A Urinary Tract Infection (UTI), is a painful infection that affects parts of your urinary system. The parts of your urinary tract mostly affected by UTI includes:

Bladder
Urethra
Ureters
Kidneys
The urethra is mostly affected by urinary tract infections, including the bladder.

Urinary tract infections affects men, but the condition is more common among women because they have a shorter urinary tract, making them more susceptible to infections. Antibiotics can be used to treat UTIs because the infection is caused by bacteria.

Common symptoms of urinary tract infection include:

extreme urge to pass out urine
burning sensation when urinating
frequent passing of small urine at a time
cloudy urine with an unpleasant smell
urine may look red, pink, or brownish
pelvic pain in women

READ ALSO: Urinary Tract Infection: Symptoms, Causes, Diagnosis, and Treatment

What is Apple Cider Vinegar?
Apple cider vinegar is obtained from the fermentation process of apple cider, and it contains lots of health benefits. ACV has been used for a long time now to treat different health-related diseases, making most people to claim it has the potency to cure almost all diseases.

However, researchers have deflated most of these claims that have been blown out of proportion since there is insufficient scientific proof to support the assertions.

Though the use of apple cider vinegar to manage diabetes has shown promising results in several conducted researches. Apart from helping to control diabetes, apple cider vinegar also contains properties that support weight loss, in a mice study. There have been inconclusive studies based on limited data to show the effectiveness of ACV to treat other health-related issues.

So far, there is little or no scientific evidence to support the use of apple cider vinegar to treat urinary tract infection. However, there may be some benefits attached to using ACV for UTI.

Does Apple cider vinegar Have Benefits for UTIs?
Apple cider vinegar is quite beneficial to health. Studies have shown that ACV is capable of preventing future UTIs, but is unable to treat a urinary tract infection once the person has already been infected. This means that apple cider vinegar can be an active preventive remedy for UTI, but not a curative remedy.

If UTI is left untreated for long, it can spread out to the kidneys, leading to severe complications. Ensure you consult a doctor immediately for timely diagnosis if you feel any UTI symptom(s).

READ ALSO: Benefits of Apple Cider Vinegar for Women

To diagnose UTI, a sample of your urine would be sent to the lab for test to establish if a bacteria, a virus, or fungus is responsible for your infection.

Though bacteria is responsible for most UTIs cases, hence the need for antibiotics. Ensure you complete your medicine as recommended by your doctor even when symptoms disappears. This is because the wrong use of antibiotics can give bacteria the chance to develop a resistance to antibiotics.

Can Apple Cider Vinegar Treat Urinary Tract Infection?
Apple cider vinegar cannot cure or treat a urinary tract infection, according to Christine Greves, M.D. and ob-gyn at the Winnie Palmer Hospital for Women and Babies.

Though ACV contains acetic acid which can help reduce the activities of the bacteria. According to results of a 2018 preliminary study published in the journal Scientific Reports, ACV may help impede the growth E. coli, which is one bacteria responsible for causing UTI. However, more studies need to be conducted on humans to authenticate this result.

Most people with UTIs drink apple cider vinegar hoping the acidic nature of this drink will make urine to be acidic, hence helping to get rid of any infection. However, Dr. Greves says it doesn’t work like that.

READ ALSO: Can Apple cider vinegar Help Treat Eczema?

In a nutshell, drinking apple cider vinegar cannot cure an already ongoing urinary tract infection, but it can prevent harmful bacteria from fastening to the urinary tract walls. So, ACV is best as a preventive for UTI, but not a curative.

Possible UTI Preventive Remedies Using ACV
1. ACV and water
You can make your urinary tract unfriendly to UTI-causing bacteria by adding one teaspoon of ACV to 8-ounce glass of water. Drink this eight times per day. Also, you tend to pass out urine frequently when you consume lots of water, this is a good way of flushing bacteria from your urinary tract.

2. ACV and cranberry juice
A mixture of apple cider vinegar and cranberry juice can also help prevent harmful bacteria from harboring in your urinary tract. To do this, simply add 1 to 2 tablespoons of ACV to a glass of unsweetened cranberry juice. Cranberry juice is also a preventive remedy for UTIs, but not a curative.

READ ALSO: Baking Soda for Urinary Tract Infections

3. ACV and green tea
A mixture of ACV and cinnamon herbal tea is also great for preventing UTIs. Prepare a mixture of 1 tablespoon of ACV and cinnamon-spiced herbal tea, you can also add honey to improve taste.

Ensure you see your doctor promptly if you notice any symptom of urinary tract infection.

Can Garlic Treat UTI?
According to a recent study, garlic extract was found to contain antimicrobial properties that makes it effective treatment for urinary tract infections. This study was published in the Pertanika Journal of Tropical Agricultural Science.

The research team from the Birla Institute of Technology and Sciences in India, discovered that garlic extracts showed promising results against multidrug resistant strains of bacteria. From the study, bacteria, fungi, protozoa and viruses were all sensitive to garlic preparations.

READ ALSO: Can Warts be Treated Using Apple cider vinegar?

So, make garlic part of your daily meal routine. Some persons dislike the repugnant smell associated with garlic. You don’t have to necessarily eat garlic in its raw form, it is also available in pill form.

What Kind of Tea is Good for UTI?
There has been reports that antimicrobial properties contained in ginger tea can be very effective against several strains of UTI-causing bacteria. Consuming ginger, either in tea form, juice form, or even chewing it raw, can help ease symptoms of urinary tract infection. Cranberry juice helps to lower risks of urinary tract infection.

Also, a study indicated that green tea contains Epigallocatechin, EGC, which has antimicrobial effects on E. coli. EGC has been revealed to be expelled in the urine in a high enough concentration to potentially be effective as an antimicrobial for treating UTI.

Bottom line
Urinary tract infection mostly affect women, though men can have it too. Apple cider vinegar cannot treat or cure urinary tract infection, but contains many beneficial properties. Consult your doctor for immediate medical treatment if you notice symptoms of UTI. If left untreated for long, UTI can cause many health complications such as sepsis, kidney failure, and recurrent infections.

Source: https://healthdiary365.com/can-apple-cider-vinegar-cure-a-urinary-tract-infection/

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