Bladder

Bladder

We''''ve all been there: legs clamped together tightly at the knees, trying to think of dry desert sand and arid valleys--anything to keep our minds off waterfalls and streams.

Mind over urgent matters, you might call it. But as hard as you try to ignore the biological need to urinate, you just can''''t. And that''''s a good thing. After all, it''''s how the body disposes of liquid waste products such as urea, uric acid and creatinine, which are waste products of metabolism.

The main storehouse in the urination process is the bladder, a balloonlike structure made of a thin layer of muscle, located at the back of your pelvic cavity. Before you get the urge to void, this balloon conducts an efficient collection process. Every day, about two to three pints of urine pass from the kidneys, which filter the blood and remove waste products, to the bladder. The bladder is essentially a collection sac that holds the urine until you''''re ready to let go. When you do, a ring-shaped sphincter muscle relaxes, the bladder muscle contracts and the urine is forced out through the urethra, the tube leading from the bladder to the outside world.

Unfortunately, Ma Nature wasn''''t logical when she placed some of the equipment. Because your urethra is only 1½ inches long and located near your vagina and anus--where unfriendly bacteria run rampant--it''''s easy for this normally germ-free area to become infected. Each year, in fact, 10 percent of all women will develop urinary tract infections (UTIs). About 20 percent of women will get a UTI at least once in their lives. And if you have one once, there''''s about an 80 percent chance that you''''ll get one again within the next two years.

A Better Bladder

While bladder infections, or cystitis, are the most common kind of UTIs, you can also get kidney infections and urethritis--an inflammation in the urethra, the tube leading out of the bladder. With a bladder infection you''''ll probably feel like your bladder is full even when it isn''''t. Other symptoms: you might get a burning sensation when you urinate, feel some pain above your pubic bone or, sometimes, see blood in your urine.

"Lots of women are frustrated by these recurrent infections," says David Uehling, M.D., professor of urology at the University of Wisconsin Medical School in Madison. "It makes them miserable."

If you go to your doctor at the first sign of symptoms, she''''ll test your urine for bacteria and will prescribe a short-term course of antibiotics. But before your bladder has a chance to get fouled up, here are some ways to prevent UTIs.

Catch a cranberry. For years, doctors have recommended sipping cranberry juice to ward off UTIs, observes Mark Monane, M.D., instructor of medicine at Harvard Medical School who specializes in internal medicine, geriatrics and clinical pharmacology. Evidence shows that the remedy can work. "There seems to be something in cranberry juice that stops the bacteria from sticking to the urethra and bladder." In several studies on bacterial growth in the bladder, Dr. Monane has had successful results using Ocean Spray Cranberry Juice Cocktail. Although they are not pure cranberry juice, the cranberry drinks do the job of keeping your bladder clean.

After sex, head for the toilet. Since intercourse can drive bacteria from the area around the rectum and vagina into the urethra, urinating afterwards gives you a chance to flush it away, says Alice Stollenwerk Petrulis, M.D., director of clinical nephrology at Metrohealth Medical Center and associate professor of medicine and reproductive biology at Case Western Reserve University, both in Cleveland. It''''s also a good idea to drink a glass of water before sex, so you''''ll have the urge to urinate afterward.

Create a flood. Drinking plenty of noncaffeinated liquids--at least six to eight 8-ounce glasses a day--helps keep UTI-causing bacteria away, says Dr. Uehling.

Make sure you''''re on empty. Don''''t cut yourself short while urinating, because the leftover liquid in your bladder can host bacteria, says Irving Fishman, M.D., associate professor of urology at Baylor College of Medicine in Houston. "Some people are very busy and don''''t take the time to relax and let go."

See what C can do for you. Taking vitamin C can also ward off some UTIs, says Mark Zilkoski, M.D., family practice physician at Trinity Hospital and Listerud Rural Health Clinic in Wolf Point, Montana. Vitamin C lowers the pH, or acidity level, in your urine, says Dr. Zilkoski. This lower pH level creates an environment in which various UTI-causing bacteria cannot survive.

Make a clean swipe. Because UTI-causing bacteria come from the rectum, be diligent about washing that area, says Dr. Fishman. Doctors recommend that you wipe from front to back to avoid dragging bacteria from the rectum to the urethra.

Burning? Maybe It''''s IC

Another disorder that leaves you burning with discomfort is interstitial cystitis (IC), a painful condition that mimics the symptoms of a bladder infection. This chronic and frustrating disease affects about 450,000 people in the United States every year, 90 percent of whom are women. It is managed with a prescription medicine.

But it helps to follow a low-acid diet as well, says Philip Hanno, M.D., professor and chairman of the Department of Urology at Temple University School of Medicine in Philadelphia. Some of the things to eliminate include caffeine, spicy foods, alcohol and tomato sauce. Long, warm baths can also alleviate some pain by relaxing the muscles, he notes.

See also Urinary System