Putting bums back on seats - BINS4Blokes campaign helping men and boys with incontinence enjoy life again

Then imagine it again with 1355 of those seats empty. That's the number of men or boys who may chose not to attend their favourite sporting event because of continence issues.

It's a stark mental picture that eludes to the real-life cost of a condition seldom spoken about - incontinence in men and boys.

Incontinence - the involuntary loss of bladder or bowel control - affects one in 10 men in Australia, of all ages.

Monday is the start of World Continence Week and this year the focus is on men and boys.

As part of the week, the Continence Foundation of Australia has launched BINS4Blokes, an Australia-wide awareness and advocacy campaign promoting the installation of incontinence product disposal bins in male public toilets.

The campaign is calling on government, corporations, community organisations and the general public to be part of the solution and put in a bin for blokes; just like the sanitary product bins that are in toilet cubicles for women.

In Australia, 1.34 million boys and men are living with urinary or faecal incontinence, with over a third (36 per cent) under the age of 50.

Despite this high number, there are very few bins installed in male public toilets around the country where men can throw out a used pad or disposable underwear.

Brad Butt is a Canberra pharmacist who has helped to make a breakthrough locally.

The managing partner of the Cooleman Court Pharmacy, Mr Butt has been a strong supporter of BINS4Blokes campaign after working with men with incontinence issues for a decade.

He successfully campaigned to get BINS4Blokes installed at the Cooleman Court shopping centre in Weston Creek, one in each of the men's toilet cubicles.

"The owner of the centre, Mirvac, put in bins at our request," he said.

"It's the same as when women go to the toilet and there's a sanitary bin in the cubicle, so it's very private and discreet.

"There is a bit of signage on the back of the doors, explaining what the initiative is. And Mirvac have been really proactive, which is great, encouraging other businesses and government and clubs and sporting facilities to put the bins in."

Mr Butt said men recovering from prostate cancer or other cancer, and boys and men who had a disability or were undergoing treatment for other medical issues, also often had to deal with incontinence.

Women were familiar with sanitary products and a move to incontinence products or management was often less of a big deal than with men.

"I think the problem with men is, they don't talk about it," Mr Butt said.

As a result, men would often opt out of many of life's joys, whether it's catching up with mates at the local club or seeing their footy team play, because they felt embarrassed about where they could dispose their used pad - or perhaps don't even know how to manage their incontinence to start with.

"We're finding that 50 per cent of men with incontinence issues won't go out if they can't identify somewhere to find a toilet with a bin," Mr Butt said.

"And, in fact, about a quarter of men with incontinence won't go out unless they are with family, so they're socially isolating because of it, and that's also causing mental health issues.

"The sad thing is they withdraw, and once they withdraw, it's a really slippery slope. Their general health declines as a result of their mental health issues."

Mr Butt said no one should have to suffer with that kind of anxiety. Especially when incontinence could be often be fixed with the help of management such as pelvic floor exercises, guided by a physiotherapist or fitness expert.

"What we know about incontinence is that it's not a normal part of healthy ageing, it's a symptom of something else, and often, with the right advice and support, incontinence can be cured," he said.

The Continence Foundation of Australia has a free helpline staffed by nurse specialists for anyone needing assistance on products, management of their condition or a referral to a specialist such as a physiotherapist.

It's on 1800 33 00 66.