Frequency in urination is whereby you find yourself developing an urge to pass out urine more often than usual. Sometimes this condition may be brought about by the amount or the type of fluid you have taken. In most cases caffeine drinks and alcohol can cause increased frequency in urination although this condition may signify something more than just the fluid consumed. There are many issues that may result to this problem and we are going to share about them in this post.
Urge to pass out urine frequently can be a cause of disruption to someone’s life especially if it occurs during the night. In most cases this condition is usually a sign of underlying medical condition. Medically, frequent urination is commonly referred to as frequency. A person can even urinate over 3 liters in amount per day in serious cases and this referred to as polyuria. However, this is a simple condition that can be resolved easily through medication.
Frequent Urination in men Causes
Urination is the way your body gets rid of excess and waste fluids from the body. This is a systematic happening that occur in both male and female human beings.
In men, urinary frequency can be defined as a need to urinate more than seven times in a period of 24 hours when you have just taken only 2 liters of fluid. Men usually differ when it comes to urination and most of them would only visit a doctor when the condition becomes bothersome.
Causes of frequent urination in men include the following
There are many conditions that may increase the frequency at which an individual pass out urine. For example, urinating is a complex process that involves various systems in the body and any changes in the systems may increase the rate of urination. Some of the common causes of this condition may involve the following:
- Caffeine and alcohol intake
Some of the lifestyle based causes of increased urine pass out in men include drinking a lot of fluids especially if they contain caffeine or alcohol contents. This is because, caffeine and alcohol are said to be absorbed fast in the body and very small content in these drinks is absorbed in the body unlike pure water which is needed to help in the body for metabolic process before it is excreted. Therefore, if you like taking these kinds of drinks more so at night then you have a reason to blame on your frequent urination.
- Anxiety
Also, research has confirmed that frequency can be brought about by anxiety issues such as stress. Men are said to visit washrooms very frequent when they are stressed. This is connected to hormones as stress causes imbalance in the hormonal activities and even if you did not take much of fluid you may have a feeling to go and pee. In some cases when you reach the washroom you may release very little or no urine.
- Urinary tract failure
One of the common sign of urinary tract failure is frequent urination in men, which is also associated with painful urination, a burning sensation, fever, and pains in the abdomen. This condition is also very common is children specifically girls since they have not learned how to squat in public toilets. Moreover, if the cleaning is not done well after bowel movement it may cause rectal bacteria to move from into the urethra and bladder and therefore resulting into an infection. The infection can easily be treated by use of antibiotics.
- Constipation
If it happens you are suffering from constipation, the feces that is accumulated in the abdomen turns hard and apply pressure on the bladder. This in turn results in bladder spasms, which is a cause for frequent urination. This is the reason why it is advised to eat food that is highly rich in fiber and drink enough water to keep constipation away. In case you are frequently affected by constipation you should see your doctor so that you can know the reason for that.
- Diabetes insipidus
This is a condition that occurs when a person has insufficient amounts of anti-diuretic hormone, which facilitates the output of urine from the kidneys. Men suffering from this condition usually discharge high amount of diluted urine which is associated with insatiable thirst. More symptoms for this condition involve dehydration, irritability, loss of weight, poor feeding and sometimes fever in children.
- Voiding dysfunction
Frequent urination in men may also be caused by a condition whereby, you develop a habit of not emptying your bladder when you urinate. This is not a medical condition but a psychological behavior which is also very common in children. This condition is more related to anxiety whereby you visit a restroom while you are thinking about something else that you may miss while you are there relieving yourself.
If you develop this habit you may urinate enough to relieve pressure in the bladder. Hence, with time, the sphincter muscle that helps in holding urine may become overactive and therefore cause frequent urination. It is important to make sure that you avoid this habit, and always empty your bladder while you visit the toilet.
- Diabetes mellitus
Frequent urination in men can also be a sign of diabetes mellitus, which is common with passing out of large amounts of urine. The other symptom for this condition is increase in intake of fluids more than normal due to increased thirst (polydipsia), unexplained frequent hunger (polyphagia), and drastic loss of weight.
