Foods and Drinks to Avoid

The bladder collects fluid, toxins and other waste products filtered from your blood by your kidneys – so it’s not surprising that what you consume can affect your incontinence.

If you have an overactive bladder or urge incontinence, try eliminating these foods and drinks to see if it makes a difference. The impact does vary from person to person, so take them one at a time to see if you can improve your condition through diet.

Foods to avoid when living with incontinence

• Tomatoes and tomato based products It’s the acid that researchers believe irritates the bladder.
• Citrus fruit Oranges, mandarins, lemons, limes and grapefruit are all high in acid. Instead, eat bananas, apples, pears or melon
• Chocolate Sad, but true, chocolate also contains caffeine. White chocolate is fine, or try substituting something else sweet
• Spicy food Many people claim that chilli, wasabi and hot curry makes their incontinence worse. Cut them from your diet and see if it helps.

Drinks to avoid when living with incontinence

• Tea and coffee Caffeine is known to stimulate the bladder, contributing to urgency and frequency, so best to avoid it. Even decaf has traces of caffeine so should be avoided if you’re super-sensitive. Try herbal teas instead. (Some people mistakenly think green tea is herbal – but it’s not. It contains almost as much caffeine as regular tea)
• Alcohol This can impact continence by over stimulating the bladder and impairing the messages between the bladder and brain
• Carbonated drinks The bubbles alone in these drinks can get your bladder going, but some also have caffeine (colas and some sports drinks), alcohol (sparkling wine and champagne) or artificial sweeteners which are also believed to stimulate the bladder. Best to skip them all and drink plain water.

Asaleo Care Pty Ltd makes no warranties or representations regarding the completeness or accuracy of the information. This information should be used only as a guide and should not be relied upon as a substitute for professional, medical or other health professional advice.