Readers respond to an article on nocturia and offer suggestions on how to deal with it
I was irritated and a little alarmed by your article on nocturia (Keep waking in the middle of the night to pee? Here’s why – and what to do about it, 11 March). Now they’re medicalising getting up to pee! Of course, I realise that if there’s a dramatic change in someone’s urinary habits, that might be cause for concern. However, even your article points out that “one leading study” found that “69% of men and 76% of women over the age of 40 lived with nocturia episodes that woke them at least once in the night”. Doesn’t it mean that this is actually, statistically speaking, normal?
I’m female and in my late 60s, and I have got up to pee at least twice, often three times, a night ever since I can remember – at least since my 30s. I don’t overindulge in alcohol, have never smoked, I’m not obese and most of my working life has not been spent sitting staring at screens. I have also never subscribed to the relatively recent trend of carrying a water bottle everywhere and consuming 1.5 litres a day.
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