How to Deal with Frequent Urinary Tract Infections

Many women and some men suffer from urinary tract infections. The infections can be painful and bothersome. They can common in many different age groups. While some people have never suffered from one, some people have them very frequently.

Since about the age of two I have had kidney, bladder, and urinary tract troubles. I was diagnosed with kidney reflux. I had surgery to correct this problem.

However, in addition to the reflux I also had large traces of sugar in my urine. Many doctors believed that I was diabetic. However after being put through many glucose blood tests, it was found that I am not diabetic.

As if this was not enough, It was also discovered that I have unseen traces of blood in my urine.

I also developed frequent and hard to cure urinary tract infections.

When the doctors feel that there may be trouble with your kidney they will run dye through them to check for abnormalities. The dye is administered through the veins.

In some cases there are no known causes for urinary tract infections. Poor hygiene, sexual activity, kidney stones are a few causes.

In my case, doctors could find no known cause for any of my symptoms.

I have found that drinking soda seems to contribute to my urinary tract infections. Darker drinks seem to be worse than lighter colored drinks.

Holding urine for longer amounts of time is also a contributor. The longer the urine is in your bladder, the longer the bacteria have to grow.

Drinking water helps to flush out your bladder along with bacteria.

For females, wiping from front to back and making sure to empty your bladder completely each time also helps prevent infections.

While there are some things that you can do to help prevent urinary tract infections, some people re just prone to get them. Some of this may be due to heredity. If you are one of these people, your doctor may want to place you on suppressive medicine.

When taking suppressive medicine, you take a low dose of antibiotic each day to prevent the infection from growing. The suppressive medicine can only be started if your bladder and urinary tract is clear and healthy. The medicine is usually taken for a few months and then stopped. Common medicines taken for urinary tract infections are Bactrim and Macrodantin, Macrobid, and Keflex. Medications for the pain can also be prescribed.