In this case you release urine that contains glucose and ketones, which can easily be detected by a urinalysis process. Diabetes can be tested though examining blood sugar levels.
- Pollakiuria
This is a condition that is very common in children aged between 3 and 8 years but can also affect grown-ups. It is a condition that causes frequent urination during the day. Usually, the affected person may visit the toilet very frequently but only to release very small amount of urine. The cause of this condition is not known but experts believe it is related to stress. Some doctors believe the condition does not require any treatment as it may disappear after three months.
Frequent urination in men has many other more conditions to be connected to, but if you are not sure of what is causing you this problem, visit your doctor so that you may under some tests.
Frequent Urination at Night
Also called nocturia or nocturnal polyuria, frequent urination at night is a common condition. While you are sleeping, your body produces less urine which is highly concentrated. Therefore, due to this reason most of the people do not need to wake up in the night severally to urinate and you can sleep up to 6 to 8 hours without interruption.
However, if you have to wake up more than two times per night to urinate and you don’t take alcohol at night then you are suffering from nocturia. Apart from just having disrupted sleep, this condition is caused by either of the underlying conditions we have talked about above.
Frequent Urination in Children
Frequency can also affect children and causes that we have mentioned above can also affect children. In children, frequent urination is commonly caused by urinary tract infection which is very common in girls than boys. Children can as well develop diabetes which may cause the same symptom. Children who wear diapers all the time makes it hard for the parent to know if he/she is suffering from frequent urination. However, if you want to observe the urinating behavior of your kid, you can begin to potty train her if she is of that age.
Understanding the frequency at which your kid urinates can be helpful when it comes to seeking the rightful medication to solve the underlying cause. In the case the child can speak and he is complaining of frequent urination, it is important to take the case very serious. Although, there are cases where some kinds may urinate frequently to attract more attention and this happens when the mother devotes her-self to other issues. However, attention seeking habit is very rare
Frequent urination in Women
The urge of feeling sudden urination frequently in women is due to all the causes we have talked about in this context. However, women may have one or two other causes for frequency that does not affect men. For example, when pregnant a woman may develop an urge to pass out urine frequently and this reason cannot affect men. Moreover, women are highly at risk of developing UTI than men because their urethra is shorter as compared to that of men. Bacteria in this case have a short distance to travel before they can cause disease to the urinary tract and thereby result in such symptoms.
Vulvovaginitis
On the other hand, vulvovaginitis is the irritation that takes place on the skin in and around the vagina for women. This condition may cause frequent urination in women just as the UTI does. The condition is very common in girls who have not yet reached pubic stage when the skin around the vaginal area is highly sensitive. Frequent urination in men from this condition occurs in the opening of the urethra.
The cause of vulvovaginitis may be common irritants such as soap and shampoo which result in inflammation of the skin. Also, dirty toilets and incorrect wiping of the vagina after urination may as well cause vulvovaginitis.
Urge to Urinate after Urinating
A feeling to pass out urine after every short time is a sign of a medical condition that may need medical intervention. Since it is a sign of an underlying medical condition, there are other symptoms that you may experience in addition to frequent urination.
If you are having an urge to go to urinate even after you are from the toilet, this may be due to anxiety in most cases if you are in a trapped situation. As we said above, worry or stress can sometimes make you want to urinate more and more after every short time. This may be controlled by assuming it and it will finally disappear.
Frequent Urination Pregnancy Sign
In case a woman is pregnant, frequency is usually caused by pregnancy hormone, which results in an increase in the amount and speed of the blood moving around the body and the growing uterus.
- The changes in the hormone causes the blood to flow to the kidneys very fast, filling the bladder more frequently thereby resulting in increased urge to go for a short call regularly.
- Also in this case there is increase in blood volume throughout the pregnancy period until you have up to 50 percent increase in blood circulating in the body more than it was before you got pregnant. This means that there is increase in fluids that get through your kidneys for processing and therefore more waste urine in the bladder.
