Alternative Treatments for Incontinence
Incontinence and other bladder problems don’t necessarily have to be treated with medications and there is no unique treatment strategy for incontinence. Leakages can be prevented temporarily with incontinence pads and bladder / pelvic muscles can be toned and strengthened by herbal remedies and simple exercises.
Combining natural medicine with Kegel exercise, biofeedback, acupuncture and so forth makes for a much more effective therapeutic strategy:
Biofeedback helps you become more aware of signals from your body. This may help you regain control over the muscles in your bladder and urethra. Biofeedback can be used to help teach pelvic muscle exercises.
Kegel exercises also known as pelvic floor exercises, involve the voluntary contraction and relaxation of the pelvic floor muscles. Kegel exercises strengthen the muscles that support the urethra, bladder, and uterus.
Acupuncture provides symptom relief for incontinence. It helps tone muscle and increase blood flow to the bladder. It can boost the immune system, soothe inflammation and restore balance to the hormones.
Yoga, more precisely the Aswini mudra exercise, is very similar the Kegel exercises.
Nutrition, eliminate foods and drinks that can irritate your bladder, including alcohol, caffeine, foods high in acid (such as tomato or grapefruit), spicy foods, sweetener substitutes and sugars. Keep a food diary to see if any correlation exists between what you consume and your incontinence.
Herbs are commonly used to improve incontinence symptoms. Herbs can used in a variety of ways, dried extracts (capsules, powders, teas), glycerites (glycerine extracts), or tinctures (alcohol extracts).
Horsetail: Plants from the Equisetaceae family, address the symptoms of urinary incontinence by helping to maintain the integrity of connective tissues.
Plantain: An astringent and demulcent, which will help tighten pelvic and bladders muscles. Plantains tend to be firmer and lower in sugar if compared to our every day bananas, although there is no formal botanical distinction between bananas and plantains.
Marshmallow Root: Is a urinary demulcent, best used alone in a cold infusion. Soak 1 heaping tbsp. of marshmallow root in 1 qt. of cold water overnight. Strain and drink during the day in addition to other teas.
It is important to highlight that the content of this article is aimed for informational purposes only and it is not intended to replace by any means your doctor’s recommendations.
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