Eating Fabulous

Cranberry Juice Against Bladder Infections

by ruth on July 24th, 2006

I first got to know the medicinal properties of this fruit (juice) just recently because a friend of mine drinks this to prevent bladder and urinary tract infections. And yes, there is a sound scientific basis to this.

A specific type of tannin found only in cranberries and blueberries interacts with the little projections on the Escherichia coli (E. coli) bacteria (the most common cause of UTI), preventing them from sticking to the walls of the bladder and causing infection.

If you’re up for more scientific reading, read the report from the American Academy of Family Physicians.

How much are you supposed to drink? This article from the Mayo Clinic offers guide based on scientific research and publications:

Recommended doses range from 90 to 480 milliliters (3 to 16 ounces) of cranberry cocktail twice daily, or 15 to 30 milliliters of unsweetened 100% cranberry juice daily. 300 milliliters per day (10 ounces) of commercially available cranberry cocktail (Ocean Spray®) has been used in well-designed research.

Other forms of cranberry used include capsules, concentrate and tinctures. Between one and six 300 to 400 milligram capsules of hard gelatin concentrated cranberry juice extract, twice daily by mouth, given with water 1 hour before meals or 2 hours after meals has been used. One and a half ounces of frozen juice concentrate twice daily by mouth has been used, as well as 4 to 5 milliliters of cranberry tincture three times daily by mouth. One study suggests that 500 milliliters of cranberry juice with 1500 milliliters of water was sufficient in helping prevent the formation of oxalate kidney stones.

Remember though, that this is for the prevention of bladder infections. Once the infection sets in, cranberry juice may no longer help.

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POSTED IN: FOOD GROUP, Healthy Beverages, ~Fruit and Vegetables, ~Immune Defense