eight management. Research has shown that women with urinary incontinence who undergo a 5% to 10% weight loss experience tremendous symptom improvement.32 In a multicenter study of nearly 2,000 women with diabetes, weight loss was the lifestyle change that had the greatest positive impact on uri- nary continence recovery; investigators attributed this finding to the effects of reduced abdominal weight, intra-abdominal pressure, and intravesicular pressure.32
Constipation management. Straining during defecation is significantly associated with such uri- nary symptoms as detrusor overactivity and urgency.35 This may be a consequence of the rising pressure that straining produces within the abdomen and on the pelvic floor and the pressure that excess fecal mass in the rectum exerts on the bladder, thereby stimu- lating its stretch receptors and reducing its functional capacity.