To find the best home remedies for bladder infection, you need to understand what causes bladder infection and how to stop it happening with natural treatments.

What Is Bladder Infection?

The bladder is the place where urine is stored when the kidneys have produced it. Bladder infection is more correctly called urinary tract infection (UTI) and it can be an infection in either the bladder, the kidneys, or the passages that the urine travels along from the kidneys to the bladder (the ureters) and from the bladder when we pass urine (urethra).

Causes Of Bladder Infection

Urinary tract infection is much more common in women than in men. UTI often begins when bacteria, usually originating in the colon, enter the urethra from the outside world. Another form of UTI can be sexually transmitted. UTI can also be caused when tubes are placed in the urethra to control urine flow during and after surgical operations.

Urine itself is sterile and does not contain any bacteria, viruses or fungi. In fact it is believed to have mild anti bacterial properties. However, this is not always enough to protect against infection in the passages, especially where the urine is not flowing fast enough through the system and stagnates in the bladder.

Symptoms Of Bladder Infection

You can guess that you may have a bladder or urinary tract infection if you have a burning sensation when you urinate. You are also likely to have frequent urges to urinate although you may pass very little. In some cases the urine looks cloudy or reddish.

If you also have fever, nausea or constant pain in the lower abdominal area then this is a sign that the infection may have spread to the kidneys and you should see a doctor immediately to prevent possible permanent damage to the kidneys.

Home Remedies For Bladder Infection

One of the most important things to do if you have a UTI is to drink plenty of water. Have one 8 oz glass every 20-30 minutes. Assuming that your kidneys and bladder are functioning correctly and the infection is limited to the urethra, this is often enough to flush out the system. The body’s natural healing process together with the mild anti bacterial properties of urine may be able to deal with the infection by themselves when fresh urine is washing through the system quickly.

However, if you want to give your body a helping hand, cranberry juice is the best known natural remedy for UTI. This has been used for over one hundred years to help people with infections of the bladder and associated passages. It appears to work because proanthocyanins in cranberry juice help to prevent bacteria sticking to the walls of the urinary passages. They can then be washed out more easily by the urine.

You can either eat cranberries, drink juice diluted in water (unsweetened) or buy supplements of cranberry extract from a health food store. Research seems to show that cranberry extract supplements are the most effective.

In the case of sexually transmitted bladder infection both partners will need tests and treatment although often only one partner has symptoms. If the other partner is not treated too, the infection will recur. Medical tests can identify this type of infection.

If the infection spreads to the kidneys it can become very serious, and in some cases this can happen even when the symptoms have been controlled. There is also a risk of recurrence. Therefore you should always see a doctor even if these home remedies for bladder infection seem to have worked for you.

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Tags: bladder infection, fever, health-food store, home remedies, natural remedy, nausea, pain, urinary tract infection

If you have been diagnosed with arthritis, you may be looking for an arthritis remedy. If your arthritis is not a suitable case for surgery right now, if you are hoping to avoid surgery or if you are waiting, you may benefit from various natural remedies that have been successful for other people.

The word arthritis means inflammation of the joints. There are two types of arthritis:

Osteoarthritis – caused by degeneration of the cartilage in the joints. Cartilage cushions the bones and allows joints to move smoothly. When it is worn away, the body tries to compensate for it by laying down extra bone. But this does not have the same properties as cartilage and the result is stiffness and pain. Osteoarthritis usually affects older people although it can develop in a younger person, especially where joints have been damaged by injury. Knees, hips and shoulders are the most commonly affected joints.

Rheumatoid arthritis – this is a very different condition, an auto immune inflammation of the joints. It is caused by a deficiency in the endocrine system and appears to have an inherited genetic component. For most people it comes and goes, often flaring up at times of stress or when the body is weakened by sickness. It may begin at any age. It generally starts by affecting the joints of the fingers and toes, often resulting in distortion which can be permanent.

Arthritis Natural And Home Remedies

There are reports that arthritis can be helped by a number of natural and home remedies.

Raw potato extract is a traditional remedy that has been used for centuries. Wash a medium size potato but do not peel. Be sure it has no green patches. Cut it into thin slices. Lay the slices in a bowl, cover with water and cover the bowl. Leave overnight. Drink the water in the morning.

Copper is believed to strengthen the muscular system, helping to maintain flexibility. You can either take a copper supplement, wear a copper bracelet or drink water that has been standing in copper overnight. However it is important not to have too much copper in the system relative to other minerals, or other problems could develop. So do not take copper to excess.

