Urinary and bladder infections are usually caused by bacteria resulting in cystitis, an inflammation of the bladder. In fact, nearly 85 percent of urinary tract infections are caused by Escherichia coli, a bacterium found in the intestines.

Such infections are ten times more common in adult women than men and constitute the most common medical problem of pregnancy. Twenty-one percent of women have urinary infections at least once a year which may be uncomfortable or extremely painful.16

Symptoms

Symptoms are characterized by an urgent desire to empty the bladder. Urination is typically frequent and painful, such as a burning sensation. Even after the bladder has been emptied, there may be a desire to urinate again. The urine often has a strong, unpleasant odor and may appear cloudy. Many individuals may also experience lower abdominal pain.

Patient Self-Test

The patient can purchase a simple home kit from the local drugstore. It contains a thin strip of plastic that has been chemically treated. If the tip of this strip changes color when dipped in urine, it indicates the presence of a bacterial infection. The patient must make sure that the urine sample is collected cleanly by beginning urination, and then collecting a specimen while in midstream.

Why Bladder Infections Keep Reoccurring

Urinary and bladder infections have long baffled doctors - and agonized patients - with their resiliency. A strong dose of antibiotics usually brings immediate relief, but the painful infection often returns in as little as a few days. Recent research has discovered that the bacterium Escherichia coli can dodge antibiotics by invading the immune-system cells lining the wall of the bladder.17 Thus, E. coli can take shelter in the very cells that usually destroy them!

Pure cranberry juice (no sugar) or freeze dried cranberry in the quantity contained in Factor Eleven: CranPlex, prevents E. coli bacteria from attaching to the cells that line the inside surface of the urinary tract and bladder. Without the ability to invade these immune cells, the bacterium are flushed from the bladder during urination.

Antibiotics Losing Effectiveness

Antibiotic resistance has become a worrisome problem for physicians who treat urinary tract infections. First, because E. coli bacteria can evade antibiotics as demonstrated above. Secondly, such bacterium is showing resistance to the three most commonly prescribed drugs used to combat urinary tract infections. Recent clinical data suggests that ampicillin, trimethoprim, and trimetho-sulfamethoxazole, now used as first line treatment of acute cystitis, may not be acceptable choices for therapy for much longer.18 The study sites overuse and misuse in the alarming trend toward antibiotic ineffectiveness.

Recommendations to facilitate the immune system in fighting bladder and urinary tract infections:

1) Empty your bladder as often as possible - at least once every 3 hours - and empty it completely.

2) Empty bladder before and after both exercise and sexual intercourse to avoid undue strain.

3) Reduce intake of caffeinated drinks such as coffee, tea and colas. They tend to irritate the bladder.

4) Keep the genital and anal areas clean and dry. Avoid hygiene sprays, douches, and bubble baths as these may cause further irritation.

5) Take hot baths (sitz baths) twice daily for twenty minutes. Hot sitz baths will help relieve pain associated with cystitis.

6) Drink plenty of liquids. A six to eight ounce glass of quality water every hour is extremely beneficial for urinary tract infections.

7) Take the recommended label dosage of Factor Eleven: CranPlex.

8) Include celery, parsley, and watermelon in the diet as these foods act as natural diuretics.

9) Consider a low-protein diet, obtaining protein from vegetable sources such as peas, beans, lentils, and asparagus.

10) Women who suffer from recurrent bladder infections should not use tampons, and should always wear cotton underwear - never nylon.