I read recently that Alka Seltzer helps with urinary tract infections. I can't remember where I read this or how/when to take the Alka Seltzer. Can anyone out there help me? Thank you!
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I have not heard of alka seltzer, but I have heard of drinking two glasses of cranberry juice or cran-grape if you prefer the taste
I can't for the life of me understand why people treat themselves with bogus claims such as Alka Seltzer and risk possible injury to themselves.Go see a urologist and get the correct treatment.Some times Cranberry juice can sometimes help with minor problems but the juice one buys in a grocery store is high in sugar and low in cranberries.Not enough to be of any help.
I use pure cranberry juice.. no sugar.. add a bit of water to it.. bladder infection gone... and as for alkaline seltzer. Have used it in a pinch.. it regulates the ph balance in your urine..
Alka Selzer is not bogus! Helps with the pain while antibiotics kick in!!!
If you have IC then you wouldn't want anything acidic like cranberry or vitamin C. D mannose helps daily and at the beginning of symptoms alka seltzer does work and does not harm you, providing you only take it the first day or two. Also baking soda in water helps. You want the lower the acidity so as not to irritate the bladder more. Also black cherry juice concentrate is normally good for women over forty as it is soothing and has been shown to help.
A lot of people take too many antibiotics and become resistant to it, thats why I monitor mine personally with at home treatments unless it gets too severe but its not realistic to take antibiotics constantly for people with chronic infections
Using Alka Seltzer for bladder pain is not bogus. It absolutely works! Many urologists do NOT give the correct treatment ... they just throw one prescription after another at it that only make it worse, and they never fix the problem.
hi there
i work at a drs office. we tell people to buy urostat over the counter and drink lots of water. but if you know you have a uti you need to go to dr and have a culture done.
Someone had told me about taking Alka Seltzer for uti. I would like to try it, because I get it so often. The urologist prescribes antibiotics, but I get side effects.
I have a bladder disease and anything with acid causes me a great deal of pain, similar to a bladder infection, but more intense. Cranberry juice is a no-no for patients such as myself, due to the acid content. A good soak in a bath of baking soda helps sometimes and even drinking a bit will help reduce the acid.
Remember, your skin is the largest organ you have, anything that touches your skin filters through your body. So as an interstitial cystitis patient, I use no lotions with fragrances or artificial ingredients. I can't use perfumes, or be around people that wear perfume. No sodas or anything with carbonation is allowed. You can find this info at www.ic-network.com.
See a urologist and make sure you have an actual infection. Blood in the urine does not indicate infection, don't let any dr tell you that it does. Bacteria is the sign of infection and a good round of antibiotics should take care of it.
Hope this helps,
Tina
Wowwhat a restrictive way to life.
Hey, it may be too late this time if you already have the urinary tract infection. But I used to have them like alot...several times a year...sure did get to be old going to the doctor for the same stupid thing. He told me and I just didn't listen. Okay people. You HAVE to drink lots and lots of water daily. To track my water I keep myself a gallon of cold water in the refrigerator that is mine alone (the guys have theirs they drink out of) that way I can keep track by the end of each day and make sure I got in what I was supposed to drink. Since I have started doing this about 3 plus years ago I no longer have all these visits to the doctor for UTI infections. Since cranberry juice doesn't hurt me I also drink a glass of it a day. For trbrown do you have anything like acid reflux? I do and found out that I can have mango juice which is very low in acid and doesn't seem to bother me. I had given up juice for years because of this. They also say papaya juice is low in acid too but I haven't seen it. The mango juice is sold at walmart (del valle) is the brand name. I like the taste of it. But please people if you are tired of the trips to the doctors for UTI'S, take heed and do the water thing. You also always have to drink more water in the summer than in the winter, but I don't remember the difference. All I know is I need to drink at least a gallon, so thats what I do. I am sure with the great information highway out there you can find more info on the subject. I even had a pharmacist tell me these same things here while back and I could proudly say I was already doing this stuff. I have a chronic spastic bladder and I erroneously thought but I'm going to the bathroom all the time from drinking water. Well, I was going to the bathroom all the time from the UTI from not drinking water. Better to drink the water like you are supposed to and not have the doctor and medicine bills. Either way you will be going to the bathroom, lol. Such is life. And tell your family what you are doing so they will let you get your right water quota. Good luck.
