Urinary infections

Urinary infections seem to be prevalent in women and especially as women age.  Without playing Doctor here my guess is it is a hormonal thing, although there is the “honeymoon” situation that I am not even going to touch with a 10 foot pole.  If I do you will really learn how little I know in a medical sense about these issues.  My guess is that hormonal implications can take place in a female at any age and I am sure males as well.

We do have an agricultural background though and there are similarities to plant and human health issues and with this we would like to share what we do know, or at least our theories with you.

pH played a crucial role in the health of plants.  Waste build ups in the chemical crystallization factor of the soil and its molecules were influenced by pH imbalances.  For one mysterious reason over my pay grade the orchard floor was maintained at a 6.8 pH.  We achieved this with lime applications of anywhere from 3 to 10 ton per acre of dolomitic limestone, high in magnesium from a Massachusetts mine nearby as orchard soils have a tendency to become acid and lime will bring it up.   We have written on pH extensively in many of our features on http://blueeyedcurse.com/pH_page.htm

I would like to lead off this feature with a question.  Why do hospitals and most medical sources advise the use of cranberry juice when one runs into a urinary problem?  The answer is simple, because in most cases the body is running too alkaline.  Cranberry juice is an acid drink and this counters the alkaline characteristics of urinary problems.  Yeast infections that are associated with certain urinary problems thrive in an alkaline environment.

On the other hand a diet that is alkaline in a healthy person is highly recommended and in fact we have written on it extensively and a ratio of 80% alkaline foods to 20 % acid foods is the optimum ratio.   We believe that a high alkaline diet will reduce the chances of infections that turns into a high alkaline state.  Don’t ask me to explain though, O.K.

Now before we go one step further let us issue a word of caution revolving around “home remedies”.   Of course you can’t really put cranberry juice in the classification of a home remedy if they use it in hospitals under certain conditions.  In fact we wouldn’t be surprised if hospitals use cranberry juice laced with corn syrup and high sugar content based on sugars ability to encourage an acid state.   They are using the cheaper drinks to cut down on costs and inadvertently optimizing the process.   In fact I don’t have any statistics to support it,  but women who indulge in high acid foods as in refined sugar sources probably are not as prone to infections, but are certainly going to succumb to something dire sooner than later.  Note: We use the natural cranberry juice the Lakewood brand and when things are normal we use to Stevia to sweeten it up a bit.

As far as the caution though, one that has an infection or suspects one should not rely on anything else but the services of a Doctor, who has the ability to diagnose exactly what your problem is with the many sophisticated tests at his/her disposal and the sooner you find out what the problem is the safer you will be.   Irreversible kidney damage is the last thing I want to be responsible for with my laymen’s recommendations.

When we talk pH and cranberry juice as well as other dietary regimens we are talking about maintenance/preventative measures and perhaps a means to aid in the correction of a problem you have encountered.  My wife recently had a problem, went to the Doctor and he immediately said “You need more than cranberry juice”.   My wife said this is why I am here Doctor!

Unfortunately an over alkaline condition and the reduction in alkaline food and drink as well as incorporating acid producing foods and drinks is something you should do on a temporary basis along with medical care.   I might add supplements to this mix as for the most part supplements are alkaline producers and this is one of the reasons I subscribe to supplements under normal conditions.   Conversely, some supplements are acid forming one being fish oil, hence fish oil would remain in my dietary regimen under certain conditions, folic acid another.  Your mineral based supplements as in calcium, magnesium, the bone supplements as in Glucosamine etc. even your cruciferous based or vegetable derivatives are alkaline based, although eliminating the anti oxidant properties of these items would be a mistake under stressful conditions.  My idea would be to minimize the alkaline foods and increase the acid forming foods for a period time during the recovery of a urinary problem.

One example:  We are accustomed to concocting a drink that we use when participating in heavy sports activities.  We feel that the distilled water that we use and the lack of minerals in this water must be addressed.  To hopefully concoct a good mix to provide the mineral laced electrolytes, we use a little cranberry juice which is acid, but we counter the drink with lemon juice a few squirts, apple cider vinegar and a packet of  the herb sweetener Stevia that are all alkaline producers.  For those who question whether the lemon and apple cider vinegar and Stevia are not alkaline producers, trust me they are.  As you know physical activity produces acids in the form of lactic acid that should be buffered.  Now on this basis a light schedule of physical activity and reducing the alkaline content of water would be the right way to go, under a suspected infection period, if you agree with my theories.  The exercise besides the obvious benefits would lend to an acid direction along with reducing alkaline food intake.  This could contradict a Doctors recommendation of total rest when under an infection condition. 

Ironically under normal conditions a generous amount of alkaline foods will not increase the alkaline state of your system.  It will actually promote the optimum balance and eliminate the body from going to extreme measures to keep the critical blood pH at 7.37.  I might add that the lymphatic system that plays such a critical role in the body will benefit by a non-stressful pH balance.  Incidentally when we say extreme we are talking where the body will actually cannibalize the bone matrix in a desperate attempt to maintain the blood pH at an optimum level.

On strictly a maintenance basis, you certainly cannot be running off to the Doctor every time you have a few extra bathroom visits.  In fact the over use of antibiotic is not in your best interest and all Doctors are very conscious of this.  To the  left is a  pH chart and contact information for the ph-ion company that provides test strips.   They are inexpensive and a good tool to keep an eye on your urine and saliva pH that should be in certain acceptable ranges during the day and a study in its self.  ph-ion has information on this issue and our website pH feature http://blueeyedcurse.com/pH_page.htm will update you.   In most cases when symptoms of urinary problems arise, the urine and salvia pH readings will reflect this and at this point you could start a precautionary regimen for a short period of time before shipping off to the Doctor.

This information is intended to heighten awareness of potential health care alternatives and should not be considered as medical advice. See your qualified health-care professional for medical attention, advice, diagnosis, and treatments.