Rachel Posted December 10, 2015 Share Posted December 10, 2015 My daughter is susceptible to UTIs, she came down with her second one in 6 weeks last night. She's been drinking cranberry juice daily, what other foods are helpful in preventing UTIs? She is only 5 so supplements she has to swallow aren't an option. Are there certain foods she should avoid? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wapiti Posted December 10, 2015 Share Posted December 10, 2015 (edited) D-Mannose is the substance in cranberry that helps flush away e-coli by binding to that bacteria. It is a particular carbohydrate molecule. It has a slightly-sweet flavor but is flavorless when mixed in a drink. It is not at all yucky. IMO mannose is way more effective than drinking juice. http://www.amazon.com/Now-Foods-D-Mannose-Powder-3-Ounce/dp/B000HCMK90/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1449756990&sr=8-1&keywords=d+mannose+powder (unflavored powder) http://www.amazon.com/Solaray-D-Mannose-CranActin-Lemon-Berry/dp/B003LYMGHW/ref=sr_1_7?ie=UTF8&qid=1449756990&sr=8-7&keywords=d+mannose+powder (flavored drink) Edited December 10, 2015 by wapiti 4 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MercyA Posted December 10, 2015 Share Posted December 10, 2015 Aww, poor little thing! She's not using any bubble bath, right? Even overly soapy water can be a problem. Make sure you wash her hair last when giving her a bath and have her get out of the tub immediately after. Showers are another option. 100% cotton undies and no tight pants can help. I don't have any dietary recommendations other than the cranberry juice. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Onceuponatime Posted December 10, 2015 Share Posted December 10, 2015 (edited) Aww, poor little thing! She's not using any bubble bath, right? Even overly soapy water can be a problem. Make sure you wash her hair last when giving her a bath and have her get out of the tub immediately after. Showers are another option. K 100% cotton undies and no tight pants can help. I don't have any dietary recommendations other than the cranberry juice. I agree with this, plus, UTIs are from external bacteria. Make sure she is using the proper wiping method, front to back. Daily changing of underwear is essential, more often if soiled in any way. Water may be more helpful than cranberry juice, especially if there is sugar in it. Also, she needs to void completely when she urinates, which she may be afraid to do because of the association with pain. Edited December 10, 2015 by Onceuponatime 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
zoobie Posted December 10, 2015 Share Posted December 10, 2015 Have you seen a pediatric urologist to rule out urinary reflux or other physical causes? 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SparklyUnicorn Posted December 10, 2015 Share Posted December 10, 2015 I second, third whatever the bubble bath. Soap. No soap down there. That can cause it. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SparklyUnicorn Posted December 10, 2015 Share Posted December 10, 2015 They sell cranberry pills and liquid concentrated cranberry. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Laura Corin Posted December 10, 2015 Share Posted December 10, 2015 Have you seen a pediatric urologist to rule out urinary reflux or other physical causes? Yes: if her system doesn't drain properly, she will be more prone to infections. Calvin was diagnosed before birth as possibly having reflux and was put on antibiotics from birth. Later investigations showed that he was fine, but the hospital wanted to be very sure to catch any problems early. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
happi duck Posted December 10, 2015 Share Posted December 10, 2015 Sugar is a culprit. If she's drinking cranberry juice with sugar try 100% cranberry instead...it's tart but watered down I think anyone could get used to it. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
justasque Posted December 10, 2015 Share Posted December 10, 2015 Sugar is a culprit. If she's drinking cranberry juice with sugar try 100% cranberry instead...it's tart but watered down I think anyone could get used to it. This. You want 100% cranberry juice - not just 100% JUICE, but 100% CRANBERRY juice. It's not cheap. I've found that store brands are significantly cheaper than "natural foods"-type brands, and Trader Joes has a reasonably priced one. It's horribly tart; I put a splash into every cup of water I drink throughout the day. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ktgrok Posted December 10, 2015 Share Posted December 10, 2015 Honestly, better wiping habits and drinking lots of water are the biggest things. Cranberry juice that a kid will drink has sugar in it, which feeds the bacteria. Stick with a low sugar diet, and have her drink lots and lots of water. And monitor her wiping. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rachel Posted December 10, 2015 Author Share Posted December 10, 2015 Have you seen a pediatric urologist to rule out urinary reflux or other physical causes? She has grade 1 reflux and a duplicating kidney. It's been about a year since her last VCUG so it wouldn't surprise me if they want to do it again to see if her reflux has gotten worse. She has in the past been on daily antibiotics (bactrim) but the urologist didn't feel her reflux was bad enough to continue. Fortunately she does not have much pain with her UTIs, it just slows her down and she usually has one day where she sleeps a lot. She did wake up screaming last night though, we were able to get her comfortable enough to sleep and my husband took doctor this morning. I would like to avoid her having to permanently be on antibiotics if possible. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rachel Posted December 10, 2015 Author Share Posted December 10, 2015 This. You want 100% cranberry juice - not just 100% JUICE, but 100% CRANBERRY juice. It's not cheap. I've found that store brands are significantly cheaper than "natural foods"-type brands, and Trader Joes has a reasonably priced one. It's horribly tart; I put a splash into every cup of water I drink throughout the day. It's 100% cranberry juice, she actually likes it. I can't drink it straight. