bladder: what it is, what can cause it, and what can be done.
So, just what is an "overactive bladder" and what causes this condition?
Let's look at what happens in a healthy body during urination. According to the Mayo Clinic,[5]
The kidneys produce urine, which drains into your bladder. When you urinate, urine passes from your bladder through a tube called the urethra. A muscle in the urethra called the sphincter opens to release urine out of the body.
As your bladder fills, nerve signals sent to your brain eventually trigger the need to urinate. When you urinate, these nerve signals coordinate the relaxation of the pelvic floor muscles and the muscles of the urethra (urinary sphincter muscles). The muscles of the bladder tighten (contract), pushing the urine out.
What happens when you develop an "overactive bladder" condition?
Overactive bladder happens when the bladder muscles start contracting on their own even though they don't have to, because the bladder isn't really full yet.
These are called involuntary contractions, and that is where the urge to urinate comes from.
What can cause an overactive bladder?
Often, but not always, this frequent urge to urinate is a result of prostate enlargement.
It is true that men often see prostate enlargement as they age. It is also true that one of the symptoms of prostate enlargement is the frequent need to urinate.
Prostate enlargement can result in enough of a blockage of the passageway from the bladder that it prevents complete elimination of the urine.[1]
In this case, you go, and the feeling is that you've relieved the bladder. But it isn't fully emptied, and so not long after, it is full again. This creates the urge to urinate again.
If the case of prostate enlargement, there are supplements that can help. Common among them are beta sitosterol, stinging nettle, pumpkin seed oil and others. These supplements are helpful in reducing symptoms of enlargement, including the frequent urge to urinate.
After evaluating many, this one seems to be both most effective and the best value for the money.
But there are other causes for the frequent urge to urinate, too. Let's look at some of these.
Bladder Infection
More often than not, if the issue of this frequent urge to urinate has developed fairly quickly or recently, it would be a good idea to consult a medical professional to see if you have a bladder infection.
Symptoms of bladder infection[2] can look a lot like symptoms from enlarged prostate, but in addition, might include strong-smelling urine, urine that looks cloudy, or urine that is red, bright pink or brownish (cola) colored.
You can see that some of these symptoms overlap with symptoms of BPH, so an opinion from a medical professional is always advised.
Prostatitis
Similar symptoms to a bladder infection or BPH, prostatitis is usually from a bacterial infection. And in this case, it is an infection in the prostate.[3]
According to the Mayo Clinic, it could be quick in onset - acute infection, or slow coming (chronic) infection.
Symptoms overlap with those caused by benign prostate enlargement but can also include the urgent need to urinate, cloudy urine, blood in the urine, and often pain in the perineum (the area between the scrotum and the rectum).
You might also have pain or discomfort in the penis or testicles and possible painful ejaculations. Sometimes fever, chills, or other flu-like symptoms can occur if the infection is acute.
Again, if you're looking for some clarification, always check with a medical professional.
Loss of bladder muscle control
Sometimes, due to age, the muscles that control the involuntary release of urine can get weak over time. Kegel exercises are often helpful for helping men have better control of the muscles that work in this area.
Kegel exercises also have other helpful benefits for men, are easy to do, and can be done even while watching TV or driving in the car.
Sometimes it can just be psychological
Probably not the first thing to suspect if you have BPH, but it is occasionally an issue. Sometimes it's a simple matter of counselling to help you to not be constantly distracted by the worry about whether or not you're going to need to go.[4]
Check out this article on Web MD to see if counselling for this issue might help. With most cases it doesn't seem to be the root cause. But it could be. You know you better than anyone else.
Also...
It's always good to get a PSA test, just in case
It seems the connection between the growth of excess benign cells causing BPH and causing prostate cancer is kind of complex and intertwined.
Elsewhere, I wrote about a study showing how sometimes prostate enlargement might actually prevent prostate cancer. But BPH and prostate cancer are both issues of excessive growth of cells. The difference is cancerous or non-cancerous.
And the best way to tell what you're dealing with is with a PSA test, just to be sure. Better safe than sorry.
If you have an enlarged prostate, don't rule out the other possibilities as other parts of the problem
Strokes and MS as well as other neurological disorders can cause an overactive bladder. Sometimes diabetes can do it. Bladder and prostate infections can do it, too.
Sometimes it is the pressure from an enlarged prostate. But it can also be caused by constipation or less than optimal bowel habits. Also, some medications can cause these issues, too.
