As you already know, fibromyalgia is an exceedingly complicated disorder with a laundry list of symptoms that involve nearly every system in the body. The urinary system is no exception. Urinary tract infections (UTIs) and disorders are yet another piece of the puzzle that may need to solve in order to get you feeling better. In fact, about 25% of my fibromyalgia patients have chronic urinary tract infections. Many also have problems with incontinence (inability to hold urine) and urinary retention (inability to pass urine).
Signs and symptoms of UTI include painful, hesitant, frequent urination along with fever lasting for more than three days.
A UTI can be diagnosed by sending a culture of the urine. If there are symptoms and you have a negative culture, then there is likely another illness involved like gonorrhea or Chlamydia. Some of the more common organisms found on cultures are E. coliand S. saprophyticus. More than 90% are caused by E. coli, which is normally found in the gut anyway. However, there are a few rare dangerous forms of E. coli, which is what causes the infection. When E. coli escapes the bowel and goes into the bladder is when the problem occurs. E. coli is exceptionally resilient to the bladder’s attempt at killing off the bacteria because it is sophisticated in that it uses projections to help stick itself to the wall of the bladder.
Fortunately, there are plenty of ways to prevent a UTI.
Adding cranberry to your diet is a sure-fire way to help prevent the discomfort of a urinary tract infection. In fact the Fibromyalgia Smoothie recipe and Fibromyalgia Salad are great tools to add to your daily diet to combat reoccurring incidents.
Signs and symptoms of UTI include painful, hesitant, frequent urination along with fever lasting for more than three days.
A UTI can be diagnosed by sending a culture of the urine. If there are symptoms and you have a negative culture, then there is likely another illness involved like gonorrhea or Chlamydia. Some of the more common organisms found on cultures are E. coliand S. saprophyticus. More than 90% are caused by E. coli, which is normally found in the gut anyway. However, there are a few rare dangerous forms of E. coli, which is what causes the infection. When E. coli escapes the bowel and goes into the bladder is when the problem occurs. E. coli is exceptionally resilient to the bladder’s attempt at killing off the bacteria because it is sophisticated in that it uses projections to help stick itself to the wall of the bladder.
Fortunately, there are plenty of ways to prevent a UTI.
- Drink 70 ounces of water daily.
- Avoid taking in a lot of alcohol and caffeine.
- Don’t hold off going to the bathroom when you feel the urge; go as soon as you feel it.
- If you have chronic UTIs, avoid baths and take showers instead.
- Wipe front to back to avoid contamination
- For women who are sexually active, urinate within 15 minutes after intercourse, which will expel the bacteria before specialized extensions anchor to the urethral walls.
- Clean the opening of the urethra right after intercourse.
- Clean genitalia before and after intercourse.
- Drink unsweetened cranberry juice
Adding cranberry to your diet is a sure-fire way to help prevent the discomfort of a urinary tract infection. In fact the Fibromyalgia Smoothie recipe and Fibromyalgia Salad are great tools to add to your daily diet to combat reoccurring incidents.
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