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rachel Posted December 10, 2015 Author Share Posted December 10, 2015 D-Mannose is the substance in cranberry that helps flush away e-coli by binding to that bacteria. It is a particular carbohydrate molecule. It has a slightly-sweet flavor but is flavorless when mixed in a drink. It is not at all yucky. IMO mannose is way more effective than drinking juice. http://www.amazon.com/Now-Foods-D-Mannose-Powder-3-Ounce/dp/B000HCMK90/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1449756990&sr=8-1&keywords=d+mannose+powder (unflavored powder) http://www.amazon.com/Solaray-D-Mannose-CranActin-Lemon-Berry/dp/B003LYMGHW/ref=sr_1_7?ie=UTF8&qid=1449756990&sr=8-7&keywords=d+mannose+powder (flavored drink) I've not heard of this, the reviews look like it works well. I'll talk to the pediatrician about it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
zoobie Posted December 10, 2015 Share Posted December 10, 2015 Poor boo :( I was asking because different peds have different levels of escalation, if that makes sense. Mine referred us after three in short order, but a friend had to demand a referral after many more. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wapiti Posted December 10, 2015 Share Posted December 10, 2015 (edited) IIRC, it takes about 90 minutes from the time you take in the mannose until it is excreted via urine. So, if you go that route, I'd consider giving the nighttime dose a couple hours before bed so there's time to pee before bed. (In this situation, I'd probably do 1x per day except when there seems to be an infection coming on, when I'd bump it to 2x.) (Eta, I agree w/you that it would be wise to look for a way around long-term antibiotics if possible. My ds was on antibiotics for a kidney issue for his entire first year of life. He was also a premie. There are many factors involved, but he now has some serious immune system issues.) Edited December 10, 2015 by wapiti Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fdrinca Posted December 10, 2015 Share Posted December 10, 2015 I'd echo lots of water and proper voiding. I was surprised to get a UTI recently...I'd forgotten the "lean forward while voiding" suggestion while pregnant. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Luckymama Posted December 10, 2015 Share Posted December 10, 2015 A friend's dd had a lot of recurrent UTIs w kidney reflux. By process of trial and error the discovered that she was sensitive to citric acid which is added to lots of foods. They eliminated the citric acid from her diet and she stopped having UTIs. She was 6 when the citric acid connection was figured out. She's 15 now. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
idnib Posted December 10, 2015 Share Posted December 10, 2015 Not a food exactly, but I stopped getting UTIs after I starting taking Uva ursi pills. I just checked and it also comes in a tea bag form. You'd have to research it for kids, though. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Acadie Posted December 10, 2015 Share Posted December 10, 2015 We've successfully treated two UTIs with D-Mannose, and never had to fill the prescriptions. Retesting confirmed that the infection was gone. D-Mannose is one of the most effective alternative treatments we've ever tried. From what I've read, it works against UTIs caused by E. coli, which is the majority of UTIs. But it may not work for infections caused by other microbes. Amy 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Laurie Posted December 10, 2015 Share Posted December 10, 2015 Some people who have gluten sensitivity find that their bladder problems improve on a gluten free diet. http://www.celiac.com/articles/21636/1/Gluten-Sensitivity-and-Bladder-Disease/Page1.html 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
IdahoHomeschooler Posted December 10, 2015 Share Posted December 10, 2015 Yep, gonna go with the D-Mannose recommendation, also, since you are already being seen for this issue. It was the thing that got me out of a terrible recurrent uti cycle. Such a simple thing, yet very effective. Pretty sure I found out about it on this board. All hail Dr Hive. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FaithManor Posted December 10, 2015 Share Posted December 10, 2015 Dd had to give up caffeine and be more proactive with plain water...lots more water. She eats dried cranberries drinks cranberry juice, and sometimes takes a cranberry supplement that is OTC - highly concentrated. She reminds herself not to hold it too long too. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rachel Posted December 10, 2015 Author Share Posted December 10, 2015 A friend's dd had a lot of recurrent UTIs w kidney reflux. By process of trial and error the discovered that she was sensitive to citric acid which is added to lots of foods. They eliminated the citric acid from her diet and she stopped having UTIs. She was 6 when the citric acid connection was figured out. She's 15 now. I'll have to check into this. I mostly cook from scratch but I do use canned beans and some canned vegetables. She also really likes lemon juice in her water. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Laura Corin Posted December 10, 2015 Share Posted December 10, 2015 Another thought: are these actually infections, or are they UTI symptoms? I get UTI symptoms from Aspartame/Nutrasweet. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rachel Posted December 11, 2015 Author Share Posted December 11, 2015 Another thought: are these actually infections, or are they UTI symptoms? I get UTI symptoms from Aspartame/Nutrasweet. They are actual infections. She doesn't eat anything with aspartame. I appreciate all the suggestions, this gives us some things to try. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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