Calcium supplements can also help some cases of arthritis. If you prefer not to take supplements you can take calcium in dietary form. Black sesame seeds (unhulled) are a good source. You will need to buy them from a health food store because most sesame seeds sold in supermarkets are hulled and are not a good source of calcium. You can grind them and add a little sesame oil to make tahini, or soak them for a couple of hours and sprinkle on bread or cereals.

Glucosamine sulphate is a supplement that can help reduce inflammation and pain in some cases. It is particularly good for less severe arthritis in the knee, and may help to prevent it worsening.

Garlic and turmeric both have anti inflammatory properties and can be included in your diet in generous quantities.

A mono diet of bananas, which are rich in potassium and vitamin B6, can be helpful in treating a flare up of rheumatoid arthritis. Eat only bananas for up to 3 days. Bananas should be ripe, i.e. starting to show brown spots on the skin.

Some foods appear to make arthritis worse and should be avoided. Trigger foods will be different for different people. You may have to cut them all out of your diet for at least 4 days and then reintroduce them one by one to feel the effects. This is a list of common trigger foods:

- sugar
- caffeine
- red meat
- dairy products
- citrus fruits
- corn
- wheat
- salt
- artificial sweeteners and other food additives

Generally it is good to keep the joints moving as much as possible to main flexibility. Mild osteoarthritis especially can be helped by regular practice of gentle forms of yoga and pilates. Be careful not to force your joints beyond a comfortable stretch.

Be sure to see your doctor if you believe you have arthritis and discuss with him or her any natural arthritis remedy that you are considering.

Tags: anti inflammatory, arthritis, dairy products, Food additives, health-food store, home remedies, inflammation, little sesame oil, Natural Arthritis Remedy Solutions, natural remedies, osteoarthritis, pain, rheumatoid arthritis, surgery

acai berry (pronounced ah-sigh-ee) has been a real sensation this year with many new products on the market promising everything from weight loss, antivirus properties and even help for people with Leukemia. Earlier this year Oprah put the acai berry on the top of a list of superfoods and you know how things go when Oprah talks about them, the little Acai berry has not been safe since. To me the real story of the Acai Berry is that it is a fruit berry that has strong antioxidant abilities but lets see what we can find out about Acai Berry and your health.

What is the Acai Berry

The acai Berry fruit, a small, round, black-purple fruit is about 1 inch in diameter, kind of like a grape and grows on a very tall tree. Two crops of fruit are pare grown per year. The Acai berry fruit has a single large seed that takes up a lot of the berry. The skin of a ripe berry is a deep purple color, or green, depending on the kind of acai that it is.

The berries are harvested as food in the Amazon region of Brazil, acai palm (the tree it grows on) is incredibly important as it makes up a lot of the diet for the people in the area and is the biggest cash crop for it’s area of Brazil. Read the rest of this entry »

Tags: Acai Berry, amazon, Amazon jungle, Brazil, cholesterol controller, common infection, Concord, energy food, fight infection, food, food kind, Leukemia, natural remedies, north America, oil compartments, process food, Staph infections, vitamin a

Did you know that you could stop acid reflux today? Will you choose antacids, prescription drugs or a piece of fruit?

Most people choose antacids and if their reflux gets bad enough they may opt to prescription drugs. Unfortunately, these are the same people who will suffer from reflux the rest of their lives. And this is also the reason why thousands of reflux sufferers are choosing simple home treatments and tossing their antacids.

If you are continuously struggling with acid reflux (also called heartburn), you may wish to treat your problem with a delicious, red fruit. Read the rest of this entry »

Tags: acid reflux, Barton Published, body systems, cancer, chemicals, food, food/acid, Joe Barton, reflux heartburn

The best home remedies for mosquito bites, of course, are those that stop the little critters biting in the first place. But if it is too late for that, there are still a few things that you can try.

A mosquito bite is not like the sting of a wasp or bee which is an injection of poison. Mosquitoes just want a little taste of your blood. But to stop it coagulating so that they can easily drink it, they also deposit a protein which causes an allergic reaction in some people.

It seems that some people get bitten constantly and others never have a single itch, but this is probably nothing to do with whether the insects like you. The truth is that some people do not get allergic and so they do not know they have been bitten.

If you ask a hundred bite-scratching people what they recommend, you may get a hundred different answers. Here are some of the most popular ideas.

Ice: apply an ice cube to reduce the inflammation and temporarily numb the area. Ice also restricts blood flow which may reduce the allergic reaction. The bite will probably itch again later, but maybe by then you will be busy doing something else and will not notice.

Roll-on anti perspirant: most commercial anti perspirants contain vasoconstrictive substances which, like ice, restrict blood flow to the area. Additionally, the aluminum in the anti perspirant may help the bite to heal. Do not use if the bite has been heavily scratched.

