How can incontinence affect health?

The unintended loss of urine or feces can make it difficult to maintain good hygiene and carry on ordinary life. Besides disrupting daily activities and nighttime sleep, incontinence can also chip away at your health. If you have stopped exercising for fear of leakage, for example, you are giving up one of the most effective ways for maintaining health. If you're getting up several times a night to go to the bathroom, you're risking not only sleep deprivation but injury from falls. Older women who frequently must rush to the bathroom are 26% more likely to fall and 34% more likely to break a bone.

Besides disrupting daily activities and nighttime sleep, incontinence can also chip away at your health. If you have stopped exercising for fear of leakage, for example, you are giving up one of the most effective strategies for maintaining health. In addition, getting up several times a night can lead to sleep deprivation and raises the risk of injury from falls. And incontinence that causes withdrawal from social interactions can contribute to depression.

Even more alarming, older women who frequently must rush to the bathroom are 26% more likely to fall and 34% more likely to break a bone. Incontinence is also a leading cause of nursing home placement, and that prospect drives some people to try to hide their condition rather than seek help.