The EXPERT GUIDE TO SPENDING A PENNY

How often is too often? Why swimming makes you want to go. And how many seconds is the ideal duration...

up and in as if you’re trying to stop passing wind and urine at the same time — pulling forward from the back passage.

To help strengthen your pelvic floor, do ten short squeezes, then a longer set of ten where you briefly hold each squeeze daily.

WOMEN SHOULD SIT ON THE SEAT — DON’T HOVER

IT’s important for women to sit down and not hover over the seat when urinating, explains Professor sohier Elneil, a consultant urogynaecologist at University College Hospital, London.

‘When we pass urine, the pelvic floor muscles must relax so the bladder can contract and the urethra, the tube which carries urine from the body, can open.

‘ However, if you hover, this doesn’t happen as efficiently, which means that the bladder itself doesn’t empty as well.’

If urine is left in the bladder after urinating, the extra time allows any bacteria to multiply and increases the risk of causing an infection.

It is better to hold yourself as upright as possible when you urinate, adds Mr sachchidananda Maiti, a consultant gynaecologist and obstetrician at Manchester University NHs Foundation Trust and the private Pall Mall Medical.

He explains that if the angle between the urethra and bladder is narrow, then the urine can’t pass out easily, so you need to strain and push — which could ultimately lead to a hernia.

To reduce the angle and make it straighter, you need to relax your pelvic floor muscles, which is why it’s better to sit on the loo seat.

WHY MEN SHOULD SIT — IF IN A HURRY

ALTHoUgH men tend to stand up to empty their bladder, there is actually no need for them to do so, says Professor Christof Kastner, a consultant urologist at st Bartholomew’s Hospital, London.

‘The assumption that standing up is healthier is historical,’ he explains. In some cultures, sitting down to urinate is seen as more hygienic, as it reduces splashing.

However, those men who are in a hurry, or who struggle to empty their bladder fully, may want to sit if they have prostate problems.

A 2014 review of studies, by Leiden University Medical Centre in the Netherlands, found that men with prostate problems were able to empty their bladders faster and more effectively if they sat to pee.

Dr Faure Walker explains: ‘ As the prostate lies at the base of the bladder, it can make it more difficult to pass water as it is a physical obstruction — and so there is a strain in trying to do so. If there is straining, it is easier to pass water if you’re sitting.’

However, standing up does make it easy to spot if there is an issue with the stream or flow of urine.

‘If the stream sprays, speak to your doctor as there might be underlying issues such as an obstruction or the foreskin becoming tight,’ says Dr Faure Walker. ‘This can be treated with manual manipulation or circumcision.’

WHY THE COLD MAKES YOU WANT TO GO

WHEN the temperature drops, many people find they need frequent trips to the loo — and the reason is that the cold causes your blood vessels to constrict: this reduces blood flow to the skin, diverting it to the vital internal organs to keep your core warm.

‘But one consequence of the blood moving to the core is that more urine is produced, known as cold-induced diuresis,’ explains Dr Clare Eglin, a principal lecturer in human and applied physiology at Portsmouth University.

And whereas ‘in summer we keep water bottles at hand, in winter we often forget to drink regularly’, says Clare ThorntonWood, a dietitian based in sussex and spokesperson for the British Dietetic Association.

The net effect is dehydration. To check if you are adequately hydrated, examine the colour of your urine. If it’s pale yellow, you are getting enough fluids. Darker urine suggests you may need to up your intake.

Meanwhile, when it’s cold, just moving around — even activities such as walking and household chores — will produce heat which will keep us warm, and in turn prevent excessive urination.

DON’T HOLD ON FOR TOO LONG

soMETIMEs, when busy, we can put off going to the loo. But holding in urine for too long means the bladder can become distended and ultimately less efficient at emptying, especially as we get older, explains Professor Elneil. ‘If the bladder has been repeatedly stretched in this way, it loses its tone and can’t contract as much and so doesn’t empty as well as it should, increasing susceptibility to infection.’ Dr susanna Unsworth, a gP in Cambridge and women’s health expert, says: ‘Women have a shorter urethra than men, so bacteria can more readily travel up into the bladder. Regular emptying helps flush the bacteria out. ‘Holding urine in the bladder for too long can increase the risk of UTIs.’

TO EMPTY THE BLADDER, TRY THE ‘DOUBLE’ WEE

EvEN if you’re in a hurry, it’s important not to push or force yourself to urinate.

‘If you are forcing the wee out, then you are exerting pressure on the pelvic floor — and in women this could lead to issues such as prolapse,’ says Dr Maiti. This happens when the muscles and tissue in the pelvis weaken, causing the womb to drop into the vagina.

It’s important to give the bladder time to empty properly, adds Professor Kastner. ‘If you feel you are not emptying completely, make sure you have fully emptied by waiting a few seconds and then try to empty more,’ he says. This is known as double voiding.

AVOID ‘JUST IN CASE’ TRIPS TO THE LOO

IT MIgHT be natural when you wake up in the night or before a long journey to try to empty your bladder ‘just in case’.

But repeatedly going when you don’t have the urge can make the bladder over- sensitive, says Professor Eden. As a result, you’ll find yourself needing to urinate when the bladder isn’t full.

He says: ‘getting into the habit of constantly peeing leads to sensory urgency, in which the bladder is not full enough to need to be emptied but its owner misinterprets the signals coming from it. To use a central heating analogy, the thermostat is set too low.’

SWIMMING MAKES YOU WANT TO GO

YoU’vE just jumped in the water — but, within moments, you feel the need to pee.

Known as immersion diuresis, this is partly caused by greater increase in blood volume going to the organs because of the cold temperature of the water, explains Professor Elneil. This triggers a rise in blood pressure and, as a consequence, the kidneys start producing more urine.

‘There is also a neurological response — the fear or flight response — if you’re afraid, you suddenly want to pee and that is part of the mechanism.’