The Common UTI Remedy That Doesn’t Work

Posted on October 22, 2012 by admin

Dealing with a urinary tract infection? Skip the cranberry therapy.

According to a review published in the Cochrane Library, drinking cranberry juice or taking cranberry supplements may do little to prevent a UTI.

Researchers analyzed 24 studies involving a total of 4,473 people to compare the effectiveness of cranberry products against a range of placebos, drug, and non-drug treatments for preventing UTIs.

The results? Women who were opting for cranberry products—think: juice, tablets, or capsules—were shown to have a 14 percent lower risk of UTI. Yet the researchers claim this number isn’t significant enough to be considered a legitimate preventative treatment for those susceptible to recurrent UTIs.

But if it’s not actually solving the issue, why have many of us been on team cranberry for so long? It’s probably because the research often contradicts itself, explains Sara Gottfried, M.D., OB/GYN, author of The Hormone Cure.

For instance, according to the latest review, there’s never been a definitive mechanism for why cranberries are effective for UTI prevention. However there has been plenty of research suggesting that specific substances in cranberries—such as quinic acid, malic acid, and citric acid—prevents bacteria from clinging to the walls of the bladder, says Gottfried.

But the problem is, if you already have a substantial amount of bacteria in your bladder and kidneys, simply drinking cranberry juice won’t be sufficient for cleaning house and kicking the bad bugs out.

Another issue: Typically when people say they’re drinking cranberry juice, they’re not actually drinking the real thing, says Gottfried. Instead, people are consuming some form of juice concentrate that’s loaded with sugars and additional artificial flavorings, which means whatever benefits they are getting from cranberry are seriously diluted.

So what’s a girl to do if she suspects she may be at risk? Abide by the following three steps to get your tract back on track.

1. Stay on the lookout for symptoms
For most women, symptoms for a UTI consist of pain or burning during urination, cloudy or bloody urine, lower abdominal pain in the bladder area, as well as an increase in the frequency of urination.

2. Check in with your doctor
If you’re exhibiting any of the above symptoms, the next step is to schedule an appointment with your doc. “You need to determine that it’s actually a bladder infection and not something else,” says Gottfried. Often women have inflammation in their bladder—which can cause similar discomfort—but it’s not really a UTI, she explains.

And as for testing for a UTI, simply provide your caregiver with sample of urine and they’ll take care of the rest.

3. Get on a proper prescription
UTIs can typically be solved with antibiotics. And whether its Cipro, Levaquin, Septra, or Furadantin—all common prescriptions for UTIs—it takes roughly 2 to 3 days to see full relief of symptoms. And since there are many strands of bacteria that are resistant to antibiotics, it makes seeing your doctor that much more beneficial, says Gottfriend. Considering your clinician will now have a better idea of what antibiotic to put you on.

Image: Hemera/Thinkstock

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Avoid These 6 Common Fitness Class Injuries

Posted on October 18, 2012 by admin

When Jennifer Love Hewitt broke her wrist in a boxing class, she took to the Twittersphere to spread the word. Ouch. It just shows: Although group fitness can be a great way to get exercise and stick to a weight-loss plan, classes aren’t all super-fun sweat sessions—sometimes, they involve blood and tears, too.

Whether you’re a badass boxer like Hewitt or swear by your morning spin class, check out these tips from the fitness industry’s top instructors for how to get fit without getting hurt:

The Class: Speed and Heavy Bag Boxing
Common Injuries: Sprains and strains in the wrists (à la Jennifer Love Hewett)
How it Happens: Not wearing proper protective gear, using poor punch technique
Prevention Tip: Wrap ‘em up, and throw a legit punch. Properly wrapping your wrists and hands before class will help support your bones and tendons and prevent injury, says Ray Wallace, NASM, Chief Fitness Strategist of Pedal NYC. When applying wraps, make sure your wrist is totally straight. Start by placing the loop around your thumb. Roll the wrap around your wrist three times, then wrap the fabric around the palm of your hand. Next wrap in between each of your fingers, starting with the pinkie. Twist the wrap directly below the thumb and loop back up through each finger. Wrap the left over fabric across your knuckles, and around your wrist. Attach the Velcro to secure the hand wrap. Learning how to correctly throw a punch can also keep you safe, says Wallace. When throwing a punch keep your palm facing down, fists tight, and be sure at least four fingers make contact with the bag. This will alleviate pressure on your wrists.

The Class: Cycling
Common Injury: Knee pain
How it Happens: Setting the bike up incorrectly
Prevention Tip: Get to class early. This will ensure you have enough time to get situated on the bike. Start by adjusting your seat. Move it forwards and backwards until you can put your front knee directly over the pedal axle when sitting, says Wallace. Then adjust the seat to the right height. Place your feet on the pedals and rotate them until one leg reaches the bottom on the pedal stroke – your leg should have a 30-degree bend in the knee. Next, adjust the handlebars so you can comfortably place your hands on the bars with a slight bend in your elbows. Bonus: Arriving early will also guarantee that you catch the warm up, which prevents injury by prepping your body for the demands of the class, says Wallace.

The Class: Group Resistance Training
Common Injury: Muscle strain and repetitive stress injuries
How it Happens: Using too much weight, doing too many reps, or not varying exercises
Prevention Tip: Varying exercises and intensity will help prevent over-training, says Brynn Jinnett, Owner of Refine Method in New York City. This may mean incorporating rest days into your regimen, adding a specific period of lighter lifting or varying your movement patterns (lateral, forwards and backwards, up and down) which will all help to ward off injury.

