In today’s blog, I am writing about a medical condition that is more prevalent in old people, young people also can be affected by this condition, sometimes. This medical condition is called:
NOCTURIA
It is a condition that causes you to wake up during the night to urinate. This condition becomes more common as people age and occurs in both men and women, sometimes for different reasons. It can be common for most people to wake up once during the night to urinate, but urinating more frequently may be a sign of this condition. Nocturia can be associated with daytime urinary frequency or occur by itself. It is important to distinguish nocturia from polyuria (urinating too much volume).
General causes of this condition include high fluid intake, sleep disorders, and bladder obstruction. This condition is more prevalent in elders than in young. But if it happens in younger people then it is cause for worry. In the young, this condition is generally caused by nocturnal overproduction of urine, and this is a kidney-driven urine production disease, as opposed to a bladder-driven urine storage condition.
Treatment of nocturia is targeted toward the underlying cause, which can be sleep disorder or prostate enlargement. Treatment options regardless of cause may include;
- Restrict fluids in the evening.
- Take afternoon naps
- Elevate the legs (this helps prevent fluid accumulation)
- Wear compression socks (this also helps prevent fluid accumulation)
- Take diuretics during the mid-to-late afternoon, six hours before bedtime.
Diuretics, sometimes called water pills (help rid of your body’s salt- sodium, and water)
Recent studies have indicated that nocturia and heart problems are related. It has already been proven that nocturia is a major condition for the elders, and to control this condition people are generally advised to restrict their fluid intake before going to bed.
Because of this elderly are afraid of drinking water before bedtime. They do not know that not drinking water before going to bed or getting up in the middle of the night for urination without drinking water is an important cause of early morning cerebral infarction(occurs as a result of disrupted blood flow to the brain due to problems with the blood vessels that supply it) in middle-aged and elderly people. Actually, nocturia is not a problem of bladder dysfunction. Nocturia is caused by the aging failure of the heart function in the elderly, and the inability of the right atrium to suck blood from the lower body. During the day, most of the time we are either in a sitting or standing position, and the blood flows down. If the heart is not good, the blood volume of the heart is insufficient, and the pressure on the lower body will increase, so middle-aged and elderly people will have lower body edema (swelling caused by too much fluid trapped in the body’s tissues) during the day. When they lie down at night, the pressure on the lower body will be relieved and a lot of water accumulates in the tissues.
Now, the water returns to the blood. If there is too much water, the kidneys will work hard to separate out the water and drain it to the bladder, causing nocturia. Therefore, it usually takes about three to four hours after lying down to sleep to get up and go to the toilet for urination. After three hours this cycle will repeat. Why is this an important cause of cerebral infarction and myocardial infarction (in plain terms-heart attack)? Because after two or three urinations, the water in the blood is greatly reduced. The body also continues to lose water through breathing. The blood then begins to become thick and sticky, and the heart rate slows down due to the low metabolism of the body during sleep. With thick blood and slow blood flow, the stenosis of the blood vessel is blocked. This is why middle-aged and elderly people always have myocardial infarction or cerebral infarction at 5 or 6 in the morning.
This situation will lead to death while asleep. Therefore, the first thing to tell everyone is that nocturia is not a malfunction of the bladder, but a problem of an aging heart. The second to tell everyone is that you must drink some warm water before going to bed, and you must drink some water after you wake up in the middle of the night for urination. Don’t be afraid of nocturia, because not drinking water may take your life. The third thing is you must exercise more in normal times to strengthen the functions of the heart.
Do not eat unhealthy food, especially high starch, and fried foods.
Waiting for your views on this blog.
Anil Malik
Mumbai, India
23rd March 2023