Urinary Incontinence Fixes That Stop Bladder Leaks Fast, Plus The ‘Squeeze Before You Sneeze’ Trick
Find out what prescriptions options are available if you need extra help
Key Takeaways
- A simple technique called 'The Knack' can reduce bladder leaks by up to 98% in just one week
- Kegel exercises and pelvic floor training can cut incontinence episodes by 70%
- Diet changes and hydration habits play a major role in preventing bladder leaks
If you’ve ever leaked a little during a workout, a sneeze or a belly laugh, you’re far from alone. The good news? The condition, called urinary incontinence, is treatable—you don’t have to just live with it. From a technique you can use the next time you feel a sneeze coming on to dietary tweaks and targeted pelvic floor exercises, we’ve rounded up the best practical solutions you can start today.
What causes urinary incontinence?
“Urinary incontinence can have various causes, and often, multiple factors may contribute to the condition,” says Jason Kim, MD, associate professor of urology and director of the Women’s Pelvic Health and Continence Center at Stony Brook University Medical Center. Common triggers include pelvic muscle weakness from aging or pregnancy, menopause-related estrogen loss, diabetes and certain medications such as diuretics, antihypertensives and sedatives.
Urinary incontinence affects 62 percent of adult women in the U.S., explains Samantha Pulliam, MD, FACOG, urogynecologist and CEO and chief medical officer at Axena Health. A whopping one in three women experiences leaks when they sneeze alone.
Woman's World Answers
‘The Knack’: An instant fix for urinary incontinence
If there’s one strategy worth learning right now, it’s a method called “The Knack,” developed at the University of Michigan in 1998. It’s a well-timed pelvic floor squeeze you perform right before activities that trigger urine leakage, and the results are remarkable. A study in the Journal of the American Geriatrics Society on women in their 60s and 70s showed that within a week, The Knack reduced urine loss from a medium cough by 98 percent and a deep cough by 73 percent.
“The most common feedback we hear from women using the technique is that they feel more confident in their daily lives,” says Stuart Hart, MD, a Florida-based urogynecologist. “We often hear ‘I can exercise with less fear of leaking’ or ‘I don’t panic when I feel a sneeze coming.'”
Here’s how to do it, step by step:
- Identify your pelvic floor muscles. These are the muscles you’d tighten to stop passing gas or stop the flow of urine.
- Watch for the trigger. When you feel a sneeze, cough or laugh coming—or before you lift something heavy or run up the stairs—prepare to activate those muscles.
- Do a quick squeeze. Firmly tighten and lift the pelvic floor muscles just before the sneeze or any type of leak-causing pressure occurs.
- Hold the squeeze through the cough, sneeze, laugh or movement.
- Relax once the activity is over.
A simple cue many of Dr. Hart’s patients use: “Squeeze before you cough, laugh or sneeze,” he shares. Mastering The Knack usually takes several weeks of regular practice, so be patient with yourself. If you forget to squeeze and end up leaking urine a bit, squeeze anyway. “It can help train the muscles to respond better the next time,” Dr. Hart notes. “With practice, the response often becomes more automatic.”
Kegels strengthen your pelvic floor to stop bladder leaks
The Knack works best when paired with regular pelvic floor strengthening. Research in JAMA Internal Medicine found that a 12-week pelvic floor muscle training program reduced urinary incontinence episodes by 70 percent. Kegel exercises strengthen the muscles that support the bladder, helping reduce urine leaks.
The exercise itself is simple: Tighten your pelvic floor muscles—the ones you’d use to stop urination midstream—for five seconds, relax for five seconds, then repeat. “Regular and correct performance of these exercises can improve muscle tone and provide better support to the bladder and urethra,” says Jason Kim, MD, associate professor of urology at Stony Brook University Medical Center. For best results, “repeat this process several times a day.”
Dietary tweaks for treating urinary incontinence
Fill up on fiber. Constipation is a sneaky cause of bladder leaks because a swollen colon can press on the bladder. Fiber-rich foods like oats, beans and berries help. Aim for 25 to 30 grams of fiber daily. Upping your fiber intake can lower your risk of bladder-squeezing constipation by 77 percent, according to British researchers.
Enjoy magnesium-rich foods. Black beans brim with magnesium, a mineral that Portuguese scientists say calms the muscles of the bladder wall, preventing contractions that can cause leakage.
Limit bladder irritants. “Avoid bladder irritants like caffeine, alcohol, spicy and acidic foods to help prevent exacerbation of urinary incontinence symptoms,” advises Mickey Karram, MD, a board-certified urogynecologist at Visthetic Surgery Institute in Beverly Hills, California.
More easy lifestyle fixes that help
Move gently. Women who did low-impact yoga a few times a week for 12 weeks had 65 percent fewer incontinence episodes, according to a study in Annals of Internal Medicine.
Stay hydrated. It sounds counterintuitive, but “staying adequately hydrated is important for overall bladder health, as dehydration can lead to concentrated urine and irritation,” Dr. Karram says.
Try double voiding. After urinating, lean forward for 20 seconds, sit up tall for 10 seconds, then try again. This compresses your bladder and helps eliminate lingering urine.
When to see a doctor for urinary incontinence treatment
“Urinary incontinence is common, but not necessarily normal,” adds Erica Montes, MD, board-certified ob-gyn and pH-D Feminine Health Advisor. “If you have symptoms, please bring it up to your physician. If they say it’s not a big deal, ask for a referral. You don’t have to live with this.”
Dr. Hart recommends seeing a healthcare provider about bladder control problems if home remedies don’t help after 8 to 12 weeks, leaks are worsening or affecting your quality of life, you have pain or blood in your urine or you experience a constant urge to go.
Advanced options include bladder Botox injections, topical vaginal estrogen for menopausal symptoms, sacral nerve stimulation and surgical procedures like sling placement. “Incontinence can be a progressive disorder,” says Dr. Pulliam. “Left untreated, it can worsen and lead to profoundly negative health consequences that impact women’s social, financial, physical and emotional wellbeing.”
The bottom line: Effective relief from urinary incontinence is within reach, often starting with free, simple techniques you can try today.
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