220720 Urinary incontinence in older women may be less in those who exercise
A study published a few years back found that women who exercised on a regular basis were less likely to develop urinary incontinence. Researchers tracked the exercise habits of over 30,000 women and then reported the outcomes in Obstetrics and Gynecology.
The findings were clearly in favor of the women who regularly worked out an average of one hour a day. The risk of them developing urinary incontinence was between twenty and twenty five percent less than those who were inactive.
The scientists theorize regular exercise helps strengthen the pelvic floor muscles. These muscles help support the functions of the bladder. Maintaining a healthy weight for your height and age certainly benefits your overall health it did not seem to be a factor in this study.
Researchers determined that it was the amount of regular exercise that counted the most toward limiting urinary incontinence.
If you are amongst those with this condition, take heart, because in the gym when women start skipping rope the problem seems to resolve itself. They may only be able to do five to ten hops at the beginning, but after sticking with it for a while these few hops turn into the hundreds. Moreover, all the hops are without incident.
The best way to begin with the rope is to start out with three to five hops, all the while monitoring your body and then jump a few more times. Continue with this as you gradually add more skips and practice more bladder control at the same time.
For those of you who are reluctant to start an exercise program due to a lack of control, speak to your doctor and find out what they recommend in your individual case. Between the two of you, there may be a solution that will help manage or correct the problem.
ActivelyFitSeniors 