Beat and Prevent Urinary Tract Infections Without Drugs
Urinary tract infections (UTIs) like cystitis are extremely common, particularly among women. It’s estimated that up to one in every five women will develop an infection of the urinary tract during their lifetime.
The main reason why women are more prone to this condition is because the female urethra (the tube that carries urine from the bladder to outside the body) is shorter than men’s. This allows bacteria like Escherichia coli (E. coli), which normally lives in the colon, to reach the urethra where it can quickly multiply. The long male urethra offers better protection against urinary infections because it’s difficult for harmful bugs to reach it.
Urinary tract infections can be caused by a variety of micro-organisms, including bacteria, viruses, worms, and fungi like the candida fungus that causes thrush. 85 per cent of the time these micro-organisms come from the bowel and can easily find their way from your anus to the outside opening of your urethra… from here they can eventually reach your bladder and result in an infection developing.
In addition, if you’re under stress, taking oral contraceptive drugs or eating too many sugary foods or carbohydrates – hopefully the latter doesn’t apply to you as a health-conscious NHR reader – your risk of suffering a urinary tract infections is greatly increased.
How nausea and tiredness can spell trouble with your waterworks
Urinary infections are divided into ‘upper urinary tract infections’ involving your kidneys; and ‘lower urinary tract infections ‘ involving your bladder, the length of your urethra or just the outside opening of your urethra. Upper urinary tract infections cause many symptoms, including fever, pain in the loins, nausea, vomiting, fatigue and alternating spells of feeling hot and then cold.
Lower urinary tract infections often result in pain in the lower abdomen, a feeling of needing to pass urine frequently or urgently, a burning sensation when passing urine and/or blood in the urine.
Both types of infection can be easily diagnosed following simple urine tests, which can be performed at your doctor’s surgery. These are able to detect whether there is protein, sugar or blood in the urine – all signs that an infection is present.
Orthodox drugs can cause thrush and other adverse effects which aggravate the problem
If you are diagnosed with a urinary tract infection, your doctor will probably prescribe a course of antibiotics like trimethoprim or amoxycillin. However, these drugs don’t always work and can cause many unpleasant side effects, including allergic skin reactions (rash and itchiness), vomiting and diarrhoea.
One of the major drawbacks of using antibiotics is that they can cause thrush. In addition many sufferers find that their urinary tract infections clears up after treatment with antibiotics only to return again a few weeks or months later. Taking repeat courses of antibiotics is not advisable because of the numerous side effects attached to them.
Apart from treatment with antibiotics, conventional medicine has little else to offer. That’s why following a natural treatment approach is often by far your best option.
How to break free from the antibiotic trap once and for all
Fortunately, there is a range of natural ways of combating the problem that mean you don’t have to get caught up in a vicious cycle of taking repeat courses of antibiotics:
1. Avoid a high carbohydrate diet. Excess sugar and refined carbs, such as white bread and pasta, in your diet can soon cause sugar to accumulate in your urine. This makes it far easier for infections to develop by providing nourishment to the bugs that cause urinary tract infections.
An example is candida (thrush), which thrives in high sugar environments. To lower your risk of urinary tract infections, eat more green vegetables and high protein foods such as oily fish (mackerel, sardines and haddock) — all of which boost your immune system and help it fight the infection more effectively.
2. Studies show that cranberries help keep urinary tract infections (UTIs) at bay (Home Health Nurs 1997;15(3):198-202). Cranberries work by preventing the bacteria from attaching themselves to the inside lining of your bladder and urethra (Pinn G. Aust Fam Physician 2002;30(10:974-977).
Cranberries are also thought to help improve the overall health of your bladder and urethra, as they contain antioxidant plant chemicals which prevent chronic damage to the urinary tract from occurring (Reid et al. Spinal Cord 2001;39(1):26-30).
The problem with deriving these benefits from drinking cranberry juice is that, for it to be effective, you would need to drink around 16 glasses a day. Many forms of cranberry juice on the market only contain very low amounts of cranberries, the rest is made up of water and sugar. Obviously this goes against the advice given earlier to avoid sugar. For this reason, a good alternative is to consider taking cranberries in supplement form instead. The recommended dosage is 600mg of concentrated cranberry tablets a day.
3. Make sure sex isn’t causing the problem. Sexual intercourse irritates the opening of the female urethra in the vagina, which increases the chances of bacteria entering it (Acta Obst Gynecol Scand 1998;77(6):654-659; Epidemiol 1995;6(2):162-168).
The old-fashioned advice to go and pass urine just after sexual intercourse is a good way of ensuring that the majority of harmful bacteria are flushed away. By doing this, the likelihood of an infection developing is considerably reduced.
