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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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.

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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.

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