And be aware that sometimes, age just does a bit of a number on some of your body's communication signals which can make it more difficult for the bladder to "understand" the signals from the brain.
Avoiding too much alcohol and caffeine can help. But that might only do so much.
You could have chronic prostate enlargement and yet still get a bladder or prostate infection.
And you can also see how worrying about the need to be close to a bathroom might also keep your focus on the issue and make it worse.
An interesting approach to overactive bladder in men that just might do the trick
Sometimes, doctors will prescribe drugs like tolterodine (Detrol) and tamsulosin (Flomax). But the problem is that drugs so often seem to have negative side effects like negative effects on your sexual function.
There is an interesting product I've found recently (called VigRX Incontinix) that is designed specifically to address this overly frequent urge in men to urinate.
You see, the mechanisms of what causes healthy or unhealthy signals to the bladder to contract are can be "disturbed" by prostate enlargement.
But there are these other issues, too. And one of them is the fact that illness, prescription medications and other things can cause the bladder to just be "overly sensitive."
Signals to the bladder tell it to contract when it doesn't really have to. And that is what causes the sudden urge to go, and the lack of control of the dribbling if you can't go right away.
This stuff was tested in clinical trials. And the results are pretty impressive.
Clinical trials [6] showed this stuff showed these improvements in the study participants:
- 60% reduction in urinary incontinence
- Almost 50% reduction of nighttime bathroom visits
- Significant reduction in urgency
- Significant improvement in urgency throughout the day
- Significant improvement in quality of life
If you have an enlarged prostate, it is good to use a supplement to deal effectively with the prostate enlargement.
But if you're like a lot of men, you'll find this stuff helps a lot with some of these sudden urges that you have to go.
So support your prostate health with a good prostate supplement.
If a prostate supplement alone isn't working, check with your medical professional to see if there is anything else you need to know about. But for a natural approach to reduce the urges with a proprietary formulation of natural herbs specifically targeted toward treating these urges to urinate, try VigRX Incontinix.
VigRX Incontinix has a proprietary formulation of natural herbs called "Urox" that were clinically shown in that study mentioned above to help reduce these "false signals" to the bladder. [9]
What is in Confitrol 24 that works so well?
"Urox" is a proprietary blend of three herbs, with patent-protected processes to extract all the good stuff from them.
Lindera extract is an effective anti-inflammatory [7] and supports kidney function [8] and liver function [10].
Horsetail extract is effective as an antibiotic and anti-inflammatory in the urinary tract.[11]
Three-leaf caper (Crateva) extract ("Cravetox") protects against oxidative damage from testosterone. [12] And a recent study showed Crataeva increased BOTH bladder tone and bladder capacity.
But the studies using these together tells the whole story of how they work so well together for reducing these unwanted urges in the urinary tract. [9]
This formula is marketed specifically to men.
The results are real.
For those who swear by the stuff, the results typically come in 2 to 4 weeks.
It comes with a 67-day, money-back guarantee. So you could even order a tow or three-month supply to get a discount and still have over two months to see if it works for you.
Order it HERE.
References
[6] Schoendorfer N, Sharp N, Seipel T, Schauss AG, Ahuja KDK. Urox® containing concentrated extracts of Crataeva nurvala stem bark, Equisetum arvense stem and Lindera aggregata root, in the treatment of symptoms of overactive bladder and urinary incontinence: a phase 2, randomised, double-blind placebo controlled trial. BMC Complement Altern Med. 2018;18(1):42. Published 2018 Jan 31. doi:10.1186/s12906-018-2101-4
[7] Antiplatelet and Antithrombotic Effects of the Extract of Lindera obtusiloba Leaves - PubMed (nih.gov)
[8] Lindera aggregata intervents adenine-induced chronic kidney disease by mediating metabolism and TGF-β/Smad signaling pathway - PubMed (nih.gov)
[9] Urox containing concentrated extracts of Crataeva nurvala stem bark, Equisetum arvense stem and Lindera aggregata root, in the treatment of symptoms of overactive bladder and urinary incontinence: a phase 2, randomised, double-blind placebo controlled trial - PubMed (nih.gov)
[10] Protective effect of 70% ethanolic extract of Lindera obtusiloba Blume on tert-butyl hydroperoxide-induced oxidative hepatotoxicity in rats - PubMed (nih.gov)