Antibiotics

• There are only two ways to cure a urinary infection. The first is through your own body's immune system. The other is through prescription antibiotics. Nevertheless, while antibiotics can cure your infection, you should think twice before going to them first. Depending on your health care plan, antibiotics can be expensive. You also have to see your health care provider to get a prescription. Also, when we overuse antibiotics we promote the growth of bacteria that is resistant to antibiotics, making them harder to cure when we actually need them to. Therefore, for uncomplicated urinary infections, you may want to try cranberry juice therapy.
  
  

Epicatechin

• Cranberry juice has many benefits that lend themselves to helping with urinary infections. They contain an antioxidant called epicatechin. Epicatechin prevents the bacteria that cause urinary infections from attaching the lining of your urethra and bladder. When the bacteria cannot attach to the urinary lining, it can be flushed from your system more easily. This also makes cranberry juice well suited to promoting urinary health and preventing infections from recurring.
  
  

Vitamin C

• Cranberry juice is also a great source of vitamin C. In fact, because of the nuances of our digestion process, cranberry juice can often be a better source of vitamin C than oranges or orange juice. Vitamin C is useful for treating urinary infections because it is acidic and increases the acidity of your body. Bacteria have to struggle to live in acidic environments so if you can increase the acidity of your urinary system, you are less likely to have an infection.
  
  

Drinking Cranberry Juice

• To use cranberry juice to treat your urinary infection, you should drink three to five glasses a day of unsweetened cranberry juice. Cranberry cocktails often contain lots of sugar and other additives. Excess sugars can aggravate your kidneys, increasing your risk of developing a urinary infection. Pure cranberry juice is the way to go. However, if pure cranberry juice is too bitter for you, you can dilute it with water. Just increase the glasses you drink to make up for the dilution.
  
  

Warning

• It should be noted again that infections can only be cured by your immune system or prescription antibiotics. Cranberry juice does not cure infection. It only promotes good urinary health and helps as your immune system kills the bacteria in your urinary system. If your symptoms do not improve after a few days, see your health care provider. You may not have a urinary infection at all, or your infection may be more serious than you originally thought.