Counteracting Obesity-induced Incontinence And Prolapse With Kegel And Pelvic Floor Exercises

Being obese predisposes you to two major problems with your body's infrastructure - incontinence and prolapse.

Putting on weight happens in two ways. Subcutaneous fat is deposited under the skin and visceral fat is laid down around your internal organs. When a person is overweight, a large amount of space in the abdominal cavity is taken up by excess fatty tissue.

These internal fat deposits cause an increase in intra-abdominal pressure and, multiplied by the effects of gravity, it all presses downwards, weakening the layer of muscle tissue that forms the pelvic floor.

This sling of muscles (often called the pelvic diaphragm) runs between the legs from the spine to the pubic bone and across to each sitting bone.

It surrounds each of the three openings in a woman's lower pelvis - the anus, the vagina and the urethra - and its primary purpose is to hold in place the bladder, the rectum and the uterus.

Parts of the vagina, urethra or rectum can bulge out (or herniate) through increased intra-abdominal pressure, resulting in damage to the muscles that control the excretion or urine and feces. When weakened, these sphincters open inappropriately or continually causing various degrees of incontinence; or do not open properly at all, leading to constipation.

Another side-effect of obesity's effect on the body's pelvic infrastructure is that the weakened muscles loosen or sag causing the womb, bladder or rectum to start to fall out of the body. This is called prolapse and, in many cases, surgery is the only answer.

Research shows that women who are morbidly obese often have unimpaired sexual function, even though their pelvic floors are twice as likely to be damaged than those of women of a normal weight.

In addition to losing weight, Kegel and pelvic floor exercises can be instrumental in protecting the body from the damaging effects of abdominal pressure as they help to restore the structure of the pelvic floor.

Regularly squeezing and releasing the Pubococcygeus muscle (that's the one you use to urinate) exercises the whole pelvic diaphragm and helps it to retain the correct tension, keeping everything where it should be.

A major benefit of these exercises is the prevention of hemarrhoids and urinary tract problems because the increased blood supply aids the health and tone of these tissues.

The effect of the exercises can be increased if you perform the exercises at the same time as using a neuromuscular stimulator. Pre-programmed specifically for frequency, as well as urge and stress incontinence, these devices also help stimulate the muscles in the vagina and rectum through vaginal and anal probes.