Fingernails: press down on the bite with a fingernail so that the nail digs in and leaves a mark. Then do the same thing at another angle to form a cross. This should temporarily stop the itching.

Toothpaste: some people recommend smearing toothpaste over the bite. The fluoride is said to reduce the allergic reaction. If desperate, why not give it a try!

Scratching: it has been shown that if you go so far as to open up the bite and make it bleed, some of the allergen may be forced out by the blood flow. However, the bite may become infected, so doing this deliberately is not recommended. If it happens by accident, apply antiseptic.

The good news is that the itching from bites will only last between 24 and 48 hours. Then, cover yourself in insect repellent or keep those mosquitoes out with netting to stop yourself being bitten next time.

You can also look for an anti itch cream that contains camphor, and keep it with you whenever you risk being bitten. Camphor can stop the itching and if applied early enough, it may even prevent the itchy bump from forming. This makes camphor one of the best home remedies for mosquito bites, but you have to buy some ahead of time.

Tags: allergic reaction, home remedies, inflammation, itching

If you are suffering from the excruciating pain that kidney stones or renal calculi can cause and your doctor has advised waiting to see if the stone will pass by itself, you could certainly benefit from finding a natural remedy for kidney stones.

Kidney stones are formed by the body from unprocessed minerals in the renal system. Most of them consist of calcium oxalate. They occur in about 10% of the population but men are four times as likely to get them as women. They tend to recur, so that once you have had one, you have a 75% chance of having more in the next 20 years.

It is possible to have them without noticing, because many will pass when very small. You might have a pain when urinating but you probably would not notice that you had passed something that could be as tiny as a grain of sand.

Larger stones can block the urethra and that is when the severe pain is caused. You may also see blood in the urine. This comes from the lining of the organs being damaged by the uneven surface of the stone. If you have pus or pain during urination you should tell your doctor as this may be a sign of infection.

Even in cases where the stone is large enough to cause pain, the majority of them do pass naturally. There are certain things you can do to help this happen, or make it happen faster.

Dealing With Kidney Stones

The best treatment to help a stone pass is simply to drink plenty of water. Aim for 2-3 liters spread through the day.

Consuming more soup, fresh fruit and raw vegetables is another way to increase your intake of water, as they contain much more than dry cooked foods and grains. Be careful however to avoid over consumption of oxalate which contributes to the forming of the most common type of stone.

Foods high in oxalate that should be avoided include chocolate, peanuts, rhubarb, spinach, beets and sweet potatoes. Also, cut down on salt and alcohol which have a dehydrating effect, and meat and dairy products which cause uric acid to form in the kidneys.

Some people take diuretics to increase the water flow through the kidneys. Some herbal teas have a diuretic effect, for example dandelion and stinging nettle. Replacing two glasses of water with one of these teas may help the stone to pass more quickly. Unless you have other medical reasons for taking them, prescribed diuretics should not be necessary.

You should strain your urine so that you catch the stone when it passes. Your doctor can have it analyzed to see what minerals it is formed from. This will tell you how you need to alter your diet in future to give you the best chance of preventing a recurrence. For most people, a diet that is lower in protein and salt is recommended.

It may be wise to not to take large doses of vitamins and minerals until you have had your stones or your urine analyzed.

A doctor should always be involved in treatment of renal calculi because of the possibility of infection and complications. A natural remedy for kidney stones should only be used in conjunction with medical advice.

Tags: dairy products, kidney stones, natural remedy, pain, pus, renal calculi

The Native American herbal medicine tradition is often overlooked these days in favor of Chinese or Ayurvedic traditions. This is a great pity when all of the herbs used by the native healers grow wild in the USA. Instead of growing them in our gardens, we pay hundreds of dollars to have the equivalent shipped to us in bottles from China or India. At the same time, we ignore many of the other lessons that Native American healing has for us.

Traditionally it was believed that the power of herbal medicine to heal rests partly in the plants, partly in the healer and partly in the person being healed. Today, conventional western medicine encourages us to believe that all power lies with the doctors and the medication. We do not take any share of the responsibility for our own sickness or healing, and that is a great mistake.

While some plants certainly have medically observable effects, it is also true that our attitude when we use a remedy has a great deal of power. Belief that the treatment will help you is important, and so is having a genuine wish to get well that is not undermined by a desire for the attention that being sick can get us.

The power of herbal treatments used by Native American people was reinforced by the trust that they had in the spiritual, almost magical, power of the healers. The medicine man or shaman was chosen according to his birth position in society and his natural talent. Often there would be a family connection with medicine and tribal religion. It might be considered that blind faith in modern doctors would have the same effect, but it does not because the spiritual aspect is missing.

