Bladder and bowel for adults

What can affect your bladder and bowel health?

Bladder control and bowel problems are common in adults. About 4 million Australians have bladder control problems and about 1 million Australians have poor bowel control.

Many things can affect your bladder and bowel health. Some of these things are life events like pregnancy or menopause, and others are diseases and conditions.

Some common bladder and bowel problems in adults are:

• incontinence
• prostate problems
• prolapse

In many cases, you can successfully manage your bladder and bowel problems yourself.

For some people, problems like incontinence can be ongoing and need help from others. This help can be from family members, health professionals or carers. There are also continence products available to help manage your incontinence.

What can you do to help?

Doctors and other health professionals can often help or even cure your condition. Even if you feel embarrassed to talk about your bladder or bowel problems, it’s an important first step.

Take control by understanding what bladder and bowel health is and being aware of bladder and bowel problems. Some other things you can do are:

• pelvic floor exercises
• get a bladder control check up
• get a management plan