Will ‘Holding It’ Make Me Colder? A Urologist Bursts This and Different Pee-Associated Winter Myths

Winter is a surprising season for spending time outdoors. The panorama sparkles with recent snow, there are far fewer of us on once-crowded trails, and views are sometimes spectacularly completely different than in hotter months. With the chilly comes loads of myths, although, not the least of which need to do together with your bladder.

So we chatted with Dr. Martha Boone, one of many first 100 ladies board-certified in urology and the writer of the just lately launched The Unfettered Urologist, who has 35 years of expertise within the subject, to straighten out a number of myths about how your bladder and the chilly could (or could not) be associated.

Fable #1: Holding it’ll make you colder.

If there’s one delusion extra pervasive than some other with regards to peeing outdoor within the winter, it’s that you just shouldn’t maintain it once you’re sleeping outdoors within the chilly as doing so really makes you colder. The argument plastered all around the web in practically each article about the way to keep heat whereas winter tenting goes like this: as a result of there’s extra liquid in your bladder, your physique has to work more durable to maintain heat. Subsequently, expelling it’ll make you are feeling hotter.

In response to Boone, although, that’s nonsense. In spite of everything, urine is manufactured inside your physique the place it’s (hopefully) 98.6°F. It begins at 98.6°, every thing round it’s 98.6°, due to this fact it stays 98.6° till it’s launched out of your physique.

“When urine is within the physique, it’s holding the temperature of the physique,” Boone explains. And it’ll proceed to take action with out a lot effort, because the human physique needs to stay in homeostasis.

That stated, the precise act of going—exiting your heat sleeping bag and tent and exposing your self to the chilly could make you colder. So to minimize the discomfort, preserve a sealable vessel like a Gatorade bottle or screw-top jar (these have a wider opening) within the tent with you and go in that.

Fable #2: There should be one thing mistaken with me, as a result of I’ve to pee extra typically within the winter.

Take coronary heart: feeling like you must pee extra typically within the winter is often completely regular. There could be a number of causes for this, most of which need to do with all of the methods your physique regulates fluid, says Boone. 

First, once you’re uncovered to frigid temps for an prolonged time frame, your physique diverts the blood out of your pores and skin to your core. That is known as shunting, and it’s the rationale your fingers and toes get chilly first. Your kidneys, which filter blood and produce urine, could learn this as elevated blood stress and in an try to succeed in homeostasis, launch extra fluid into your bladder, which makes you must go extra typically.

Moreover, within the winter, likelihood is you’re perspiring lower than once you recreate outdoors in hotter months, which suggests all of the fluids you eat are going straight to your bladder as a substitute of out of your pores as sweat.

On high of that, in case you’re chilly sufficient to shiver, your physique goes into thermogenesis, which acts to burn fats and glycogen in muscular tissues to be able to keep heat. Fats burning kinds carbon dioxide and water. The previous you merely breathe out, however the latter heads straight to your bladder, which means the colder you might be, the extra pee breaks you’re prone to want.

Thankfully, it takes various minutes’ publicity to chilly for all of this to occur, so that you’ll seemingly solely discover it on days you’re outdoors for lengthy durations of time or aren’t carrying sufficient layers.

Lastly, when you could also be tempted to attend so long as potential to go to cut back the variety of rest room breaks, take care, particularly in case you squat to pee. These assigned feminine at beginning run a better threat of bladder an infection in as little as a number of hours once they maintain it. For these assigned male at beginning, it’s seemingly secure to carry it for 5 to seven hours as a result of the urethra is longer. Girls’s bladders additionally maintain much less—350-450 ml to males’ 45-550 ml. So, in case you’re within the former group, don’t be stunned if you must go twice as typically as your male companions. 

Fable #3: I’m sweating much less within the winter so I can drink much less.

Sure, you could be sweating lower than in the summertime, however as evidenced above, you’re nonetheless shedding a major quantity of fluid by way of urine when it’s chilly, so it is best to nonetheless be sure to remain hydrated. (Sure, even when it means you must take away all of your layers a bit extra often.)

Nevertheless, Boone warns, “being in chilly for longer than about half-hour can lower your thirst mechanism. So in case you’re ready on your physique to inform you it’s thirsty, you’re extra prone to turn into dehydrated. Beneficial fluid consumption varies from individual to individual, however Boone recommends round 16 ounces for each hour of reasonable train.

The Backside Line

It’s that point of yr—time to cease believing these pee-related winter myths. Simply keep in mind to keep hydrated, go as typically as you must, and no, holding it within the wee hours when winter tenting gained’t make you colder.