Ten Foods that Cause an Overactive Bladder

An overactive bladder is caused by an infection that creates the need to urinate frequently. The urge may be difficult to stop, and an overactive bladder may lead to the involuntary loss of urine.  There are several foods that can harm the urinary system and we have discussed ten of them here.

1. Tomatoes: tomatoes have a high acidic content and can create an irritation in the bladder and this can further lead to an overactive bladder. One should avoid foods that are high in tomato content like ketchup, salsa and pizza sauce.
2. Coffee or Tea: these two beverages can lead to an increase in the bladder’s activity and result in a person feeling the need to urinate more and more often. This can be reduced significantly if one can reduce the intake of these two drinks.
3. Chocolate: similar to the case of an overactive bladder due to tea and coffee, a piece of chocolate can result in increasing the activity of the bladder. One can have white chocolate instead, as that does not contain caffeine.
4. Citrus fruits: fruits like lemons, limes, grapefruits and oranges contain high amounts of citric acid. Citric acid can create problems like an overactive bladder, whereas fruits like apples and bananas are less acidic and therefore can be consumed instead of citric ones.
5. Alcohol: consuming alcohol causes the brain to receive a signal that the bladder is full, even if it is not.
6. Carbonated drinks: in drinks like soda water, energy drinks and soft drinks the fizz that is created can increase the symptoms of an overactive bladder. Drinks like champagne which contain both fizz and the alcohol can cause a lot of problems.
7. Spicy Foods: completely avoid foods like sauces, peppers and salsa which are spicy in nature.
8. Sweeteners: research studies show that sweeteners which are either natural or artificial can result in problems like an overactive bladder.
9. Processed foods: these types of foods have ingredients that are artificial like preservatives and flavors, which can potentially cause irritation and aggravate the bladder.
10. Onions: opt for cooked onions as opposed to raw ones since they do not cause any problems.

In order to prevent an overactive bladder, it is necessary to drink the proper amount of water. If one drinks more than required, it can result in frequent urination, but if the intake is less, then the urine can get acidic and force one to go to the bathroom several times.

Apart from this, you should also maintain a food diary where you can write down and keep track of the foods that you eat. This preventative plan can go a long way in determining which types of foods are causing you to suffer from an overactive bladder. Once you have determined which foods there are, they should be avoided. On the other hand, the ones that don’t can be safely consumed.