4. Avoid caffeine and alcohol which irritate your bladder. Drinking dandelion or camomile tea can soothe the burning sensation in your bladder and also boost your immune system. Make sure you drink at least eight glasses of water a day to help rid your urinary tract of harmful bugs.
In addition, wear loose underwear and choose cotton material, which is far less irritating. Having a bath makes it much easier for bacteria to reach your urethra from your anus, so opt for showers instead.
5. An easy way to gain relief. Mix one teaspoonful of bicarbonate of soda (available from supermarkets) to 300ml water and drink this every hour during the first few hours of an attack. This reduces the acidity of the urine and kills the bacteria in it.
In addition, acupuncture has proved successful in helping to reduce the likelihood of repeated lower urinary tract infections, particularly for women (Aune A,et al. Scan J Primary Health Care 1998;16(1):3
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I have Multiple Sclerosis and have to self catheterise which is causing multiple urine infections, the doctors run out of ideas as after using several antibiotics nothing will clear my infection. I’m so tired, any suggestion! I’m ready to try anything now, I’m desperate.
hi i m 25 years old i have a UTI problem since 2 years i take 2 much antibiotic but its come again and again my urine i have a cysts and ectopic pragnancy surgury i m in tension
Hi,I’m a 26yr old male Quadriplegic with a C5 n 6 injury,I have Supra public catheter and often get urine infections,I get tired,lots of abdominal pains and its hurts when passing stools,my doctor says I need a urine diversion which means removing my bladder but I don’t wana do the opp,pls help,what can I do?
I just wanted to share that I had a urethral dilation performed, and it gently reduced the frequency of UTI’s. I was getting them every few weeks for a while, and after the procedure, I have not had a UTI for almost a year. I got comfortable and forgot to urinate after having sex a few days ago though.
After reading all the above I wanted to share my life time history of UTI and the many journeys I have been on. Since a child I have had urinary infections but once I became older and started having a sex then these infections came back consistently. It got to the point where they dictated my work life, relationships, holidays and general well being. I have been to many doctors and have had all the antibiotics you can try.. I am now in my early 40’s and have finally got a clearer understanding thanks to a doctor who has put me on a course of ‘a type of antibiotic’ which kills ‘candida’. Up until this I felt like my week consisted of balancing my acid levels, heaps of water , pro biotics… picking certain days – time which is good for sex and so on all to get around the symptoms of a UTI. I am now 5 weeks on with clearing out candida and keeping on a gluten free, sugar less diet, no wine etc. and feel great. As soon as I started on the prescription I felt lighter and brighter. I also know to keep up with all the other do’s and don’ts but I must say no other doctor has given this a go. He has also suggested using nilstant instead of canestan as not all the bacterias respond to canestan. There is a chance that UTI is something that is vulnerable to my body type but at least I feel I have hit the nail on the head. Keep up a daily intake of probiotics, eliminate Candida, make sure you are lubricated before sex and lastly avoid sex in the first 5days after your period… these are some tips which have made a huge difference to the intensity of the UTI. Natural balance and work with what nature needs inorder to protect your immune system.. hope this helps liberate our lives.
I have chronic UTI’s and it is a nightmare, but I have figure out how to get them under control without taking antibiotics. I have taken way too many for way too long and may now be battling a serious candida issue (look it up!) which has lead me into a vicious circle of infections, antibiotics, illness, antibiotics…you get the picture.
Naturally treat UTI: Immediately upon discomfort, drink 100% pure cranberry CONCENTRATE. Take three D’Mannos capsules twice a day. Drink water, drink water, drink water. Herbal teas. NO sugar or simple carbs.
D’Mannos clings to the specific bacteria that is causing your UTI’s and literally flushes them out when you pee. It is a miracle worker that has saved my life. Do your research if you don’t believe me.
I’m 22 and been sick since I was 18 with Rheumatoid Arthritis, because of my medication I keep getting UTI every two weeks, I’ve one at the moment and it driving me mad, please someone help me…
If e coli has caused your water infection D mannose is very good. I suffer from candida and it effects my bladder very badly, too many antibiotic’s caused this problem for me. To manage the symptoms I drink vegetable and fruit juices which make my system more akaline and I also take raw garlic, a couple of cloves at night. Yes, awful but it works, diets a biggy too with candida. (parsley leafs takes the garlic smell away)
hello My name is cheryl robertson i had a car carsh 4 years ago i get quite a few urine infections and thier is some antiobitcs i cant go on my urine is smelly and my bladder sometimes go by its self.I had a bladder opperation last year to tigthen the muscles up but i dont think it worked I am sick of getting urine infections my gp dose’nt help all the time.I was woundering if you know if you can help me.
I have suffered from symptoms such as cystitis etc. ever since the age of 13 – I was not sexually active and this recurred about 2-3 times a year.
