The bowel, bladder, and pelvic floor are closely connected. When constipation causes stool to build up or leads to repeated straining, it can affect bladder pressure, urinary urgency, leakage, and the way the pelvic floor muscles function. Addressing constipation may therefore be an important part of improving bladder symptoms.
Updated August 24, 2026
Author: Elidah Medical Staff
Yes. Constipation and urinary incontinence frequently occur together, particularly in women.
In a meta-analysis of 16 studies involving more than 35,000 women, constipation was significantly associated with urinary incontinence. Women with constipation had approximately 2.5 times the odds of urinary incontinence compared with women without constipation.
That does not prove that constipation directly causes every case of urinary incontinence. The two conditions share several risk factors and can both be related to pelvic floor dysfunction. However, the physical relationship between the bowel, bladder, and pelvic floor provides several ways that constipation may contribute to or worsen urinary symptoms.
The bladder and rectum sit close together within the pelvis. When the rectum becomes repeatedly or significantly filled with stool, it can affect the bladder and surrounding pelvic structures.
There are several possible connections:
A rectum filled with stool occupies additional space in the pelvis. That can place pressure on the bladder and may contribute to feelings of urinary frequency or urgency in some people.
When significant stool accumulation is present, the bladder may have less space to comfortably fill. Someone may therefore feel the need to urinate more frequently or experience urgency at lower bladder volumes.
Bladder and bowel function are controlled by closely related pelvic nerves and muscles. Problems with one part of this system can occur alongside problems in another.
Chronic constipation often leads to frequent or forceful straining during bowel movements. Repeated straining increases downward pressure through the pelvis and can place stress on pelvic floor muscles and connective tissues.
Over time, bowel dysfunction, urinary symptoms, pelvic organ support, and pelvic floor function can become closely intertwined.
The pelvic floor does more than help prevent bladder leaks. These muscles also play an important role in bowel movements.
To maintain continence, the pelvic floor and anal sphincter muscles contract. To empty the bowel normally, certain pelvic floor muscles must relax and lengthen at the appropriate time while abdominal pressure helps move stool out.
In some people with chronic constipation, this coordination does not happen effectively. Instead of relaxing during a bowel movement, the pelvic floor may remain tight or contract when it should relax. This is sometimes referred to as a defecatory disorder or pelvic floor dyssynergia.
That distinction is important because pelvic floor problems are not always caused by weak muscles. A pelvic floor can be weak, overly tight, poorly coordinated, or a combination of these.
Pelvic floor dysfunction can therefore contribute to both bowel and urinary symptoms, including:
If constipation is persistent or you regularly need to strain, a pelvic floor physical therapist or other healthcare professional can help determine whether muscle coordination is part of the problem.
Constipation may occur alongside several types of urinary symptoms.
Pressure within the pelvis and interactions between bowel and bladder function may contribute to a stronger or more frequent sensation of needing to urinate.
Some people notice that they need to urinate more often when significantly constipated.
If urgency becomes difficult to control, a person may leak before reaching the bathroom.
Constipation does not necessarily cause stress incontinence directly, but chronic straining can repeatedly increase pressure on the pelvic floor. Stress incontinence occurs when urine leaks during increases in abdominal pressure, such as coughing, sneezing, laughing, lifting, running, or jumping.
Pelvic floor coordination problems can sometimes affect both bowel movements and urination. People with pelvic floor dysfunction may experience hesitancy, straining to urinate, or a feeling that the bladder has not completely emptied.
One particularly unhelpful cycle can begin when someone with bladder leaks deliberately drinks less water.
The logic seems reasonable: less fluid in means less urine out. But consistently restricting fluids can create other problems.
Not drinking enough fluid can contribute to harder stools and constipation. More concentrated urine may also irritate the bladder in some people and make urinary urgency feel worse.
The result can become a cycle:
Bladder leaks → drinking less → harder stools and constipation → more pelvic pressure and straining → potentially worse bladder symptoms.
Instead of severely restricting fluids, many people benefit from drinking appropriate amounts throughout the day while limiting beverages that personally worsen their bladder symptoms.
Caffeine and alcohol, for example, can increase urine production or aggravate urgency in some people. Our guide to diet and bladder incontinence discusses foods, beverages, and bladder irritants in more detail.
Occasional constipation can often improve with changes in diet, fluids, physical activity, and bathroom habits. Chronic or severe constipation may require medical evaluation or treatment.
Fiber helps add bulk and, depending on the type of fiber, can help retain water in stool. Good sources include vegetables, fruits, whole grains, beans, lentils, nuts, and seeds.
Increase fiber gradually. A sudden large increase can cause bloating or discomfort, particularly if fluid intake is inadequate.
Fluid needs vary based on body size, activity, medications, health conditions, climate, and diet. Unless your healthcare provider has instructed you to restrict fluids, intentionally becoming dehydrated to control bladder leaks is generally not a good long-term strategy.
Regular movement and exercise can support normal bowel function and overall health.
Repeatedly delaying bowel movements can allow stool to remain in the colon longer, where additional water is absorbed and stool may become harder.
A small footstool can raise the knees above the hips while sitting on the toilet. Leaning slightly forward with the feet supported may make it easier for some people to empty the bowel without excessive straining.