I agree TOTALLY. Just see a regular M.D. Hope you get well!
I also get UTI's several times a year. Drinking tons of water does help. I've also stopped drinking soda, just one will start to give me symptoms of UTI. AZO also helps for immediate relief.
Here is a web site on natural cures. I am not saying don't go to the Dr. but when you have one comeing on and it's too late at night, you want some relief until you can get in the next day. naturalcurereviews.com/
I used the alka seltzer one and it worked. I have always drank tons of water so I have since added 1 glass of cranberry juice a day and haven't had anymore problems.
If you are sure it is NOT something worse, I'd first begin taking one high potency Acidolphylus
capsule once a day until symptoms disappear.(Whole Foods refrig. section. I use Bluebonnet brand, "Milk Free plus FOS") At same time I'd take about 50 mg. of BioZinc(Soloray
brand is what I use) a day for a few days. Certainly
drink at least a gallon of cold filtered water a day, free by the cup from most McDonald's, and very cheap from Whole Foods by the gallon, or from tap if none of the above is possible. Eliminate all acidic
liquids you might be drinking, including tea, coffee,
juices, and carbonation, etc. , neutralizing your system as quickly as possible to cleanse the tract.
I believe you might have been overdoing one or more of the above accidentally during this heat. Lemonade, perhaps? We crave juices during heat waves. Acidolphylus helps to restore the natural
ph of the mucous membranes throughout the body,
so I understand. Acidosis or Alkalinosis (sp?) can
happen when we crave things that are not neutral in
ph value. Our bodies are intended to be only slightly
acidic ph, I believe. You should see good results. Then when you feel you are well, begin VERY slowly, like every OTHER day, adding only one-half cup of whatever you have been craving back into your diet, slowly monitoring how it affects your urinary tract.
I also privately monitor the odor of my underwear for the strong smell of ammonia to warn me PRIOR to any infection that might be taking hold so that I can head it off before it gets worse with a gentle Acidolphylus with FOS at the first sign, AND
back off of consuming tomato sauces and anything except water and fresh foods.
Good luck and God bless.
Absolutely, I was stuck in an airport when my UTI struck. I was going to be there for 5 hrs plus the trip. I had read about the Alka Seltzer so decided I had nothing to lose. I took it and in 2 hours had complete relief. Didn't need an antibiotic either, Just followed it with lots of water.
I used to restore the ph of my bladder by using baking soda in water....I also put ice cubes in my wine and always have a glass of water when I drink coffee to minimize the acid effect. But the best tip I ever got was to ALWAY go to the bathroon and void after sex (to wash out any bacteria) - becaz my bladder problems were honeymoon cystitis...A fact which I got from a feminist health manual NOT my male MD who wanted to put me on antibiotics for the rest of my born days!!! Of course, if it's very bad & an infection do get antibiotics - but you don't have to live on them.
I want to let everyone know that suffers from UTIs and gets antibiotics frequently to be very very careful when diarrhea starts. If you have diarrhea for a long period of time the antibiotics may have possibly fought off the good bacteria and colistridium difficile may onset. to know more about colistridium difficile you may get support on www.cdiffsupport.com They are not doctors but they have helped me.
Alka-seltzer really works!!! Be sure and take it when you first feel the symptoms. The next morning I have no symptoms at all, but take Alka-seltzer once more just to be on the safe side. It sures beats going to the doctor . . . again!
Hi - it's possible that using Alka-Seltzer will inhibit the growth of bacteria at the onset of a UTI - HOWEVER - be aware, this is an INFECTION - and, should the symptoms persist beyond 24 hours of using the home remedy - SEE YOUR DOCTOR.
Using home remedies or over the counter symptom relief medication (such as "Uristat") will not CURE an infection. And, left untreated, any infection can become systemic (i.e. throughout your body/blood) and leave you with serious consequences.
Any UTI symptoms accompanied by FEVER, LOW OR MID BACK OR PELVIC PAIN, NAUSEA, OR CHILLS need to be treated immediately by a physician.
By the way, I am a nurse - and I do get frequent UTI's...so I know what I'm talking about.
Good luck!
