Today, urinary tract infections are quite common in women and the use of cranberry supplements to treat them is also widespread.
How effective are cranberry supplements for the treatment of urinary tract infections?
Well, the truth is, once a urinary tract infection is diagnosed, cranberry supplements can't be used to effectively treat the infection. They can be used, however, to possibly prevent one.
Antibiotics are used to properly treat a UTI (urinary tract infection), with further tests required to determine when additional antibiotics are needed to completely alleviate the infection.
If you choose to use cranberry drinks, the cranberry juice drinks with the highest concentration of cranberry juice are usually recommended, since it supplies you with more of the actual cranberry product. Beware of the cranberry cocktails that only contain a small concentration of the cranberry juice, since they will not be as effective in providing the health benefits that the higher concentrated drink can give you.
Some theories believe that cranberry supplements contain some kind of component that prevents certain bacteria from adhering to the urinary tract and as a result invading the tissue around it.
A previous theory was that the cranberry supplement or juice would act as an acid to the urine and flush the urinary tract.
A final thought is that urinary tract infections are treatable but it's best to try and avoid them with preventative measures such as the use of cranberry supplements.
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