More force is not necessarily better. If stool cannot be passed without repeated forceful straining, addressing the constipation itself is preferable to continually pushing harder.
Many medications and supplements can contribute to constipation. Examples can include some opioid pain medications, iron supplements, anticholinergic medications, and certain medications used for other health conditions.
Do not stop prescribed medication on your own. If constipation began after starting a medication, discuss it with your healthcare provider or pharmacist.
Fiber supplements, osmotic laxatives, stool softeners, or other treatments may be appropriate for some people. Persistent constipation should be discussed with a healthcare professional so treatment can be matched to the cause.
It depends.
Pelvic floor muscle training is an established treatment for stress urinary incontinence, and strengthening weak pelvic floor muscles can improve bladder support.
But constipation is different. Successful bowel emptying requires the pelvic floor to relax and coordinate correctly, not simply become stronger.
If your pelvic floor muscles are weak, strengthening may be helpful. If they are excessively tight or fail to relax properly during a bowel movement, repeatedly performing strengthening exercises without addressing relaxation and coordination may not solve the problem.
This is one reason a pelvic floor physical therapist can be useful when constipation and urinary symptoms occur together. Treatment may involve strengthening, relaxation, breathing, coordination, bowel mechanics, or a combination depending on what your pelvic floor actually needs.
Our guide to pelvic floor dysfunction explains the difference between weakness, tightness, and poor muscle coordination in more detail.
Occasional constipation is common, but persistent changes in bowel habits should not automatically be treated as a pelvic floor problem.
Talk with a healthcare professional if constipation:
You should also mention urinary leakage, urgency, frequency, or difficulty emptying your bladder. Looking at bowel and bladder symptoms together may provide useful clues about pelvic floor function.
Improving constipation may reduce one factor contributing to bladder symptoms, but constipation treatment does not necessarily eliminate urinary incontinence.
If leakage continues after bowel symptoms improve, it is important to identify the type of urinary incontinence you have.
Stress urinary incontinence causes leakage with increases in abdominal pressure such as coughing, sneezing, laughing, lifting, or exercise.
Urgency urinary incontinence is associated with a sudden, difficult-to-control urge to urinate followed by leakage.
Mixed urinary incontinence includes symptoms of both.
Treatment can then be directed toward the actual cause of the bladder leakage instead of relying on fluid restriction or bathroom planning alone.
Elitone does not treat constipation. Its primary role is to treat urinary incontinence by producing repeated pelvic floor muscle contractions that strengthen the muscles responsible for bladder support.
Those contractions also create repeated movement and activity within the pelvic floor, similar to pelvic floor exercise. While Elitone has not been studied as a treatment for constipation, regular physical activity and movement are generally associated with better bowel function.
There may also be an important indirect benefit. Some women with bladder leaks intentionally drink less because they are afraid that more fluid will mean more accidents. Unfortunately, inadequate fluid intake can contribute to harder stools and constipation.
By reducing bladder leakage, Elitone may help women feel more comfortable maintaining normal hydration instead of restricting fluids to manage leaks. That can help avoid one of the behaviors that may contribute to the cycle of dehydration, constipation, straining, and bladder symptoms.
Elitone should therefore be viewed as a treatment for the urinary incontinence side of this cycle, while constipation itself should be addressed with appropriate hydration, diet, activity, bowel habits, and medical or pelvic floor treatment when needed.
Constipation is strongly associated with urinary incontinence, although research does not prove that it directly causes every case. Stool accumulation, pelvic pressure, repeated straining, and pelvic floor dysfunction may all contribute to urinary symptoms. A meta-analysis involving more than 35,000 women found that constipation was associated with approximately 2.5 times the odds of urinary incontinence.
Yes. The rectum and bladder sit close together within the pelvis. A rectum filled with stool can occupy additional pelvic space and may contribute to pressure, urinary frequency, or urgency in some people.
Constipation may occur alongside urinary frequency and urgency. Significant stool accumulation can affect space and pressure within the pelvis, while bowel and bladder function also share closely related nerves and pelvic floor muscles.
Constipation and overactive bladder symptoms frequently occur together. Addressing constipation may improve bladder symptoms for some people, although persistent urgency or urgency incontinence may require additional treatment specifically directed at overactive bladder.
Repeated forceful straining increases downward pressure through the pelvis and may place stress on pelvic floor muscles and connective tissues. Chronic constipation should therefore be addressed rather than relying on increasingly forceful straining to empty the bowel.
Severely restricting fluids is generally not a good long-term strategy unless a healthcare professional has advised fluid restriction for another medical reason. Inadequate fluid intake can contribute to harder stools and constipation, while concentrated urine may worsen bladder irritation or urgency in some people.
Not necessarily. Pelvic floor strengthening can help stress urinary incontinence when the muscles are weak, but bowel movements require the pelvic floor to relax and coordinate properly. People whose constipation involves an overly tight or poorly relaxing pelvic floor may need relaxation and coordination training rather than additional strengthening.
It may improve urinary symptoms when constipation is contributing to pelvic pressure or pelvic floor dysfunction, but it will not necessarily resolve an underlying continence problem. Continued stress, urgency, or mixed urinary incontinence may need its own treatment.
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