Medicine was seen as a question of dealing with the spirit as much as the body, and many ceremonies were practiced both by healers and also by the person being treated or his or her family. A major effect of the ceremonies that the healer performed was to increase his awareness and concentration so that even without any of the laboratory tests that are done these days, he could correctly diagnose the problem and see the best remedy – not just for the disease, but for the person. Ceremonies undertaken by the afflicted person would cleanse the body and mind to prepare them to make the best possible use of the remedy when it was taken.

This spiritual aspect of herbal medicine is completely ignored today. We take herbal remedies in much the same way that we take chemical medications, assuming that the substance has all of the power and we have none.

In fact, many doctors as well as alternative medical practitioners today would agree that it is the sick person who does the healing, and not the remedy. The body’s ability to heal itself, known as homeostasis, is at the root of all recovery. It works by expelling toxins, fighting back against disease with antibodies. All that medication does is to help the process along and remove obstacles to recovery.

If we can get away from the mainstream western view that the body and mind or spirit are two separate things, the importance of a spiritual aspect to healing becomes very clear. The state of the sick person’s mind is as important in the recovery process as the state of his body.

This does not mean that we have to perform tribal dances or complicated rituals. We can replace them with other spiritual practices including meditation and prayer. But studying the spiritual aspect of Native American herbal medicine can help us shift our focus and understand that in a sense, we always have to heal ourselves.

Tags: antibodies, chemical medications, China, Herbal Remedies, India, meditation, United States

That one last drink may have seemed like a great idea last night, but now you have to face the computer screen to search for home remedies for hangovers, you may be regretting it just a little bit!

The good news is you do not have to look any further. We have all the information you need!

Stop Your Hangover In Its Tracks

The answer is to drink – but not alcohol! Alcoholic drinks actually use up your body’s water stores, causing dehydration. This in turn causes some hangover symptoms, so drinking water is a good start.

Be careful because it is possible to drink too much water too fast. Large quantities of water can strip electrolytes from the body so it is better to try to replace these as well, or keep to around a half liter of water per hour.

Sports drinks are one of the best ways to get you feeling human again. They will boost your blood sugar, rehydrate you and provide the vital electrolytes (potassium, sodium etc) that you will have lost through the kidneys while you were drinking and overnight.

If you prefer not to have the refined sugar and additives that are in sports drinks, have plain water and eat bananas for potassium and fructose. Or make a banana smoothie by putting a couple of bananas in the blender with a little water or milk.

If you do not have bananas and cannot face going to the store right now, use apples or other sweet fruit (not citrus) or even plain honey dissolved in water. Honey contains electrolytes too. The less refined your honey is, the better.

Feverfew is a well known herbal remedy for headaches and can be taken in place of aspirin or other chemical painkillers. Raw persimmon and raw cabbage are also said to help with headaches. Aspirin can damage the lining of the stomach so it is not the best solution for a sensitive morning-after digestive system.

Exercise will help your circulatory system to detoxify. Take a brisk half hour walk as soon as you are able.

Next Time Around

Here are a few things that you can do before you go drinking to prevent the same thing happening next time around.

Drink water to prevent dehydration. The best rule is to have one glass of water between each alcoholic drink, but failing that, drink a couple of large glasses of water before you go to sleep.

Buy some Bifidus powder. This is friendly bacteria that detoxifies acetaldehyde, a byproduct of alcohol that is a major cause of hangover symptoms. One teaspoon in a large glass of water drunk before going to sleep should mean that you wake up hangover-free.

Foods high in unsaturated fats can reduce the effects of alcohol. American Indian lore says that 6 raw almonds eaten before drinking will stop you getting drunk. African tradition recommends peanut butter. Evening primrose oil is another option, especially for women who can benefit from taking it anyway. Take any of these before you start drinking to avoid having to search for home remedies for hangovers after your next night out!

Tags: chemical painkillers, dehydration, home remedies, primrose oil, sports drinks

Although there are no guaranteed natural remedies for fibroids, there are a few treatments that you can try which may help to reduce their size or at least prevent them growing further, and reduce the heavy bleeding that is often associated with uterine fibroids.

Fibroids are non-cancerous tumors usually found in the womb (uterus) and are very common in women of childbearing age. They appear in about 25% of white women and 50% of black women. Some women may have them without knowing, but in other cases they can grow to a size where they cause pain and a noticeably swollen abdomen. The swelling may make a woman look pregnant. She will often have very heavy and painful periods.

