Let's Talk About Bladders | womenshealth.gov

Let's Talk About Bladders | womenshealth.gov

Let's Talk About Bladders

January 21, 2016 • By Tamara Bavendam, M.D., M.S., Program Director, Women's Urologic Health, National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases

The bladder isn't given much thought. Unless it demands our attention, we simply ignore it. And we rarely talk about it… except to make sure our kids use the bathroom before a long car ride. But ignoring the bladder has costs.

Our silence around the bladder has made the subject taboo. Even though 30 million Americans have bladder problems, many are too ashamed to get help. But every woman should know how her bladder works and how to keep it healthy. So from time to time, I'm going to drop in to talk about bladder health, bladder problems, and the treatments that help millions of women have good relationships with their bladders.

But first, let's start with the basics.