For 2 years i did not have any problems until a became 16. I was prescribed Trimethoprim which cured the painful urination and foul smelling urine for about 3 weeks and now it has returned and i’m fed up of being afraid to go to the toilet because of the painfulness. I used to eat a lot of cranberries and I ate appropriately as said in the passage but its still recurring!!
I’ve had UTI for the last 8yrs, and indeed antibiotics only work temporarily only for the menace to pop up again. I realised tight fitting inner wear, and dehydration mostly resurrected the problem. This site has opened my eyes to simpler remedies away from medicines. Thank you for this.
I had UTI for so many years and the embarrasing thing is that my GP (quack if you asked me) consistantly misdiagnosed it as a sexually transmitted disease! He treated me as if I was some kind of sex worker – meantime I’m in a commited loving relationship and have never cheated or even thought of it! Thankfully I decided to see a specialist and he was wise enough to find the real problem… Normal GPs are only trained to write presciptions and they are a bunch of monkeys! This site is great. Thank you.
Please listen to this, to all those women who may have re-occuring symptoms. I am this woman, I feel your pain as I had re-occuring UTI’s ever since I was 18 and began having sex. I have taken Amoxycillin for it for 30 or more cases in past 7 years. At one point, every two months it would reoccur. It is not only one of these steps that you can be fixed up or cured by, it is all of the above page. Once you have used amoxycillin prescribed by your doctor, use Ural in glasses of water to ease the pain. If it doesn’t stop hurting in one week, get a repeat script of amoxycillin.
Then, each day for about a month take one cranberry supplement tablet (or 2) a day. And one inner health plus a day to ensure your healthy bacteria take over your colon and digestive system again. Antibiotics seem to reduce all bacterias in your body.
Always wash (shower)before sex and after use the toilet for a good urination. About 15 seconds or so stream.
If your thirsty at this point take a full glass of water to bring on your next wee, as dehydration can be the main root cause noted by myself. Alcohol, sweets and spicy food should be limited and see to it most of your diet should be plain or green to avoid the environment that helps reinfection occur. Don’t have too much alcoholic drinks one night then no water at all, this is another bad idea. If you feel depressed after reading this, its worse to be in pain and not feel like there is a solution out there.
Hi it seems like I keep on getting urine infections at least twice a yr and I am so tired of it. I’ve been to the Doctors and they gave me macrobid that didn’t work and now I am taking levequin and I still feel burning when I wee.
Dear Coleen, I don’t think your problem is with a Urinary Infection, I think you may have Candida – very few doctors acknowledge this – which is a fungus growing in your intestines… Sounds weird but it is true and the fact that you have thrush so often tells me you may want to go and speak to a doctor that can tell you more about anti-fungus medication. If you don’t want to do this, I suggest you try Wormwood (from a website organic nutrition) and also olive leaf extract. These are both 100% natural and can only do you good. It will clean out your system and kill any bad bacteria or fungus. Give it a go and see if you improve. Good Luck.
I keep having recurrent thrush for years I have abdominal pain and bloating, feeling of tiredness, change of bowel habits and bleeding from anal area I was sent for colonscopy and was given all clear however these symptoms remain. I have recently developed what I think is UTI having to pass water more than usual severe abdominal pain once finished and bleeding alot from uretha for couple of days please could I have advise as I am now really beginning to worry
Hi,
My doctor has insisted on lowering my thyroxine medication. I was taking 300 at 15 and then over the last ten years, reduced from 200mcg to 150mcg but I now have CKD stage 3 and seem to develop UTI’s quite regularly (I need the toilet about 20 times thoughout the night pasing 50mls each time appprox). Please advise me.
Thanks
Recently I have experienced Uti, (mainly passing water every ten minutes thoughout the night especially ) I wa given antibiotics by the doctor (BAXAN)
This tend to give me fluid retention rather uncomortable , but I finished the course.
I have been taking thyroxine since I was 6 or 7 yr oldd I am now 61. The doctor group have gradually decreased ,my dosage over the last 10 yrs or so I originally was taking 300 m cg and recently was put ddown to 175 then last time my blood test was 25 t4 .38 tsh so I was told to reduce the dosage again to 150 mcg. But when I wa given the result at the surgery the result read 126 TG$ and .12 TSH. Why did it go down instead up slightly up? I became nervous when the doctor told me to take even less thi time He wanted to reduce my dose to 100mcg. Although it appears I am hyperactive from the results. I took a Barnes test (basal temerature) It read 35.5. Then I becam ill with a UTI and a temperature of 38.5 that was when I was given antibiotics. I still have the UTI frequently passing small amoujnts of urine especially throughout the night.
It smells, rather like thrush, I think, Could this be a deficienccy in salt or maybe sodium , if so would it be related to the reduced dose of levo thyroxine (sodium)
also could it be a sign of diabetes insipidus?