MRS. CLINTON'S WATER PROBLEM: A THEORY

A couple of years ago the Wall Street Journal published an article on the most common pieces of advice doctors gave their patients, but didn't take themselves.  In the list were "exercise often", reduce stress", and "to eat right."  But somewhere in that list there should've been "drink adequate amounts of water."  There are many medical conditions, and medications, that respond much better when the body is well hydrated.

​But when advising some female patients to drink more water, I've seen some wince, make a face, then share their reluctance to do so, claiming it makes them frequent the lady's room too often, interrupting their busy day.  Those who work in business or dresses explain that the undressing and redressing is a chore, more or less.  This of course does not apply to every business woman in professional dress, but apparently it's an issue for some.

​There's no difference in the volume capacity between a male and female bladder, which is about 16 ounces.  So why is it that some women apparently have to empty their bladders more frequently than men?  Or do they?

​Some have suggested this may be due to the woman's bladder pressing against her other interior parts, particularly the uterus, which is located above and over the bladder, pressing as it were, causing a nerve signal to prematurely alert the brain that the bladder is full, when in fact it is not.

​This may explain why some ladies shy away from drinking water to avoid urinating any more frequently than necessary.  The less water intake the longer it takes for the bladder to fill to the point of signaling the need to void.  But for some, and for some medical conditions, it may subject a woman to being insufficiently hydrated to recover from a particular illness.

​This may explain why Mrs. Clinton may be experiencing recurrent dehydration, twice by her admission, one last week, and "on more than one occasion over many many years" by that of her husband's admission during a recent interview with Charlie Rose.  This excludes those times she is off the radar, perhaps recovering from another bout of dehydration.

​According to her staff, Mrs. Clinton shuns drinking water, but not, according to them, for any particular reason.  But the reason just may be to avoid having to visit the lady's room more than she must, especially when out and about, remaining in control of her busy schedule.  What other reason would there be?

​This wouldn't be so much a problem perhaps unless it happens in warm, humid, weather, especially while wearing a business suit and jacket, resulting in her being insufficiently hydrated.  This in turn would cause, in the midst of being under hydrated and overheated, a hypotensive episode resulting in a sudden blood pressure drop, causing one's legs to weaken, buckle, or cause a fainting episode.

​Perhaps another inciting issue in Mrs. Clinton's case is this.  To everyone's knowledge we are not aware that Mrs. Clinton has had a hysterectomy in which case she still has her uterus, tubes, and ovaries.  This dehydration explanation would become even more acute if she were to have one or more uterine fibroids present, causing additional pressure on the bladder.

​Something similar would be going on with Mr. Trump if he were to have an enlarged prostate, one large enough to encroach upon the bladder and cause frequent urination.  But to date, he isn't the one who is getting dehydrated or falling out.

​But an additional aggravating factor in Mrs. Clinton's case is the 2012 concussion she suffered as a result of, according to her staff, being dehydrated and subsequently falling in a weakened state.  The nerve reflex that makes us know we need to urinate is primarily a spinal cord reflex, a connection between the bladder and spinal cord.  But it's in the higher centers of the brain that the final control over urination is exerted.  If, in a concussion, these higher centers have been damaged, then the inhibitory control over one's bladder is lessened, allowing for a lax bladder.  That is, a "weak" bladder in which the urge to urinate would happen quicker with a less than full bladder.  Therefore, one would be inclined to drink less water to avoid urinating frequently.

​If this is what is going on with Mrs. Clinton it would be no surprise to see her continue to have episodes related to insufficient fluid intake.

​One remedy for Mrs. Clinton, if she hasn't begun to do so already, would be to wear a disposable Depends diaper, which would allow her longer periods of time without having to duck into a restroom.

​In either case I hope she improves her health.  But if she continues to have health episodes of any kind, it may turn out to be sooner rather than later that the nation will learn that the Hill may in fact be over the hill -- and that, to some, would be just deplorable.  Almost as deplorable as if she were to win the election and be the first president in history to have to wear a diaper.