Cranberries have long been used to treat and prevent urinary tract infections (UTI), but a recent study indicates it may not be as potent as using antibiotics, according to various media reports.
Dr. Marielle A. J. Beerepoot and her colleagues concluded in a study in the Archives of Internal Medicine that cranberry supplements do however have benefits, they are less likely to have side effects and do not encourage the growth of antibiotic resistant strains of bacteria.
For women who are concerned about drug-resistant bacteria, the use of cranberry for the prevention of urinary tract infections may be the best approach.
“Women with recurrent UTIs do not like taking antibiotics for a long period because they know (about) the resistance problem. I think that doctors have to discuss the results of this study with the individual patients to make the best choice,” Dr. Suzanne Geerlings, an infectious diseases expert at the Academic Medical Center in Amsterdam, told BBC News.
Two-hundred twenty-one women who had at least three recurrent UTIs in the previous year were randomly selected for a 12-month course of the antibiotic trimethoprim-sulfamethoxazole (TMP-SMX) (Bactrim, Bethaprim, Cotrim, Septra), taken once daily with two placebo pills, or one cranberry capsule with 500 mgs of cranberry extract taken twice a day with one placebo pill.
Women who took cranberry capsules were more likely to develop at least one symptomatic UTI compared with their counterparts who received the antibiotic, 4 versus 1.8, respectively.
On average, women in the cranberry group developed a new UTI after four months, while recurrence occurred within eight months among those who received the antibiotic, the study showed.
“It’s no surprise that cranberry isn’t as effective as antibiotics, but they still may hold more appeal for many patients”, Dr. Megan Schimpf, an assistant clinical professor of obstetrics and gynecology at the Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania, told MSBNC’s Linda Carroll.
“There are women who would prefer to take something natural with a lower risk of side effects, even if they know that they’ll have slightly increased risk of a urinary tract infection,” Schimpf added.
Studies like this might tempt women to treat themselves rather than seeing a doctor first. This is not recommended, Schimpf explains.
“We know that women can sometimes mix up urinary tract infections with vaginal infections with yeast or bacteria,” she explained. “And there is a concern that the urinary tract infection is already severe enough to have generated a kidney infection. Those usually come with fever and back pain.”
Dr. Carolyn Dean, a naturopathic physician in Maui, Hawaii told Denise Mann from HealthDay that there is still a role for cranberry juice and/or extract in preventing UTIs. “Sexually active women whose bladder feels irritated after sex should take cranberry capsules after intercourse as a preventative,” she said.
“If you do develop a UTI, you can increase the amount of cranberry extract you are taking or consider antibiotics.”
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