Diet and Bladder Control

DIET and BLADDER CONTROL

There is no perfect diet guaranteed to improve your symptoms of urinary incontinence. Although the effect of foods or beverages on the bladder is not always understood, certain foods can worsen your symptoms. Each person is different, and what might be considered a “bladder irritant” for one person is not for another. One way to find out if any of these foods make your symptoms worse is to eliminate all of the foods and beverages on the list for 10 days. Once you feel better, you can begin to add these foods back into your diet, one at a time. This way, if something does cause your symptoms, you will be able to identify what it is. When you do begin to add foods back into your diet, it is crucial that you maintain an adequate fluid intake (6 eight ounce glasses of fluid a day). Water should be the most frequent fluid you drink.

Common foods and beverages that may irritate your bladder include:

Foods:

· Highly spiced foods

· Tomatoes and tomato-based foods

· Citrus fruits

· Apples, cantaloupes, cranberries, grapes, peaches, pineapple, plums, strawberries

· Milk products (mayonnaise, yogurt, sour cream, aged cheeses)

· Sugar; honey, corn syrup

· Chocolate

· Vinegar

· Artificial sweetener (Nutrasweet)

Beverages:

· Alcoholic beverages

· Carbonated beverages (with or without caffeine)

· Milk

· Coffee or tea (including decaffeinated)

· Caffeinated beverages*

· Citrus juices, apple juice

Other:

· Cigarettes

· Vigamin B complex

· Medicines with caffeine (discuss with your physician)

Substitutions

· Low acid substitutions – pears, apricots, papaya and watermelon

· Coffee – KAVA (low acid instant), Cold Brew from Starbucks, non-citrus herbal sun brewed tea

· Vitamin C – Calcium Carbonate co-buffered with Calcium Ascorbate

Other things to consider:

The amount of fluid required for each person is different, but an average woman with urinary incontinence should drink approximately 6 eight ounce glasses of water per day. Trying to “flush the system” by drinking large amounts of fluids or trying to prevent incontinence by restricting fluids can actually worsen urinary incontinence.

*Women who are drinking several caffeinated beverages per day may want to decrease intake of caffeine gradually to prevent the symptoms of caffeine withdrawal, especially headache.

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