The Class: Zumba
Common Injury: Stress fractures in the knee, ankle and foot.
How it Happens: Wearing improper footwear, poor jumping technique
Prevention Tip: To protect your knees during jumps, never land on a straight leg says Kelly Anne Wadler, a Zumba and hip-hop instructor in the New York City area. Always bend your knee when you land, for a bit more give. Also, investing in a supportive pair of sneakers will keep your ankles and feet free from injury. (Check out the Best Shoes For Your Workout)

The Class: Pilates
Common Injury: Neck discomfort
How it Happens: Having weak abs and neck flexors
Prevention Tip: Listen to your body. If something hurts, stop, reset your alignment by inhaling deeply, pulling the abdominals in and up as you exhale, and then try the exercise again, says Christina Morrell, a Certified Pilates Mat and Apparatus Instructor based in Manhattan. If the discomfort continues, try a different exercise. New to Pilates? Consider taking a private lesson to familiarize yourself with exercises and modifications before attending a group class. Also, check out The 15 Minute Belly Blasting Workout to strengthening your abs. The stronger your core, the less strain will be on the neck, says Morrell.

The Class: Yoga
Common Injury: Wrist and lower back pain
How it Happens: Performing poses or distributing weight incorrectly
Prevention Tip: Spreading your fingers wide and pressing through the fingertips in any pose where weight is on your hands will reduce pressure on the wrist, says Charlene Lite, a New York City-based yoga instructor. Avoid lower back pain by lengthening the spine up and away from the hips before bending or rounding the back. During floor stretches, sit on a block or a few blankets to prevent rounding the spine.

photo: iStockphoto/Thinkstock

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ALERT: Antibiotics Won’t Fix This Common Condition

Posted on October 3, 2012 by admin

Your family doctor knows best, right? Not always. Many physicians routinely prescribe antibiotics for a common ailment that cannot effectively be wiped out with drugs. And dishing out these antibiotics doesn’t just threaten patients with side effects, but also leads to the creation of hard-to-kill superbugs, dangerous bacteria strains that don’t even flinch when antibiotics enter a patient’s system.

In an attempt to preserve the effectiveness of antibiotics and to provide better treatment to patients, experts now recommend doctors drastically cut back on prescribing antibiotics for sinus infections.

“Overuse of antibiotics, especially if inappropriate, leads to the emergence of superbugs and drug resistance, which sets up a vicious cycle leading to the use of more potent and broad-spectrum antibiotics,” explains Anthony W. Chow, MD, professor emeritus of infectious diseases at the University of British Columbia in Vancouver. “Inappropriate antibiotics also lead to unnecessary adverse effects and add to the cost of healthcare.”

Sinus infections most often occur when people are getting over a cold or other respiratory infection, but environmental contaminants and seasonal allergies can also lead to the uncomfortable facial pressure associated with these infections.

Roughly 15 percent of the population suffers from at least one sinus infection a year. Although more than 90 percent of cases are caused by a virus—meaning antibiotics will do nothing to treat the infection—doctors often write out prescriptions for antibiotics. In fact, sinus infections are the fifth-leading cause of prescribing antibiotics, despite the fact that only about 2 percent of cases can be effectively treated with the drugs.

In the rare case that a sinus infection is caused by bacteria, the guidelines, issued by an Infectious Diseases Society of America panel chaired by Dr. Chow, recommend that doctors prescribe amoxicillin containing clavulanate, an enzyme-inhibitor that helps overcome antibiotic resistance. Doctors should avoid prescribing azithromycin and clarithromycin because there are growing drug-resistance problems with those antibiotics.

How to deal with a sinus infection:

• Gauge symptoms. Most people don’t need to see a doctor for a sinus infection. However, Dr. Chow outlines the symptoms of a bacterial sinus infection that does warrant prompt attention and possibly antibiotics:

1. Symptoms that last for 10 or more days and are not improving, or severe symptoms accompanied by a fever of 102 degrees or higher

2. Facial pain and green nasal discharge that lasts for 3 or 4 days

3. Double sickening—symptoms that seem to improve after 5 to 7 days, but then return and worsen.

There are exceptions to these rules, though. Very young or old patients, or people with underlying medical issues like cancer, diabetes, chronic heart, lung, or kidney ailments, or people who have recently been hospitalized should see a doctor when symptoms first surface, since they are more susceptible to infection, Dr. Chow notes.

• Reach for the Neti. Nasal irrigation sprays, drops, or liquids using a sterile solution can help relieve symptoms, although children may not cooperate with the treatment.

• Avoid certain over-the-counter meds. Decongestants and antihistamines don’t help alleviate bacterial or viral sinus infections and could actually make symptoms worse.

• Evict sinus irritators in the home. Avoid air fresheners, scented candles, and gel plug-ins. The fragrance chemicals they contain can aggravate allergies, which could in turn spark a sinus infection.

photo: iStockPhoto/Thinkstock

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Tag Archives: Common

The Common UTI Remedy That Doesn’t Work

Avoid These 6 Common Fitness Class Injuries

ALERT: Antibiotics Won’t Fix This Common Condition