Fluid intake and risk of stress, urgency, and mixed urinary incontinence

Abstract

Objective: We investigated the relation between total fluid intake and incident urinary incontinence in the Nurses' Health Study cohorts.

Study design: We measured daily fluid intake using food frequency questionnaires among 65,167 women, who were 37-79 years old, without urinary incontinence at study baseline (2000-2001). Women reported incontinence incidence on questionnaires during 4 years of follow-up evaluation. Multivariable-adjusted hazard ratios and 95% confidence intervals were calculated with Cox proportional hazards models.

Results: We found no association between total fluid intake and risk of incident incontinence (hazard ratio, 1.04; 95% confidence interval, 0.98-1.10; comparing top vs bottom quintile of fluid intake). In analyses of incontinence type, total fluid intake was not associated with risks of incident stress, urgency, or mixed incontinence.

Conclusion: No significant risk of incident urinary incontinence was found with higher fluid intake in women. These findings suggest that women should not restrict their fluid intake to prevent incontinence development.