- Also, during pregnancy, the uterus keeps growing and therefore exerting pressure on the bladder or rather squeezing it always and therefore making it unable to hold much urine. Therefore any little urine that gets in the bladder is to be released since the urge to do that is high. The condition may even get worse in the late pregnancy.
In case you keep feeling to urinate very frequently, it is also considered to be an early sign of pregnancy. This is usually common in the first six weeks of the first trimester. The symptom may go down while you get into the second trimester as the uterus rises out of the pelvis, although this is not supported by any research, as many sources suggest increase in the urination urge as the pregnancy grows.
Home Remedies for Frequent Urination
If you have not been drinking alcohol or caffeine or any much drinks and you develop an urge to keep urinating, you may be having a problem that should not be left unattended to. You may visit your doctor who can help in finding out the problem you are undergoing. This may become more serious if the frequent urination is accompanied by other symptoms such as burning sensation, fever and chills. In case you are sure that you are not suffering from something serious of frequency, you may try some of the home remedies we are going to discuss below.
- Amla-banana-honey remedy
Amla is an Indian gooseberry widely used in numerous medications whereby it is made with Ayurveda stream. It is an important home remedy that helps in strengthening of the sphincter muscle of the bladder. Moreover, Amla aids in cleansing the bladder which is also another recognized way of strengthening the urinary bladder.
Amla-banana-honey can be prepared by gathering Amla, a banana, some sugar candy powder and one teaspoonful of bee honey. Do this by crushing Amla and extract its juice by pressing it against a clean cloth. After crushing add some sugar candy powder (one teaspoonful) to the freshly extracted Amla juice and stir to mix completely. Add some honey and complete the mixture with a ripe banana. You can apply this two to five times a day which will depend with the severity of your frequency of urinating.
- Pomegranate fruit
Pomegranate fruits are rich sources of anti-oxidants and such natural components such as anthocyanins, polyphenols and also allergic acid. For urinating issues, pomegranate juice inhibits an enzyme that is known to produce estrogen which is the possible cause of BPH (benign prostatic hyperplasia) in male adults. The anti-oxidants of pomegranate usually remove the free radicles that may destroy the cellular membranes which may lead to prostate cancer. You can take at least 1 to 1 and half a juice of this remedy for better results.
- Fenugreek seeds
Apart from acting as digestive agents and a home remedy for coughs, Fenugreek seeds are great sources of phytonutrients, vitamins and minerals which include zinc. They are excellent remedy for frequent urination. You are advised to take note of this remedy if you start experiencing a problem of urine leakage with the urge to urinate frequently. To attain this, grind the roasted Fenugreek seeds to obtain about a powder, this powder can be taken while mixed with water to form a solution. This mixture can be taken at least half teaspoonful daily in solution form.
- Yoghurt
Taking yoghurt is one of the effective ways of dealing with frequent urination. In this case, you have to use natural sugar free yoghurt. Yoghurt contains beneficial bacteria known as lactobacillus acidophilus which is very effective in preventing the growth of harmful bacteria in the whole body including the urinary tracts and the bladder. Therefore, if you have a problem of frequency you can take at least two glasses of natural yoghurt a day to control the frequency caused by urinal tract infection
- Cranberries
UTI can be controlled by taking cranberry juice which is very effective when dealing with this issue as well. Cranberries contain anti-oxidants commonly known as Proanthocyanidins which breaks the bond between the bacteria and the walls of the urinary tracts and therefore allowing the bacteria to be driven out of the system. However, the use of cranberry juice is usually effective in the early stages of UTI. Just have one to two glasses of cranberry juice daily for better results
More references
- Frequent urination in men: http://www.urologyclinics.com/symptoms/frequent_urination_m/causes.html
- Frequent urination, causes, symptoms and treatment: https://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/70782.php
- Excessive urination at night: https://www.healthline.com/health/urination-excessive-at-night#overview1