Most people take bladder and bowel control for granted. It’s not a topic you think about much — until something goes wrong. But if you find yourself avoiding certain situations for fear of leakage, you are not alone.

An estimated 25 million adults have incontinence — the unintended loss of urine or feces that is significant enough to make it difficult for them to maintain good hygiene and carry on ordinary social and work lives. Sometimes incontinence is minor, and all you need is an occasional absorbent pad to keep enjoying your normal activities. But when you begin organizing your life around easy access to a bathroom or start giving up the activities that are important to you — your daily walk, travel, career, or sex — because you can’t control leakage, it may be time to take action.

If incontinence is preventing you from enjoying life, help is available.

Besides disrupting daily activities and nighttime sleep, incontinence can also chip away at your health. If you have stopped exercising, for example, you are giving up one of the most effective strategies for maintaining a healthy heart and bones. Getting up several times a night can lead to sleep deprivation, which makes it difficult to function normally during the day. Nighttime trips to the toilet can also be dangerous for those with mobility impairment. And incontinence that causes withdrawal from social interactions can result in depression.

Untreated incontinence can gradually become a major impediment to maintaining health and independence. For example, older women who frequently must rush to the bathroom are 26% more likely to fall and 34% more likely to break a bone. Incontinence is also a leading cause of nursing home placement, and that prospect drives some people to try to hide their condition rather than seek help.

While it engenders fear and embarrassment, rest assured that incontinence is not a psychological problem, a character flaw, or a personal failure. Incontinence is a medical symptom, and it deserves the same attention you would give to any other medical problem.

This report describes the common causes of urinary and fecal incontinence and how they can be treated. No matter how serious or long-standing the problem, there is help available — you may not find a total cure, but you can get help. Even if you have not had success in the past, advances in medical care provide a good reason to try again.

Easier-to-take medications have been developed for urinary incontinence. If surgery is needed, your options may now include outpatient procedures that work as well as major surgery. There are even treatments for the most severe cases of fecal incontinence, including an artificial sphincter to take over for one that cannot be repaired. With an ever-expanding variety of treatments and products to choose from, health professionals can help you find the best way to control leakage without losing out on your favorite activities.

One warning: Manufacturers have discovered that there is money to be made in selling products for incontinence. Your best bet is to choose products or treatments recommended by your doctor, using this report as a guide.