Home Remedies for Urinary Infections
There are ways to treat a UTI without antibiotics. But some popular home remedies for urinary infections can prove ineffective or dangerous.
Your urinary tract flushes waste and toxins from your body in the form of urine. It is made up of the kidneys, ureters, bladder, and urethra.
A urinary infection, medically called a urinary tract infection (UTI), is caused when a portion of your urinary tract becomes infected. UTIs are common; more than 150 billion people develop urinary tract infections every year.
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Treatment for urinary tract infections
Because most urinary tract infections are caused by bacteria, they are often treated with antibiotics.
However, antibiotic resistant UTIs are becoming more common, possibly as a result of antibiotics being overprescribed. This has led some medical researchers to suggest that patients wait several days before taking antibiotics.
Some people should not delay medical treatment for UTIs, including those with weakened immune systems, diabetes, or more than two urinary tract infections within six months. For healthy people with uncomplicated urinary tract infections, however, research has shown that, in many cases, symptoms can resolve on their own without antibiotics.
Home remedies for urinary infections
If you do decide to delay or forgo antibiotic treatment, there are many home remedies for urinary infections that can help your symptoms resolve more quickly. These include:
- Water
- Probiotics
- Green tea
- Ginger
- Rosemary
- D-mannose
- Cranberry
Updated:  
March 25, 2020
Reviewed By:  
Christopher Nystuen, MD, MBA