Bloody or dark urine is one of the symptoms of urinary tract infection. If you ask, can stress cause blood in urine? What does it mean when you pee blood? There is no direct link between stress and urinary tract infection, but the increased stress can affect your immune system which can pay the way for various infections and illnesses. Stress can also increase the symptoms of lower urinary tract disorders.
Know About Stress
When you are under stress there will be a change in the emotion or physical tension. Stress can classify into acute stress and chronic stress. Short-term stress may not cause severe harm to your health as chronic stress does. Some of the incidents can take as examples of acute stress such as being stuck in a traffic jam, a fight or argument with your husband/wife, a costly item being damaged, and so on. When the stress continues for too long it can affect your overall body functions. Acute stress can become as chronic if it continues forever. Like, if there is a continuous dispute with family members continues every day.
Stress can cause serious health problems such as headaches, heart diseases, changes in blood pressure, and digestive problems.
Urinary Tract Infection Symptoms And Causes
A UTI is an infection that occurs when the harmful bacteria in the body infect your urinary parts such as the bladder, kidneys, urethra, and ureters. They usually infect the lower urinary tract which is very common and can easily treat with antibiotics. The inflammation while urinating is the symptom you can find in this infection. If the condition worsens, you may experience pain in the belly or groin.
A kidney infection is a more severe infection than a urethra infection and may cause back pain, fever, nausea, and vomiting. It can spread to other parts of the body. The symptoms of bladder infections include pelvic pain, increased count in urination, pain while urinating, and dark or bloody urination. The bladder infection is common in men.
UTIs are more common in women than men. It usually occurs when the urinary system fails to protect bacteria from entering the urinary tract. The bacteria travel through the urethra and after reaching the bladder, starts to multiply their count and cause infection. Other microorganisms also can cause urinary tract infections.
Risk Factors That Contribute To UTIs And Blood In Urine
The risk of UTIs may increase due to the following reasons.
- Urinary tract abnormalities in babies may affect normal urination and cause urine to store in the urethra. It can increase the chance of UTIs.
- The urine may get blocked in the bladder due to kidney stones or an enlarged prostate.
- Decreased immunity due to diabetes and other diseases may allow the germs to cause infection in the urinary tract.
- People with neurological problems may use a catheter to support their urination. Those people will have a high risk of UTIs.
- A recent urinary surgery can also increase the risk of developing a UTI.
- The shorter urethra in women makes it easy for the travel of bacteria to infect the bladder and cause UTIs.
- Diaphragms with spermicide for birth control can have a higher risk of UTI.
- After menopause, the changes in the urinary tract due to decreased estrogen in women can make them more vulnerable to UTIs.
- Cancer in the kidney or bladder can also cause blood in the urine. Bladder cancer can affect a person’s urination habits.
- You may experience pain during urinating, brown or red urine, and frequent urination if you have stones in the urinary tract.
- Blood clots can also cause blood in the urine.
- Some medications like the antibiotic penicillin, aspirin, or the blood thinner heparin can make your bladder bleed.
- A hard-hit trauma in the lower back area can also cause blood in the urine.
- Benign prostatic hyperplasia (BPH) is also called prostate gland enlargement and is common in men as they age. It causes urination difficulty and weakens the urinary stream. In some cases, it can cause bladder and kidney problems.
How The Stress Can Develop UTI If It Is Directly Not? – Can Stress Cause Blood In Urine?
There is no proof that stress causes urinary tract infection or blood in the urine. But there exists an indirect relationship between stress and urinary tract infections that can cause blood in the urine. How does it happen? If you are under stress, the stress hormone called cortisol secrets in your body. The prolonged stay of more stress hormones in your body can reduce immune response, and the body parts can get infected and inflamed. This decreased immune system can cause chronic infections.
The relationship between stress and urinary tract infection is a two-way relationship. Increased stress can affect your urinary health due to decreased immune system. In reverse, the infection can increase stress hormone production. The 2017 studies also found that there was an increase in stress levels in people with urinary tract health conditions.
You can notice the worsening of symptoms in people with urinary tract infections who experience more stress. The symptoms include;
- Painful urination
- Burning when you urinate
- Pain in the lower back area
- Belly pain
- Fever
- Cloudy, dark, or bloody urine
- Anxiety or stress can cause or worsen several lower urinary tract symptoms such as nocturia, bladder leaks, weak urine stream, urgency in the need to urinate, and painful urination.
- A 2015 study reports that people with overactive bladder conditions will urinate more often and have more stress than people without this condition.
- And another study in 2019 found that around 20 percent of children and teens with lower urinary tract symptoms experienced more stress than those without symptoms.
Lifestyle Changes To Prevent UTIs And Blood In Urine
You can prevent UTIs and bloody urination, by adopting some lifestyle changes.
- Drink plenty of water and keep you always hydrated. Water helps to keep the healthy urinary system.
- Women can avoid using scented products.
- Avoid holding urine for a long time.
- Unsweetened cranberries or juice have potential health benefits and are helpful for a healthy urinary system.
- Eating a probiotic containing lactobacilli can promote urinary health.
- Cognitive therapy can lower stress and boost immunity.
- Do meditation and relaxation techniques.
- Doing yoga is good for immunity and stress.
- Improve physical activity and exercise regularly.
Early addressing the symptoms is essential to avoid the infections spreading to other parts like the ureters and kidneys. Early detection and consulting a healthcare professional help you to prevent it from reaching a severe level.
If the UTI condition is left untreated, it can cause urosepsis which may affect other organs and lead to death.
Conclusion
Can Stress Cause Blood In Urine? Stress may not be the original cause, but it can affect the overall health and immune system. Stress can trigger or worsen the bleeding in urine as a weakened immune system allows the microbes to infect the organs.
If you experience stress and feel that it affects your urinary health and overall health, talk to your doctor and try to reduce your stress level. You can try yoga, meditation, and psychotherapy to get relief from your stress.
Also Read: Can stress cause heartburn? What the study says let us try to find in detail.
Tinydale is on YouTube, Click here to subscribe for the latest videos and updates.