Dr Amir Khan has issued a warning about a common habit that many people do
A doctor has issued a warning about a common habit people perform “before bed”. According to Dr Amir Khan, this routine could actually be making symptoms “worse”.
How frequently you need the toilet each day depends on a range of factors. Your food and fluid intake, caffeine consumption, the temperature, as well as stress and anxiety levels all have an impact.
However, excessive trips to the bathroom can have long-lasting consequences. In a video posted to his Instagram account, Dr Amir explained further.
Dr Amir, who is widely recognised for his appearances on ITV, urged people to stop taking a “just in case wee” before bed and before heading out. He said: “If you’re someone who does a just in case wee just before leaving the house, maybe before a meeting, or before bed, sometimes even twice, this is really important for you.
“It might actually be making your bladder symptoms worse. I see this all the time in clinic, people going again, even when they’ve just been, because it feels safer than risking urgency or waking up in the middle of the night to go.”
Doing this could be sending entirely the wrong signals to your brain. “But here’s what’s really happening,” he said.
“Your bladder is a muscle and it works with your nerves to tell your brain when it’s full. Now, normally that signal up to your brain shouldn’t come until your bladder is holding around 300 to 500ml of urine.
“But if you keep emptying it early, you know, those ‘just in case wees’, you start to retrain that system between your bladder and your brain. And over time, your bladder gets used to being emptied at lower volumes.”
Dr Amir drew a comparison with a sensitive car alarm, explaining: “I would say to my patients, it’s like a car alarm that’s become too sensitive.
“At first it only goes off when there’s a real but then it starts going off at everything – a gust of wind, someone just walking past, that’s what your bladder is doing.
“It starts sending, ‘I need to go now’ signals even when it’s barely full, that’s how urgency and urge incontinence develop or get worse. Because instead of emptying everything, you’re teaching your bladder to signal to your brain you need to go earlier and earlier.”
This can result in disturbed sleep during the night. “So you end up waking up in the middle of the night needing to go even when your bladder isn’t that full,” he said.
“And even though you went before you went to bed, you might not needed to but you went anyway.”
How to prevent this
To stop this happening you might need to “retrain” your bladder, Dr Amir said, posing the question: “So what’s the solution?
“Well, you need to retrain the alarm system. That’s bladder training, try to cut down on those ‘just in case wees’. Stick to going every three or four hours rather than constantly and space out those weeds more and more.
“If urgency hits, pause, breathe, stay still, let it pass before going to the toilet. You’re teaching your bladder this isn’t an emergency, and also don’t forget reduce caffeine avoid large drinks right before bed.”
He also suggested performing pelvic floor exercises. “And those pelvic floor exercises, this all takes time,” he said.
“Most people notice a small improvement in two to four weeks, but it can take six to 12 weeks to really retrain that bladder. “
If you’re experiencing urinary incontinence
The NHS website recommends scheduling an appointment with your GP if you’re suffering from any type of urinary incontinence. It states: “Urinary incontinence is a common problem and you should not feel embarrassed talking to them about your symptoms.
“This can also be the first step towards finding a way to effectively manage the problem.”







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