If you’ve ever suffered from a urinary tract infection, also known as a UTI, you know just how awful they can be. The pain, the burning, the spams, it’s enough to send you to bed or keep you in the bathroom for hours or days. You’ll do almost anything to get rid of it. Like yesterday.
Luckily, there’s an amazing natural remedy for a UTI that’s incredibly effective at getting rid of the bacteria that causes such suffering. I’m not talking about cranberry juice either.
Ever since I had my children, I started getting occasional urinary tract infections. About three years ago, I had a particularly painful stubborn infection and since I did not want to go on antibiotics (it really messes with my system), I tenaciously searched for a natural UTI remedy.
That’s when I learned about D-Mannose
What is D-Mannose?
D-Mannose is a natural sugar found in certain plants and fruit, like cranberries, apples, berries, etc. It goes straight through the body, with very little of the sugar absorbing into the blood stream. Bacteria loves D-Mannose , so the E. coli bacteria that’s responsible for about 90% of UTIs, releases it’s grip from the bladder wall and attaches to the tasty D-Mannose sugar instead. Then it simply passes out through the urine.
This makes D-Mannose a highly effective natural remedy for a UTI!
Why can’t I just drink cranberry juice?
Cranberry juice doesn’t work very quickly and when you have a urinary tract infection, you want fast relief. D-Mannose works much faster.
Also, while cranberry juice can be great for bladder health, it usually has a lot of sugar. Sugar that bacteria thrives on. And since regular sugar doesn’t pass through your body like D-Mannose , it encourages the bacteria to stick around instead of leaving. So while some aspects of cranberry juice may be helpful, the high sugar quantity often outweighs that advantage.
How do I take D-Mannose?
You can buy D-Mannose as a powder
If I even feel a twinge in my bladder, I take 1000mg of D-Mannose right away. I know this has saved me from a number of UTIs. In fact, whenever I do get a UTI, it’s because I haven’t taken D-Mannose at the first symptom.
If a bladder infection sets in, I take 500-1000mg of D-Mannose every 3-4 hours throughout the day. This relieves symptoms within 24 hours, though it’s usually within a few hours.
I’ve learned to always keep D-Mannose in the house. Case in point, I ran low last fall and because I haven’t had a urinary tract infection in awhile, I didn’t reorder. Big mistake. Last month, I started experiencing UTI symptoms and I only had enough D-Mannose for 1 dose. Unfortunately this wasn’t enough because things got worse and I ended up with a week long UTI! Ugh! By the time I finally got a bottle of D-Mannose (long story there), I had to take massive 1500mg doses every 3 hours to kick the bacteria. Thankfully, I began feeling better within a few hours on that dosage.
Lesson there? If you’re prone to UTIs, always keep a bottle of D-Mannose in the house as a natural remedy for a UTI! It’s not worth going without it.
A couple other things…
*Bacteria thrives on sugar, so try not to eat any (or minimal) sugar when you have a urinary tract infection. If you frequently get UTIs, you may want to consider reducing your sugar intake altogether.
*Drink lots of water since it will help your body and the D-Mannose flush out the bacteria more quickly.
*If you’re especially prone to UTIs, you can take D-Mannose as a preventative measure. For example, if you’re prone to UTIs after having sex, take D-Mannose afterwards to help prevent bacteria from setting up shop.
I highly recommend D-Mannose as a natural remedy for a UTI. It’s seriously amazing stuff. If you get UTIs, even occasionally, you really need to get some!
Please remember that if you begin experiencing farther symptoms, especially any that may relate to a kidney infection, you should see your doctor right away.
I have never heard of this as a remedy for a UTI!! Love that it is a natural remedy option.
Bacteria do NOT love D-Mannose. In fact, they do not digest this at all. This remedy works because it prevents many of the common pathogens that cause UTIS from adhering to the urethra and bladder wall and prevents their advancement within the urinary tract, allowing them to be flushed out.
Hi Indira, thanks for the information. Do you have links related to what you’ve shared? I’d love to update my post.
I am always on the look out for natural way to fix things as I hate to take a bunch of yucky stuff. Thanks for the post as I had not heard of D-Mannose before.
I have had a couple really bad UTIs recently. I will have to check this out! They are miserable to deal with!
We’ve always used the cranberry juice remedy, but didn’t consider the sugar effect. Will have to reconsider!
I need to look into this because I get UTI’s frequently. Normally I just drink cranberry juice and if it’s not better go tot he doctor.
Although it is a good idea about the supplement that has worked for you, there are plenty of people who get uti with all other different bacteria other than E. coli. D mannose only works for E. coli .. Unfortunately.. I would suggest for people to check with Doctor every time for a while to check urine culture and if that person truly gets uti with E. coli the most, then this supplement could work..
Hi, very helpful and interesting article thanks for sharing.
http://www.onhomeremedies.com/natural-home-remedies-for-urinary-tract-infections/
i will buy this right away and try ! thank you for all that research !!
If you get UTIs, the Lady Soma Cranberry Concentrate is a godsend! Take as soon as you feel one coming on and keep taking 3x/day, wait 45 mins, then drink a ton of water, and you should be UTI free without needing antibiotics. Obviously, your mileage may vary and this is not a doctor’s advice, but it has worked for me and saved me tons of money in copays and antibiotic prescriptions. Great to have on hand for those of us who are UTI prone.
Where can I buy some
I buy mine from Amazon. This is my affiliate link: http://www.amazon.com/NOW-Foods-D-Mannose-500-mg/dp/B008OXYD1C/ref=as_li_bk_tl/?tag=livingwellmom-20&linkId=f75df7776aa02611e122e35c294400c8&linkCode=ktl
Thank you for this!
I have personally struggled with uti’s for 15 years. I have been on more antibiotics than any one person should ever have to be. (which causes a whole host of different issues on it’s own) My husband found this about 6 or 7 years ago and it’s truly an amazing product. I haven’t had to take any antibiotics in years. My life has completely changed, thank God for this product. I told my urologist and pleaded with her to pass it on to her patients like myself who have a constant battle with uti’s. I just take a dose after sex and if I get any bladder or kidney pain I take a few consecutive doses. This stuff is amazing so thanks for getting the word out!!!!
I’m so happy to hear it’s worked for you too! Yes, it’s amazing and has saved me over and over! I now also take Pipsissewa, an herbal tincture that works just as well if not better for me. I’ll have to update this article with that info as well since that may help other people too!
Glad you’re doing well.