Fibroids may cause pain at other times too, for example during sex. They can also interfere with pregnancy, either making it difficult to get pregnant in the first place or causing miscarriage, premature birth or bleeding during the pregnancy. If they press on the bladder they may cause incontinence as well as pain.

The cause of fibroids is thought to be hormonal. They almost always shrink or disappear after the menopause, unless a woman takes hormone replacement therapy. Genetics may also play a part in the causes of these uterine growths.

The standard medical treatment, if required, is surgery. In the past, the only option was hysterectomy, i.e. complete removal of the womb. Now it is possible in many cases to have what is called a myomectomy in which only the fibroids themselves are removed. If successful, this means that you can still have children afterward. The surgical procedure that is recommended will depend on the size and number of the growths.

If you do not need surgery or decide against it, you may want to look for a natural remedy that will help deal with the symptoms. Doctors will often recommend contraceptive pills but not every woman wants to take these. You may want to try the following home remedies that some women have found helpful. Consult your doctor first and again if the symptoms persist or increase.

Apple Cider Vinegar

ACV may shrink the fibroids. It certainly reduces discomfort in many cases, and unless there is some reason why you should not take vinegar, it will not do you any harm. If you are overweight you may find it has the added benefit of helping you to lose a few pounds. Take one tablespoon three times a day.

Molasses

Some women recommend molasses for reducing the size of fibroids. The usual dose is one tablespoon 3 times per day.

Be aware that molasses is high in calories, iron and copper. It is important to monitor your intake of all of these, as too much can cause other problems. Blackstrap molasses also contains sulfur which can thin the blood and may therefore increase the menstrual bleeding in some women.

Herbs

There are some herbal medicines that may help in some cases. Herbs that balance the hormones, such as agnus castus or yarrow, may be recommended.

Do not take blue or black cohosh which are likely to increase the symptoms.

If you want to try herbal medicine the best solution is to see a qualified and experienced herbalist who will take a full history, consider different possibilities and monitor the results of the suggested herbal natural remedies for fibroids.

Tags: fibroids, herbal medicines, home remedies, Hormone replacement therapy, hysterectomy, miscarriage, natural remedies, natural remedy, pain, premature birth, surgery, tumors, uterine fibroids

The most effective gall stone home remedy is a simple gall bladder flush. Yes simple – not the nicest way to spend a Saturday perhaps but for most people, better than needing surgery somewhere down the line.

First, loosen the stones by drinking an 8 oz glass of apple juice morning and evening for 4-6 weeks. This is a very important step and you should not skip it and try to do the flush right away, it just will not work.

The best kind of apple juice is home made by putting organic apples through a juicer. Next best, buy organic apple juice from a health food store. It must be made from whole apples, not concentrate, with no added sugar or other additives, and not the kind that will keep for months.

Try to eat healthy foods during these 4-6 weeks. In particular, make sure you are getting enough fiber so that your digestive system and bowels are working well. This may mean increasing your intake of fruits and vegetables above the famous ‘5 a day’.

Then you will need to set aside a day when you are home with no commitments. You are going to need to be in or near a bathroom most of the day.

The day before, you will do a short semi-fast. You will not eat any solid food this day. Drink your apple juice in the morning as usual and you can have another glass at lunchtime if you want.

If you have not done a juice fast before, do not worry, it is not as difficult as it may sound. Any time you feel yourself tempted to eat other foods, just remind yourself that it is only for one day and it needs to be done for the sake of your health. A lot of people do juice-only fasts of 1 to 7 days as a regular thing. In fact, there is even a fashion right now of 90 day ‘juice feasting’ where no solid food is eaten for 3 months. So you can do it for just one day, right?

In the evening, before going to bed, drink 8 oz of organic extra virgin olive oil mixed with 4 oz freshly squeezed lemon juice from actual whole lemons. This mixture tastes something like salad dressing. You will probably need about 4 lemons, depending on size and juiciness. Do not use bottled lemon juice.

In the morning (at least 8 hours later) take a fast-acting natural laxative, either epsom salts or 10 oz citrate of magnesia (not milk of magnesia). You should then expect to need the bathroom often for several hours because you are going to have diarrhea.

In with the diarrhea you should find that you pass many little green stones like small peas. These are the gall stones.

Congratulations, you have successfully flushed out your gall bladder!

This process may be helpful for healthy adults but is not recommended for anybody needing medical attention. If you have any health issues consult your doctor before using this gall stone home remedy or other natural remedies.

Tags: diarrhea, food, gall stone, gall stones, health-food store, home remedy, natural remedies, surgery, virgin olive oil