UTI Relief Without Antibiotics
I learned about D-mannose from nutritionist Sara Keough. What a life-saver! You can try the brand I used, or even better, get USDA Organic D-mannose.
Like most women, I’ve suffered urinary tract infections occasionally all my life.
I keep myself pretty healthy and chilled-out these days with an organic diet full of immune boosting foods and lots of yoga, but there are still times when my system goes down and my health suffers.
The last three weeks were full of unexpected major stressors so, wouldn’t you know it, I got a UTI. It’s been a long time since I’ve had one like this that didn’t clear on its own. Maybe it was the Girl Scout cookies I couldn’t stop myself from buying from the cute little kids at the farmers’ market? After almost two weeks, the pain was nearly bringing me to tears and I realized I had to do something more than drink cranberry juice and take probiotics.
On Friday night, I was desperate. I knew I needed to do something fast or I’d be at the urgent care clinic getting antibiotics like I used to do when I was young and didn’t know how to take care of myself.
I went to the local natural foods store to see if I could find a supplement that might work. I’d been Googling “UTI” and “natural remedies” all week, and I finally thought I’d found what I was looking for when I searched “UTI” and “natural antibiotics” and found a 2020 article out of a university in India on PubMed, “Natural therapeutics for urinary tract infections—a review.” From that article, I learned that most UTIs are caused by E. coli and that there are natural antibacterials like berberine that could help.
I called Sara Keough of Eco-Nutrition. Sara’s the nutritionist I’ve been working with to help my son with some health issues that turned out to be leaky gut and bacterial overgrowth. (I blame the school food I tell him not to eat, but he keeps throwing away his homemade organic lunches.) He has a lot of E. coli in his system, so the protocol she put him on included supplements with berberine. I was thinking maybe I could take some of those, but Sara had an even better idea: U.T. Vibrance, and I found it right there in the supplements aisle of the store I was calling her from, in the immune-support section.
The main ingredient in U.T. Vibrance is a 5,000 mg dose of D-mannose. Proof of the effectiveness of D-mannose is available on PubMed in the 2022 article, “Why D-Mannose May Be as Efficient as Antibiotics in the Treatment of Acute Uncomplicated Lower Urinary Tract Infections—Preliminary Considerations and Conclusions from a Non-Interventional Study.”
D-mannose is present naturally in many foods. There’s a list on Dr. Josh Axe’s website of the top 20 foods, from cranberries to cayenne pepper, but the amounts of D-mannose in these foods is tiny. D-mannose makes up just 0.04 percent of the dry weight of cranberries.
U.T. Vibrance also includes:
Uva Ursi - According to the “Natural therapeutics” article, “Arctostaphylos uva-ursi (uva ursi), also known as bearberry or upland cranberry, is a useful herb for bladder infection. Bearberry leaves and preparations made from them have significant antibacterial activity (especially against E. coli) and astringent activity due to its arbutin content and diuretic properties. In a double-blind study of 57 women, five of twenty-seven women had a recurrence in the placebo group while none of thirty women had a recurrence in the uva ursi group after 1 year.”
Blueberry - There’s a really interesting study, “Anthocyanins in Blueberries Grown in Hot Climate Exert Strong Antioxidant Activity and May Be Effective against Urinary Tract Bacteria,” where researchers measured the antioxidants in various blueberries and then did a laboratory test to see what the blueberry extracts could do against bacterial strains isolated from UTI patients. The extracts inhibited all the tested strains! It’s the perfect time to make use of this information, because it’s about to be blueberry season in Florida (March-May). You can order online to get Real Organic blueberries from King Grove Organic Farm.
Cranberry - Why is cranberry juice preventative against UTIs? Cranberries contain a substance that can prevent bacteria from sticking to the walls of the bladder. According to a 2023 article in JAMA, “Updated Meta-analysis: Cranberry Products Reduced UTI Risk,” “consuming cranberry products reduced UTI risk in children by 54%, in people susceptible to UTIs after a medical intervention such as radiation treatment for bladder or prostate cancer by 53%, and in women with a history of recurrent UTIs by 26%.” Beware: Most cranberry juice is full of high-fructose corn syrup, so make sure to get it unsweetened. The health food store where I found U.T. Vibrance had pure, unsweetened biodynamic cranberry juice.
Dandelion - Scientists have been trying to figure out why this traditional folk remedy is effective for UTIs. Studies similar to the blueberry study described above show that dandelion “extracts present antibacterial activity against uropathogenic clinical bacteria.”
Goldenrod - This traditional medicinal herb is used effectively against UTIs in alternative medicine, as this case study found in PubMed reports: “Efficient and Cost-Effective Alternative Treatment for Recurrent Urinary Tract Infections and Interstitial Cystitis in Women: A Two-Case Report.”
Goldenseal - Goldenseal contains berberine, which inhibits the growth of E. coli and prevents its adhesion to uroepithelial cells, according to “Deep insights into urinary tract infections and effective natural remedies,” an article published in the African Journal of Urology in 2021.
Parsley - Parsley was another one of the traditional medicinal herbs used effectively against UTIs in the Two-Case Report mentioned above under goldenrod.
Our bodies have an amazing capacity to fight infection when we’re in top shape, free of stress and toxins, but when our bodies are challenged, and we need support, nature usually has the remedy.
It’s Sunday now and I only started taking U.T. Vibrance on Friday night. In that short time, I went from being in terrible pain and the feeling like I couldn’t go more than a few steps away from the toilet, to teaching yoga on Saturday and going on a long hike today. Amazing! What a life-saver!
U.T. Vibrance worked, so I’m happy, but out of curiosity, I started looking into where they get their D-mannose. I couldn’t find any information about it on the Vibrant Health website, but there was a customer question that was on their Amazon page posted in 2015:
“Is the d-mannose naturally derived (extracted from birch/beechwood) or is it synthetic or processed with chemicals?”
Two different answers were posted, both claiming to be quotes from the Vibrant Health website:
“From Vibrant Health website FAQ [2016]:
“Q: Where is the d-Mannose derived from?
“A: D-mannose is manufactured synthetically and is derived from glucose. The process which extracts the mannose is called photosynthesis which is a clean process using light to create a charge on the ions which dissolves the mannose and produces only pure bio-active d-mannose which is effective against e.coli, the cause of 90% of bladder infections.”
“According to Vibrant Health's website [2015]: ‘D-mannose is manufactured from birch and beech trees without using solvents. The process to extract d-mannose consists of using a strong light to charge the ions of mannose which allows the mannose to stick to a collector plate where they are scraped off in sterile conditions.’ http://www.vibranthealth.com/help-faqs/services-support/help-faqs#utv [link no longer active].”
Searching online, I see that certified USDA Organic and Non-GMO Project Verified D-mannose is available from BioPhix, Complete Natural Products and Now Foods, so I’ll go for those the next time this comes up.
Hope this is helpful! I wish you good luck and good health!