I have used alka seltzer with much success. I have had so many UTI's in my life. I know it's coming normally 12hrs beforehand.
But like this morning, I woke up MISERABLE. Alka Seltzer and Cranberry juice to the rescue!
I get UTI's ALL the time and found that cranberry juice from the store does absolutely nothing for me. However my yoga instuctor told me that juice from the grocery store has alot of sugar and not enough cranberry's so to go to the health food store and buy pure cranberry juice. You only have to use a small amount and mix it with water. It works really good but you also HAVE to drink lots of water as you always should anyway.
Maybe it's the kind of UTI--because I understand there are several kinds--but Alka Selzer (or bicarbonate of soda) and d-sammose, the same SIMPLE sugar that's in cranberry juice, do work for the kind of UTI that's caused by sexual encounters - I believe the bacteria is an e-coli. I was getting 3 or 4 uti's a year, even doing everything I could think of to prevent--water, voiding after, cranberry juice, making sure I was clean. Needless to say I was VERY FRUSTRATED, and so was my husband. Then I spoke to a friend whose mother told her she had the same problem at a "certain age." She used and recommended D-Sammose to me, which you can find at health stores, or online. (I bought mine through Amazon.com.) Apparently, the bacteria lives in an acidic environment. But they attach themselves to the simple sugar molecules in D-sammose and are flushed out. (You should research this for yourself - which is easy on line.) So far so good for me, thank heaven. For my friends mother, she never had another one. Oh--the bicarbonate of soda creates an alkaline environment that the little buggers don't like. (One has to wonder what people did before drug companies got into the business of creating antibiotic drugs for this. They HAD to have been pretty common. It had to have been a big market.) But, I want to admit that I'm haven't used D-Sammose to CURE yet, only to prevent. If I've been told if I "feel" one coming on, then drink Alka-Seltzer. Drink LOTS of water. And NEVER drink Ocean Spray or other sweetended brands of Cranberry juice or juice blends because they add a ton of sugar that the bacteria thrives on. Also DON'T drink sodas. Do the research. (Of course, if you get a full fledged infection, it's probably FASTER to take the antibiotics.)
I don't think you should always strait away go to the doctor with urinary tract because you don't always need to take antibiotics. If your peeing blood or have bad back pains, nausea or vomiting then yes you should go because you need antibiotics. if you just have the REALLY annoying pains "down there" and the frequent urges, alka seltzer and cranberry juice do work. I've only now heard about the sugar in the cranberry juice thing and i don't think that is true because I've always bought the juice from the store and its been fine for me.
Using Alka-Seltzer, or baking soda for that matter, is not a "BOGUS CLAIM". I does treat minor infections in the urinary tract. I've seen may patients prescribed antibiotics that never seem to eliminate the underlining infection. This is because they consume massive amounts of foods and drinks that produce acid within the body. The alkaline in baking soda and Alka-Seltzer helps neutralize your bodies PH levels, especially in the urine your blatter stores while you sleep. Unless you have constant pain in the lower parts of your body, blood or puss in urine, try this first before consulting your physician.
I do remember that as a child, I would get frequent UTI's and my mother would always give me a teaspoon of baking soda in a glass of water, and it worked. Same thing as Alka Selzer, hunh? As an adult, I started taking cranberry pills and have not have a UTI in nearly 20 years.
I always thought UTIs were partly caused because your urinary tract's PH was not acidic enough to kill bacteria, therefore, caranberry juice is suggested because it will increase the acidity and help to kill the bacteria. I don't understand how alka seltzer would work considering it is an antacid and makes the PH more alkaline?
For two days I had no pain in my bladder or lower back, it just burned a little after I peed. I had to use the bathroom every 20 min, but nothing ever came out. I just had the feeling of the extreme need to go. Now, 2 days later I have extreme pain in my bladder and lower back. I'm nervous about it, but have no insurance(or money for that matter) I've been drinking cranberry juice like crazy, taking vitamin C pills and taking alka selzer, but the pains still there til the point of tears. HELP!
"Pro-Biotics". you'll find them at Natural Food stores and some vitamin sections at regular stores. Someone advised me after 3 courses of Rx antibiotics didn't work. This did! I now take 2 every day to keep everything balanced. Works like a charm, but i like the Alka-Seltzer remedy, also.
