Your ‘just in case’ wee before bed needs to stop, doctor warns

There are a whole load of habits many of us are guilty of, despite knowing how bad they can be for our health.

From not getting enough steps in and eating too much processed food, to sleeping with our make-up on and having too much screen time, it's clear there are heaps of day-to-day vices we do daily that are probably not the best for our bodies or minds.

But not many people know that something as seemingly innocuous as having a 'just in case' wee before you hit the hay can be bad for you, according to a doctor.

Yep, despite many of us growing up with parents and teachers alike telling us to have a wee 'just in case' before leaving the house, leaving a venue or entering a classroom lesson, this is in fact not very good for your bladder at all.

Speaking in an interview with Lorraine, the likes of Dr Amir Khan were asked: "Is it wrong to make yourself go for a quick wee before you go out or go to bed?"

"It's not wrong if you do it every now and again. You know, when you're going somewhere where you may not have easy access to a loo, it's okay to go for a just-in-case wee," he began.

However, the NHS GP went on to warn: "But if you're doing that a lot, that can train your bladder to need to go to the toilet when you don't need to because it's getting used to emptying when it's only a little bit full, not fully full.

"And that will send you messages up to your brain to say, 'right, you need to go when it's not full'. And that, in the long run, can lead to urge incontinence, that 'running to the toilet because you feel like you need to go when you don't actually need to'."

I'm sure many of us know that feeling.

According to Dr Khan, the best thing to do when your bladder isn't fully but 'just thinks it's full' is to do bladder training exercises.

"So when you get that urge to go, just give it a few minutes, perhaps two or three minutes to begin with, and every day just increase that time before you go to the loo by a couple of minutes," he recommended. "That will really help."

Interestingly enough, Dr Khan also mapped out that while it might sound 'counterproductive', staying hydrated is really good for your bladder.

This is because it not only helps with incontinence, but concentrated urine 'irritates the bladder more' and makes you want to go to the toilet more.

The health expert continued: "So the more you dilute your urine, the less likely you are to go. And of course, those all-important pelvic floor exercises."

After catching light of Dr Khan's advice, many rushed to social media to share their own experiences with bad toilet habits.

One Instagram user confessed: "I have this! I call it 'toilet anxiety', I always go a lot before bedtime!"

"I honestly I think I have toilet anxiety I’m always so scared I’ll be out and they’ll be no toilet and I’m always peeking when my bladder’s not full!" echoed a second.

A third chimed in: "I've definitely retrained my bladder and it keeps me up all night. It comes from my UTI issues/fears. Thank you so much for this information."

And a final viewer shared: "This describes me to a T. I have a 'go when you can because you might regret it otherwise' mentality. Every plane, train or car ride is preceded by a toilet visit, as well as bedtime."

Well, ladies, sounds like we need to get to those bladder training exercises STAT!