Blackpool's Coleen Nolan opens up about health issue she's had for three decades

59-year-old Coleen has said she wants to get people talking about bladder leakage which she has suffered from since the birth of her first child, Shane Nolan, when she was 23.

Speaking on Loose Women on Tuesday (January 7), Coleen said: “We have talked about it among ourselves. We'll say, 'Oh my God, I wet myself at that yesterday' or 'I nearly wet myself today laughing at that topic'. After the show when we are back in our dressing rooms, we talk about it, doing our debrief. I love the fact that you don't have to feel alone with it.”

Coleen has three children: Shane and Jake whom she shares with EastEnders actor Shane Richie and daughter Ciara who she shares with Ray Fensome.

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The Loose Women star, who is an ambassador for incontinence products brand Always Discreet, also admitted that the leakage has become worse over the years, particularly if she laughs, sneezes or coughs.

The TV star added: “My bladder issues were from having my first child really. When you are younger, and they are going on at you about doing your pelvic floor exercises, you say 'yeah, whatever'. I'd do them, but not regularly, and then three children later you think 'maybe I should have done them when I was told’.”

This is not the first time that Coleen has been open about her health.

She has also been vocal in the past about her strugggles with her weight and also quitting smoking, having finally achieved that two years ago.

According to the NHS website: “Urinary incontinence, also known as involuntary urination, is any uncontrolled leakage of urine. It is a common and distressing problem, which may have a large impact on quality of life.”

It reportedly affects one in three women of all ages and to improve urinary continence, the NHS suggests 10 top tips.

1-Do daily pelvic floor exercises

2-Stop smoking (coughing puts strain on pelvis floor)

3-Do the right exercises (replace high-impact exercise, such as jogging and aerobics, with strengthening exercise, such as pilates)

4-Avoid lifting (strains pelvis floor)

5-Lose excess weight ( pressure of fatty tissue on your bladder)

6-Treat constipation promptly (straining to poo weakens pelvis floor)

7-Cut down on caffeine (irriates bladder)

8-Cut down on alcohol (diuretic)

9-Drink plenty of water (limiting fluid makes incontinence worse)

10-Eat the right foods (spicy and acidic irritate bladder)