A urinary tract infection or UTI is a bacterial infection of the bladder. Symptoms of a UTI include frequent urination, urinary pain or burning and lower abdominal pain. Typically, a UTI is treated with several days of antibiotic medication. If antibiotic treatment is not an option for you, alternative cures for a UTI are available over-the-counter.
Cranberry
If you have a UTI, taking capsules or tablets of cranberry extract or drinking pure cranberry juice may help alleviate your bladder infection. Cranberry is believed to help protect the bladder by preventing bacteria from sticking to the bladder wall. This allows the bacteria to remain in the urine, where it can be quickly flushed out of the body.
D-Mannose
D-mannose is a simple sugar that is available in powdered or capsule form and can help prevent and treat UTIs. This sugar interferes with the ability of Escherichia coli (E. coli)---the primary bacteria believed to be responsible for causing UTIs---to bind to the wall of the bladder. Taking D-mannose during a UTI can help clear the bladder of E. coli and may prevent the bacteria from spreading through the urinary tract.
Vitamin C
Vitamin C (or ascorbic acid) has been shown to prevent the development of UTIs in pregnant women. A study cited in the September 2008 issue of the Alternative Medicine Review journal examined 110 pregnant women and found that of the women who took a daily supplement of 100 mg vitamin C, only 12.7 percent experienced a UTI. In contrast, 29.1 percent of women in the study who did not take a vitamin C supplement experienced a UTI. Vitamin C is believed to prevent UTIs by increasing the acidity of urine, thereby making it inhospitable to bacteria.
Berberine
Berberine is a naturally occurring antimicrobial substance that is found in the root and stem bark of a number of plants, including barberry, goldenseal and tree turmeric. Taking a supplement that contains berberine can inhibit the growth of bacteria within the bladder if you have a UTI. Berberine has also been demonstrated to prevent E. coli from adhering to the cells in the urinary tract.
Probiotics
Probiotics are a type of dietary supplement that contain healthy and helpful bacteria. Probiotics can also be found in yogurt, fermented milk and certain types of juice. A small study examining 10 women with recurrent urogenital infections (UTI, bacterial vaginosis and/or yeast infection) published in the October 2001 issue of FEMS: Immunology and Medicinal Microbiology found that twice-daily orally administered probiotics inhibited bacterial growth and prevented recurrent urogenital infections in these women over at least four weeks. Though further studies are needed to support the use of probiotics in the treatment of UTIs, probiotics have already been found effective in treating diarrhea, irritable bowel syndrome and bladder cancer.
References
- Alternative Medicine Review: Natural approaches to prevention and treatment of infections of the lower urinary tract; Dr. KA Head; September 2008
- FEMS: Immunology and Medicinal Microbiology: Oral probiotics can resolve urogenital infections; G Reid, et. al.; February 2001
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