About Incontinence - Treatment / Management Options - Fiber Therapy
Medical Reviewer: Carrie Carls , RN, BSN, CWOCN
Fiber absorbs liquids in the digestive system, thereby bulking up fecal matter. It is recommended that women younger than fifty consume 25 grams of fiber per day, and older than fifty consume 21 grams per day. Men younger than fifty are recommended to get 38 grams per day, and older than fifty should get 30 grams per day. The average American, however, only has about 15 grams of fiber per day in their diet. Fiber therapy is simply increasing your fiber intake gradually until you reach the recommended daily intake. Because fiber has such a great impact on your digestion of food, it is important that you increase your daily fiber gradually. Remember that fiber absorbs liquids in your body, so also increase your water intake as you increase your fiber. Increasing water intake along with fiber also helps to prevent possible side effects of gas and bloating.
How to get more fiber in your diet:
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Eat more whole grains (replace "white" pastas, cereals, and breads with whole grain varieties).
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Eat more beans, occasionally substituting them for meat.
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Use fiber supplements.
Who?
Fiber therapy is a non-invasive treatment that can be attempted by nearly anyone experiencing fecal incontinence. Fiber can help alleviate fecal incontinence by absorbing water and bulking up the fecal matter. Fiber therapy can also relieve constipation, which can also cause fecal incontinence (by causing liquid stool to leak out around a blockage).
The Pros
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As long as you increase your fiber intake gradually, getting the recommended daily dose usually doesn't hurt anything (unless you have allergies that make you sensitive to fiber-containing foods), so it's generally worth trying.
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Fiber is associated with lowering certain health risks, such as heart disease.
The Cons
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Fiber can cause bloating, diarrhea and flatulence (gas), especially when increased too quickly in the diet or when over-consumed.
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While fiber may help to alleviate incontinence, it usually doesn't cure it completely, so other treatment or management may be necessary.
Carrie Carls, BSN, RN, CWOCN, oversees pelvic floor retraining for urinary and fecal incontinence, performs urodynamics testing, treats painful bladder syndrome, and cares for wound and ostomy patients at Passavant Area Hospital in Jacksonville , Illinois . Her article, “Prevalence of Stress Urinary Incontinence in High School and College Age Female Athletes in the Midwest : Implications for Practice” appeared in the Journal of Urologic Nursing, February 2007. Her abstract, “Partial Thickness Wound Resulting from Use of a Penile Clamp to Control Urinary Incontinence in a Patient with Radical Prostatectomy” was presented at the Symposium of Advanced Wound Care in 2005. She teaches content in the areas of wound, ostomy, and continence care to baccalaureate nursing students at MacMurray College , and facilitates the West Central Illinois UOAA ostomy support group.
Page last modified 26 July 2009