By Abujah Racheal, News Agency of Nigeria (NAN)
From hydration and diet to menopause, prostate problems and kidney disease, the everyday act of urinating can sometimes provide clues about what is happening inside the body.
While flushing the toilet is usually an automatic habit, taking a quick glance before you flush can actually provide valuable insights into your health.
A biomedical laboratory scientist, Mr Odeh Agabi, said urine was more than waste waiting to disappear down a drain.
“It can provide clues about hydration, diet, medicines and, sometimes, what may be happening inside the kidneys, bladder, urinary tract or other parts of the body.”
Agabi said the important word was sometimes.
“Urine is not a diagnostic test that can tell you exactly what is wrong. A change in colour does not automatically mean disease, and normal-looking urine does not guarantee healthy kidneys,” he said.
Dr Aisha Abubakar, a pathologist, said one of the simplest stories urine could tell was about hydration.
“The yellow colour comes largely from pigments produced as the body breaks down substances such as haemoglobin. As urine becomes more concentrated, its colour generally becomes darker.
“Pale yellow urine is commonly associated with adequate hydration; darker yellow or amber urine can occur when the body is conserving water, particularly after sweating, exercise, and exposure to hot weather or simply not drinking enough.
“But there is no prize for producing completely clear urine.”
However, Abubakar said pink, red or dark-brown urine might indicate blood, although colour changes do not always mean blood is present.
“Blood in urine can occur with urinary tract infections, kidney stones and other urinary conditions. In some cases, it can be associated with more serious disease,” she said.
Health professionals advise that unexplained blood in urine should be assessed, even if it happens only once.
Mr Douglas Akuba, a nutritionist and Chief Executive Officer of Green Economy Alternative Africa, said urine naturally had an odour that could change from one day to another.
“Certain foods, including asparagus, can produce a noticeably stronger smell. Dehydration can also make urine smell more concentrated, while some medicines and supplements may alter its odour.
“But smell becomes more meaningful when it arrives with other symptoms.”
According to Akuba, strong-smelling urine accompanied by burning or pain, increased frequency, urgency or cloudy urine may occur with a urinary tract infection.
He said a sweet or fruity smell could sometimes be associated with ketones, particularly in someone with diabetes.
“Significant ketone accumulation can lead to diabetic ketoacidosis, a medical emergency. Then there is foam.
“A few bubbles after urinating are usually not a cause for alarm. The force of the urine hitting the water can create bubbles. Persistent or unusually frothy urine, however, deserves attention,” he said.
A report by the U.S. National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases (NIDDK) said healthy kidneys acted as filters, removing waste while retaining substances the body needed.
According to NIDDK, when kidney filters are damaged, proteins such as albumin can leak into urine.
“A urine albumin test could help detect such kidney damage. However, not every foamy toilet bowl means kidney disease; testing is needed.’’
It said the colour of urine is only part of the story. Sometimes, the more important clues are about how a person urinates.
NIDDK said urinary problems could include frequent urination, sudden urgency, leakage, difficulty starting a stream, weak or interrupted flow, incomplete bladder emptying and repeatedly waking at night.
“These symptoms can have many different causes. For some people, the problem may be a urinary tract infection.
“For others, it could involve kidney stones, an overactive bladder, prostate enlargement, diabetes, medication or another condition,” it said.
Dr OluToyin Akande-Ajala, a UK-certified consultant geriatrician and healthy ageing advocate, said urinary changes were often wrongly regarded as an inevitable part of ageing.
“We talk openly about grey hair, wrinkles, stiff joints and changing eyesight. Urinary changes, however, often remain behind closed doors.
“That silence can leave people believing that leaking urine, rushing to the toilet or waking several times during the night is simply the price of getting older. It is not,” she said.
Akande-Ajala said ageing could affect the bladder, urethra and pelvic-floor muscles, while prostate enlargement could contribute to urinary symptoms in men.
In women, she said hormonal changes associated with menopause could affect the tissues of the lower urinary tract.
Dr Sarah Nuhu, Obstetrician and Gynaecologist, Consultant in the FCT, said the pelvic floor helped support the bladder and bowel and, in women, the uterus.
“Pregnancy and childbirth, surgery, ageing and other factors can weaken or affect these muscles.”
For men, changing urinary patterns with age may sometimes involve the prostate. She said benign prostatic hyperplasia (BPH) was common among older men.
“BPH is not cancer, but an enlarged prostate can narrow the urethra and affect urine flow,” she said.
Dr Huzaifa Musa, Consultant Obstetrician at the PhysiQ Health and Wellness Centre, Abuja, said repeatedly waking to urinate was known as nocturia.
“Nocturia can have several causes, including fluid intake, medicines, an overactive bladder, prostate enlargement, diabetes, sleep disorders and other health conditions.
“The answer is therefore not simply to stop drinking water. It is to find out why the person is waking up,” Musa said.
For people at increased risk, urine testing for albumin and blood tests to assess kidney filtration could detect abnormalities, particularly in people with diabetes or high blood pressure.
The UK National Health Service (NHS) advised medical assessment for blood in the urine, even if it occurs once, is painless or appears to be a small amount.
Urgent medical attention is also important if someone cannot urinate, develops severe abdominal, pelvic, side, or back pain, or has a fever or chills alongside urinary symptoms. Persistent pain or burning, recurrent urinary infections, and worsening difficulty emptying the bladder also warrant assessment.
Depending on the symptoms, specialists say assessment may include urine or blood tests, physical examination, bladder-function assessment or imaging.
They say treatment depends on the cause. Lifestyle changes, bladder training and pelvic-floor exercises may help some people, while others may require medicines or procedures.
Experts say that in Nigeria, health education must challenge the idea that urinary problems are simply an inevitable consequence of childbirth, menopause or ageing.
They say people need to know that urinary leakage is not a personal failure. Men should know that a weak urinary stream is worth discussing.
Women should know that menopause can affect urinary and sexual health, and that treatment is available.
They said that most importantly, everyone should understand that unexplained blood in the urine should not simply be ignored.
According to them, paying attention to urine does not mean becoming anxious about every flush. Urine naturally changes depending on what a person eats and drinks, how much they sweat, medicines they take and other factors.
All in all, experts note that the body does not always shout when something is wrong. Sometimes, it simply leaves a clue in the toilet bowl, and the most important thing we can do is stop, look and ask why.
(NANFeatures)
