Cranberries Don't Treat UTI: Recent Study Debunks Old Time Myth

For several years now, many people have believed that cranberries can cure UTI or Urinary Tract Infection. However, a new study revealed that the fruit actually does not lessen the frequency of of its occurrence. It does not cure UTI and won't prevent it from recurring.

The remedy using cranberries is already centuries old. According to The New York Times, there has been a significant amount of research investigating it. Some suggested that it may lessen repeated infections, but experts say it is not a treatment for already active cases. Antibiotics is still the treatment standard while some doctors may just recommend ibuprofen and rest.

Dr. Manisha Juthani-Mehta, lead author of the study, said he was hoping cranberries would work. However, the study showed no reduction of infections for females who took high-dose cranberry capsules equivalent to 20 ounces of juice for one year. Juthani-Mehta is a specialist in infectious disease at the Yale School of Medicine.

Moreover, UTI expert Dr. Lindsay E. Nicolle from the University of Manitoba said cranberry products should not be recommended and promoted as a medical intervention to prevent UTI. She also asked clinicians not to suggest that there is a proven benefit of the products.

Meanwhile, Medical News Today reported that cranberries can help in UTIs but not as juice. Such claim was according to a research published in the American Journal of Obstetrics and Gynecology earlier this year. The research acknowledged, however, that cranberry capsules can help.

Researchers pointed out that a cranberry capsule is equivalent to eight ounces of cranberry juice. For this reason, patients would need to consume an extremely large concentration of cranberry to fight infection. Sad to say, this amount is not found in the juice that people drink. It is possible to find stronger ones several years back, but not in these modern days. Experts say that while the juice concentrates found at grocery stores can help in hydration, they will not help treat or cure UTI. By the time it reaches a person's bladder, the active ingredient is gone.

Urinary Tract Infection affects part of the urinary system, bladder, urethra, or kidneys. Its symptoms include painful and frequent urination, blood in the urine, and pelvic pain.