Is it a common problem?
You are not alone - over 200 million women suffer from incontinence world wide.
It is estimated that between 4 and 7 million women in the UK suffered incontinence in the past year.
Stress incontinence affects one in three new mums, which means that EACH WEEK 5,000 new mothers in the UK will develop stress incontinence!
Research shows that 38% ($4.5 million) of all menstrual pads sold are used to self treat incontinence - this only addresses the symptom, not the root cause of the problem, and also poses major environmental issues
At present there are over 150 operative procedures for stress incontinence and one of the most common is the insertion of a supportive tape (TVT Tension-free Vaginal Tape).
Most doctors agree that exercising the pelvic floor muscles is the best way to protect and treat yourself against these ailments. Whilst exercise may not provide a complete solution for all women it is certainly a good first step and one that you can maintain with very little effort or disturbance to your daily routine.
However, there may be other factors at work such as infection, inflammation, injury, abnormalities of internal pelvic organs, or emotional factors. It is important for women experiencing any of the symptoms described to check with their health care professional to determine the cause and proper treatment of the problem.
Janey Lee Grace, broadcaster and author of many books on natural health, is a great advocate of natural solutions.