Having a constant urge to urinate is an embarrassing issue. It lowers the general quality of your life and can prevent you from enjoying certain things like long-distance trips. Frequent urination is a condition that affects many people. It is only important that we try to find the possible causes of this problem and know how to prevent it from happening.
Causes of frequent urination
Before talking about the causes, we should first understand frequent urination symptoms. Urologists, the doctors who are specialized in treating urine problems, say that urinating more than eight times in 24 hours is a symptom of the problem. This condition can have something to do with the number of fluids you take per day. It may also be a sign of a more serious underlying condition.
We are going to look at all the causes of excessive peeing.
Urinary incontinence
Urinary incontinence is also called the loss of bladder control or involuntary urination. It is a common and distressing problem that entails uncontrolled leakage of urine. The condition causes a frequent urge to urinate in women more than men. The urge can be so intense that you don’t get time to visit the washroom. even though this condition affects older people more than the younger generation, experts at Mayo clinic say that it is not an inevitable consequence of aging. The condition can be caused by smoking, pregnancy, childbirth, and obesity.
Overactive bladder
Increased urinary frequency is a sign of overactive bladder. The condition occurs when the muscles of the bladder start to contract involuntarily even when the volume of urine is low. This creates the urge of urinating more often. This is a very embarrassing problem that can make the patient isolate themselves especially if it leads to involuntary loss of urine. The condition is also one of the reasons for frequent urination at night, a condition called nocturia. It is caused by several conditions including excess consumption of alcohol, abnormalities in the bladder and acute Urinary Tract Infection.
Urinary tract infection
A Urinary Tract Infection (UTI) is one of the most common causes of frequent peeing. A UTI is the infection of the urethra and the bladder. It is estimated that more than 60% of women making it the number one cause of frequent urination in females. Another symptom of UTI is discomfort while urinating. It’s a very painful condition that can be accompanied by a burning sensation when urinating and passing only small amounts of strong-smelly urine.
Diabetes
This problem is a sign of diabetes. When you have diabetes, your body cannot control the amount of sugar (glucose). Your kidneys are forced to work overtime to filter and absorb the excess sugar. If your kidneys can’t keep up, the excess sugar is excreted into your urine, dragging along fluids from your body. This triggers the urge to pee frequently, a condition known as polyuria (adapted from Mayo clinic). The frequent urination may leave you dehydrated and feel thirsty. You will then need to drink more fluids to quench your thirst, which triggers more urination.
Diabetes can also damage the nerves that control the bladder, causing frequent need to urinate and difficulty to control your bladder.
Enlarged prostate and prostatitis
An enlarged prostate can exert a lot of pressure on the urethra and block urine flow thus causing frequent urination in men. Prostatitis can also cause urinary symptoms including frequent peeing.
Pregnancy
The urge to pee more often is one of the most common signs of early pregnancy. This is mainly because blood flow to the woman’s kidneys increases by up to 35%. The extra blood flow makes her urine produce up to 35% more urine around 6 weeks after conception.
Peeing a lot in the last three months of pregnancy is caused by pressure on the woman’s bladder by the baby bump. Pregnant women are also known to get Urinary Tract Infections more often which can trigger the condition.
Medication
Diuretic drugs, the medication used to treat high blood pressure are also called ‘water tablets’ because they can cause you to pass more urine than usual. These drugs work by increasing the concentration of salts in the kidney, these salt needs to be flushed out of the body and thus more frequent urination.
Too much alcohol and caffeine consumption
Every drunkard knows the effects of alcohol on the bladder. It makes us want to pee more. But do you know why this happens? Prof. Oliver James of Newcastle University says that alcohol is a diuretic meaning it acts on the kidney making it produce more urine. Alcohol also reduces the production of hormone Vasopressin. This is the hormone responsible for telling your kidney to reabsorb water rather than flush it out. This means that your bladder feels up faster than when sober and thus the need to visit the bathroom more often.
Drinking caffeinated drinks increases glomerular blood pressure which in turn increases blood filtration resulting in an increase in urine.
Other causes of frequent peeing are;
- Tumor in the pelvic area
- Interstitial cystitis
- Anxiety
- Bladder cancer
- Kidney stones
- Radiation of the pelvis such as during cancer treatment
- Colon diverticulitis
- Stress
- Stroke
Treatment and cures
As you have realized, there are several causes of this condition. Pinpointing the exact cause is the first step in finding the remedies for your problem. It is therefore for your own good that you seek immediate medical attention as soon as you start seeing the symptoms. A physician will advise you accordingly on the best cure based on the causes.
Practicing good hygiene can also reduce the chances of you getting Urinary Tract Infections which causes frequent urination. You should also reduce your alcohol consumption.