I get minor UTIs periodically, and occasionally they have gotten quite painful. You guys have given some great advice. I have made a cranberry 100% juice blend (with other juices, but no sugar added) a part of my daily breakfast routine. Also a bit of probiotic yogurt every day. It is cheaper than probiotic supplements, though not as intensive if you need a strong dose at once. To save money, however, we make our own probiotic yogurt. It's easy. You start with a storebought probiotic yogurt for a starter. (You can buy yogurt cultures at the healthfood store, but storebought yogurt is quick and easy.) To make 4 cups of yogurt, boil 4 cups milk (for sterilizing), then let it sit and come back to room temperature. In the meantime, put 2 tablespoons of the yogurt in 4 cup container and leave then on the counter to bring to room temperature as well. (I use 2 two-cup jars. It works best if the container is just the right size--not bigger than you need.) Once the milk has cooled, add it to the container with the 2 tablespoons of yogurt and stir. Then seal the container and put it in the oven. Turn the oven light on. Leave it for 8-12 hours without stirring or anything (overnight works well). Then take it out and refrigerate. You have perfect probiotic yogurt that you can continue to use as starter for more, and it only costs the price of the milk!
I have UTI all the time I don't know why but I'm hoping this alka selter works they don't last very long but they are very painful. I will let you know if alka seltzer works I'm going to try it now.
Gee, seeing all these posts makes me realise why we need doctors, ppl will follow any stupid advice and possibly cause themselves more harm than anything. Alka seltzer, and all the urinary alkalinising agents only treat the SYMPTOMS, not the cause. Sometimes urinary tract infections will go away themselves. Cranberry juice will only help prevent UTI's from occurring, and you can buy tabs/caps also. Cranberry helps prevent the bacteria from sticking to the walls of your bladder and urinary tract. Urinary tract infections if not treated can work their way up to the kidneys and cause fever etc, very dangerous situation - leading to kidney failure and death, so see your doctor instead of stupid home remedies - maybe you dont have a UTI, maybe its an STD, if its recurring you maybe you have an anatomical abnormality or some impaiment in the body's capacity to keep out bugs. Also drinking lots of water doesnt hurt, and makes ppl think they are doing something about their condition, and if it does go away then it probably would have gone away anyways.
The sad part about going to doctors for me is my utis are resistant to all antibiotics. And the fight to find something that actually works from a doctor is a long, hard uphill battle. Sometimes the urine tests come out negative, because you are trying to drink so much water to make the pain go away and the docs send you away thinking it's all in your head. I went to one specialist, she found one thing that worked for a little while before it too became resistant. I have tried cranberry pills, garlic, Hibisicus Flower extract, Buchu Leaf Extract, D-Mannose, Goldenrod, and strong probiotics. Used them for a while with success, than now none of them are working. Women who go through these like myself constantly become desperate.
It can be brought on by sex if one of both aren't clean but it can also be brought on by stress and your body just being susceptible to it. You can be the most hygienic person and still get them. The doctors treat you like you are too stupid, unclean and proceed to tell you how to wipe yourself... um. I know how to wipe. Front to back. I am not an idiot. I hate doctors, the whole thing is a joke, so I dont agree with you. Because while some doctors can help, for the rest of us that antibiotics don't do a damn thing except cause yeast infections and not ever touch the UTI.
I tried this remedy 2 days ago for the first time after reading it in an e-mail my mother sent me. I get UTI's often and the typical AZO standard, cranberry pills and cranberry juice never help me. Upon first feeling the bladder pain in the morning, I took the Alka Seltzer and it helped with the pain immediately. The only downfall is that it made me feel extremely bloated. That night, the pain came back and I took the Alka Seltzer again, even when I was still feeling bloated because I was desperate for the pain to go away. I ate dinner shortly after and my stomach went crazy. Maybe I was only supposed to take it once? I'd drunk 1/2 a bottle of cranberry juice prior to taking the Alka Seltzer too so maybe that had an affect? I don't know, but that night, I was in the bathroom all night with nausea, vomiting, and horrible stomach pain which lasted throughout the night and the next morning. I went to my Dr. and was prescribed some antibiotics and am taking them now, but their effects take a while to kick in. I still took the Alka Seltzer for the pain yesterday, but it didn't work as well as the first day. I guess it works best when you catch it before it becomes severe.
