Do you often wake up at night just because you need to go to the bathroom just to urinate? It’s only natural if that need isn’t happening frequently. However, if you’re doing that too often and you’re somewhat old, chances are that you’re already suffering from a medical condition called Nocturia.
Nocturia: Definition and Causes
To those who didn’t know, Nocturia is a medical condition that makes the person feel the constant need of urinating, therefore waking him or her up late at night just to do it. It’s a very different matter compared to Enuresis or bedwetting, which occurs frequently among children.
There are many probable causes for you to experience nocturia. If you tend to drink more water or coffee right before bedtime, you can experience this. Alcohol also is a well-known factor since it’s a very popular diuretic. To those who didn’t know, diuretics are substances that make our kidneys expel excess water from our bodies through urinating.
You may say that it’s just normal for us to have the need to go to the bathroom during the night, especially if you think that drinking excess fluid are the real reason behind this. However, if you’re one of those who think this way, you’re definitely wrong.
According to some doctors, scientific studies have shown that even though nocturia is more of a habit rather than a disorder, chances are that having this could indicate a more serious problem. Those who suffer from nocturia, especially those who urinate at least three times or more during the night may also be experiencing chronic renal failure, diabetes, hypercalcemia or congestive heart failure.
Just as mentioned earlier, diuretic medications which are used to treat inflammations or hypertension may also cause nocturia. Other prescription drugs that are known to cause nocturia are furosemide, lithium, phenytoin, methoxyflurane, demeclocycline and propoxyphene.
In addition to that, obstructive sleep apnea is also well-known to contribute in nocturia. This is due to the fact that since people are becoming aware or conscious of urinating during the night, chances are that their mind is constantly being alerted, thereby causing the person to lose sleep. Hormonal changes can also affect people’s activities especially urinating so you must carefully take note of that.
In older men, on the other hand, nocturia is often caused by benign prostatic hypertrophy, a medical condition wherein the prostate gland becomes enlarged and the inflammation is known to obstruct urine flow. This usually occurs in men over fifty years of age.
So whether you’re a man or a woman, you must make sure that you’re healthy all the time. So if you find yourself waking up in the middle of the night just because you want to urinate, better find yourself a good doctor.