ITQ 2

Obesity levels have risen over 20% in men and over 25% in women during the past 40 years. It is no secret that carrying excess body weight is detrimental to your health. But did you know the impact it has on your pelvic floor? Studies show the likelihood of developing urinary incontinence increases by 7-12% for each 1kg/m² unit increase in BMI.

"The skeleton is perfectly designed to cope with a healthy weight. But if you're excessively heavy or obese, hips, knees and ankles may all suffer. Excess weight can be particularly damaging to your pelvic floor, which supports all of your crucial internal organs." Tam Fry, chairman of the National Obesity Forum.

As our pelvic floor is out of sight, it is difficult to self-diagnose its condition. However being aware of the symptoms that suggest you have a weak pelvic floor can allow you to begin treatment early. Forget your misconceptions; it is not just older women that experience problems associated with a weak pelvic floor. You may be in your teens or early twenties and experience some of the tell tale signs that your pelvic floor has weakened.

The three most common issues that occur as a result of a weak pelvic floor are:

• Urinary incontinence - Inability to control urine flow.
• Faecal incontinence - Inability to control bowel movements.
• Pelvic organ prolapses - The movement of a pelvic organ out of its natural place, it droops (prolapses) into the vagina or rectum...

When it comes to bladder weakness and incontinence, many people suffer in silence too uncomfortable to tell anyone. One US study reported that on average women wait 6.5 years and men 4.2 years after beginning to experience their symptoms before they seek advice. The ramifications of this delay on both physical and emotional well-being is immense. High levels of depression are noted amongst sufferers.

So, what causes the bladder to stop functioning correctly, and leaking when it shouldn't?

Common causes include pregnancy/childbirth and ageing with twice as many women suffering than men. Between 25-30% of women aged between 45 and 65 are thought to suffer with some form of incontinence. However, Urge Incontinence is said to affect the same amount of men as women, reaching as many as 40%. The NHS estimates that between three and six million...

Incontinence remains a taboo topic of conversation, with many sufferers too embarrassed to broach the subject with a doctor.. In a 2004 US survey, it was reported that on average women wait 6.5 years and men 4.2 years after beginning to experience their symptoms to seek advice^[1].  Currently it estimated that there are three-six million people in the UK with some form of incontinence, with between 25-30% of women aged between 45 and 65 thought to suffer^{[2] [3]}. Avoidance tactics due to embarassment often result in anxiety, depression and even impact on overall physical health.