I got my first uti last year at the age of 26 and I didn't know what it was, so it was left untreated for a couple of weeks, and led to a kidney infection. Please, whenever u get the first sign of a UTI you need to treat it. Because kidney infections are NO JOKE! The pain is terrible, you have hot and cold chills every hour, you lose your appetite, your back is in so much pain. Ii really just wanted to die because the pain was so bad (but I did lose 12 pounds because I didn't eat much). Now whenever I feel a uti coming on I start drinking lots of water and take AZO pills. Make sure before and after intercourse you wash thoroughly. An UTI, if untreated can become something deadly.
As a certified Biology teacher, I was researching the ingredients and mechanism by which Alka Seltzer works. The active ingredient is ASPIRIN. The fizzing is just baking soda interacting with citric acid in water creating carbon dioxide. The purpose of the "fizz" is to quickly dissolve the tablet in water so that when you drink it the aspirin is quickly absorbed into your body... making you feel better faster than taking an aspirin tablet and waiting for your body to break it down. the bottom line is that when you take alka seltzer, you are simply taking fast acting aspirin. it will help with pain, but will do nothing for a bacterial infection. It is not a cure. See a doctor for UTI.
Take it from a women with a lifelong history of UTI's. Alka-Seltzer is mainly aspirin. It will mask the discomfort of a UTI, but not cure it. This masking of discomfort gives the UTI time to get to the kidney and man, that is trouble! Alka-Seltzer DOES NOT cure a UTI. Scrub that from your list of natural products to try. YIKES!
Use Alkaselzer Gold without the aspirin.
Aloha as I sit here reading all the responses I think that you are all focusing on the wrong part of the product. Yes the aspirin helps with the pain but it is the baking soda ingredient that helps neutralize the acid in the urinary tract that is the part that makes it go away. Thank you person who dank baking soda as a kid, you were the answer to focus on.
I treated and cured a UTI naturally as follows:-
Garlic is a natural antibiotic, must be crushed and must be raw to activate best & lots of it (might have to reduce socialising!) - try in salad dressing.
VERY HIGH dosage cranberry tablets are best - I use 30,000mg per day, any less not as effective.
Watermelon - eat as much as you can for breakfast and all morning but nothing else (it will flush out your urinary tract), do this for a few days.
Steamed asparagus with meals also great
Warm water with lemon juice first thing
Soup include ALL following superfoods each have great properties for treating UTIs - Leeks, garlic, potato, onion, celery, barley, asparagus, rosemary, sage, thyme & parsley
Pumpkin seeds (I made up a mix of nuts & dried cranberries but avoid peanuts)
Pro-biotic yoghurt &/or acidophilous tablets
Include following fruit as snacks: blackcurrants, redcurrants, rhaspberries, blueberries, figs, grapes (I had these mixed berries with yoghurt & sprinkled chopped almonds for dessert every day, or in a smoothie)
Increase antioxidants - lots of stir fry veg, salads (also included acai berry powder daily, but this is optional) - to strengthen immune system to fight off infection
Avoid sugar and alcohol like the plague!
Drink loads of water (2-3 litres per day)
Also, get plenty of rest
A word of caution on this one from someone who recently self-treated using alka seltzer and bicarbonate of soda, and instead of having the usual UTI, ended up with a full-blown kidney infection. My thoughts on this are:
The burning sensation is actually your body's natural anti-bodies trying to fight off the infection. When using alka seltzer/bicarbonate of soda, although you may be able to effectively keep the acid at bay, they do nothing to help the infection and because the alka seltzer/bicarbonate of soda were combating the acid (the body's natural fighting mechanism), the infection was able to grow and travel up to my kidneys.
For anyone who has a UTI, I would suggest to try eating lots of citrus fruits, drinking lots of water and if it isn't gone within 12 hours, then contact your doctor and get some antibiotics.
Since the scare with the kidney infection, I have changed my diet to include 8 glasses of water a day, cranberry supplements, vitamin C and although I don't like citrus fruits, I have been adding lots of lemon juice to my drinks. I'm hoping this will prevent me from getting any further infections.
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