A UK urologist has weighed in on a viral online debate about whether women should or shouldn't urinate in the shower, saying there is "no evidence" it causes incontinence as another physician claimed.
TikTok doctor Alicia Jeffrey-Thomas posted a video last month explaining the potential dangers of the habit including a claim that women "aren't designed to pee standing up".
Viewers were floored by the video which racked up almost 30,000 likes when 'TikTok's Pelvic Floor PT' outlined that the sound of the running water could cause you problems.
Dr Jeffery-Thomas claimed peeing either in the shower or on the toilet while the shower was running could create "an association in the brain between the sound of running water and having to pee".
To clear things up, the Daily Mail spoke to urological surgeon tr Jay Khastgir.
Dr Khastgir said that bladder control is determined "by complex neural mechanisms" that control the switching between "storing and voiding" urine intermittently.
"The association with environmental factors such as the sound or feel of running water or entering their front door (latchkey incontinence) is anecdotal," he said.
"It may suggest subconscious associations that interference with nerve pathways that 'buffer' between stimulus and response.
"But in reality, there is little or no evidence that urgency incontinence may be caused by habitually urinating in the shower."
He added there's little cause for concern when it comes to women standing while peeing either.
"There is no evidence that it has a detrimental effect on bladder emptying. In one study the flow was weaker when standing but the bladder emptying was no different between the standing and sitting or crouching position," the urologist said.
So there you go - if peeing in the shower is part of your daily routine, don't worry about it causing incontinence.
