Nocturia is not only caused by drinking too much water before bed. From high blood pressure, prostate enlargement to sleep disorders, there are a series of reasons that can cause you to "break your sleep" every night.
Nocturia is something that almost everyone experiences at some point in their lives. However, if it happens almost every night and leaves you feeling exhausted, it could be a sign that something is wrong.
"It's normal to urinate about once a night. Twice a night is still acceptable if you're 65 or older. As you get older, your body can produce more urine at night," says urologist Kelly Casperson, MD (Bellingham, Washington, USA).
Urinating many times a night can be a sign that your body is suffering from some health problems (Photo: Unsplash).
In some cases, nocturia is just part of the aging process. However, if it happens more than once a night consistently or affects your quality of life, it can be a serious health problem.
Nocturia can originate from the following 8 causes:
High blood pressure
According to a 2019 study presented at the Annual Meeting of the Japanese Cardiology Society, people who woke up at least once a night to urinate had a 40% higher risk of developing high blood pressure. This number was higher in people who woke up more often.
If you have not been diagnosed with high blood pressure, you should also review your lifestyle to avoid risk factors such as diabetes, being overweight, eating salty foods, smoking, drinking alcohol, etc.
Sleep disorders
Many people do not wake up in the middle of the night because they need to urinate, but because of sleep disorders, typically sleep apnea. These disorders can cause shallow sleep, causing the feeling of needing to urinate at night.
Some studies also show that treating these problems can reduce the frequency of waking to urinate and reduce the volume of urine produced at night in many patients.
If you often snore loudly, feel sleepy during the day, or have been told by a loved one that you have sleep apnea, you should seek treatment early.
Drink too much before bed
Drinking too much alcohol and water in the evening is a very common cause of nocturia. Alcohol has a diuretic effect, and drinking large amounts of fluid close to bedtime will cause the kidneys to produce more urine at night.
Therefore, before going to bed, you should avoid drinking alcohol and stop drinking liquids about 2-4 hours. Don't forget to urinate right before going to bed, this is a normal action but is still ignored by many people.
Diuretics and some other drugs
Some people with underlying medical conditions are prescribed medications to treat edema or high blood pressure, which have diuretic side effects. If you must take a diuretic, your doctor will usually recommend taking it in the morning or at least 6 hours before bedtime to avoid needing to urinate at night.
Diabetes
When blood sugar levels are high, the kidneys have to eliminate excess glucose, leading to increased urine volume both day and night. If you are urinating a lot and have symptoms of thirst, fatigue, and weight loss, you should have a blood sugar test and urinalysis to check for glucose.
Benign prostatic hyperplasia
Benign prostatic hyperplasia puts pressure on the urethra and bladder, causing many people to have frequent urination and frequent urination. This is a common symptom in middle-aged and elderly men. In addition to nocturia, other symptoms that may appear are difficulty urinating and weak urine flow.
Have bladder disease
Eating a lot of spicy foods, drinking alcohol or having a urinary tract infection can cause the bladder to go on a “false alarm”, creating the feeling of needing to urinate even though the amount of urine is very small.
If you have signs of urinary tract infection causing frequent urination, painful urination, cloudy urine or blood, you need to be examined and treated early as prescribed. This disease is common in both sexes, especially in men with prostate enlargement, kidney stones or urethral stricture.
Eat a lot of salt
A 2019 clinical trial found that reducing salt in daily food also reduced the number of nocturia and the volume of urine at night in a group of patients who regularly consumed a lot of salt. Therefore, if you often urinate at night and have a high-salt diet, you should try reducing the amount of this spice in your daily food.
Nocturia is not usually a serious illness, but it can be a “signal” of cardiovascular, endocrine, sleep or urinary disorders. If this reduces the quality of sleep or occurs with unusual symptoms, you should see a doctor to find the cause and appropriate treatment.