How to use turmeric to treat urinary tract infection(UTI).

Urinary tract infection can be caused by fungi, viruses or bacteria, with bacteria being the most common cause. Most UTIs are caused by the bacteria present in the bowel, such as E. coli while Some other bacteria like, Chlamydia and Mycoplasma can be sexually transmitted and cause infection in urethra or reproductive organs. Women are more prone to UTI than men because of anatomical structure of reproductive organ, as microbes can reach easily into the urinary tract of women. The common symptoms of UTI are frequent urge to urinate, burning sensation in the bladder or urethra during urination, small amount of urine, abdominal pain, fever, foul smell and dark colour of the urine. UTI is not very serious but if the infection reaches kidneys it could be detrimental leading to kidney damage, high blood pressure etc and sometimes may even be life-threatening.The risk of UTI increases in case of any abnormality related with urinary tract such as kidney stones , diabetes and the use of certain birth control also elevates the risk. The use of catheters or tubes inserted into bladder for urine removal also predispose to microbial growth and also lead to infection. The treatment of UTI is done through antibiotics and antimicrobials. The duration of treatment depends on the severity of infection.This is accompanied by drinking plenty of water, changing urination habits and proper hygiene to avoid re-infection. Turmeric is a natural alternative to antibiotics for UTI treatment.Turmeric is known for a number of medicinal properties such as antimicrobial, anti-inflammatory, antioxidant, immune-stimulatory and It has significant anti-viral and anti-fungal activity. Consumption of turmeric can prevent the growth of the pathogens in the urinary tract. The antimicrobial activity of turmeric is capable of restricting the growth of a wide range of microorganisms including bacteria, virus and fungi. Urinary tract infection often causes inflammation in kidney or bladder which further leads to pain. Cystitis which is inflammation of bladder is one of the common pro inflammatory responses in this infection. Turmeric is a potent anti-inflammatory agent, and it suppresses the pro-inflammatory responses by interfering with many metabolic pathways related to these responses. Recurrence of UTI is common in patients as high as 25% among the infected individuals. The cause of the relapse may be predominance of virulence factor genes, biofilm formation, antimicrobial resistance, multi-drug resistant strains etc. Turmeric is also capable of preventing recurrence of the UTIs. In a recent study, curcumin was found to be effective in preventing the relapse of UTI in postmenopausal women, when used with other therapies. It also reduced the symptoms of the infection.