All About Urinary Tract Infection and Tips to prevent UTI
The monsoon has arrived in most parts of the country while some are still waiting for the black clouds, thunderstorms and tiny rain drops. Rainy season is loved by most of us, because the romance is in the weather but it also brings a perfect atmosphere for the bacteria to grow and cause infections.
Urinary tract infection is one of the common infection caused by bacteria, fungus and virus (in some cases) and it affects not only women but kids and men too. School going kids using common toilets are more susceptible to the infection, while its also common among women of all ages.
What is Urinary Tract- Kidney, Ureter, bladder and Urethra forms the urinary tract. Kidney and ureter are part of upper tract while bladder and urethra form the lower tract. The UTI starts from the lower tract but can spread to the upper tract if left untreated and can cause serious issues.
Symptoms of UTI- The initial symptoms are discomfort in lower abdomen, frequent urge to pass urine, constricting pain in lower abdomen and in severe cases symptoms may include little blood and fever with chills.
Causes of UTI- Dehydration, holding urine for a long time, unhygienic toilet manners, use of common toilets are the causes of UTI.
Treatment- One should always consult a doctor as soon as the symptoms appear. A routine urine test along with a culture test would be done to check the severity and the sensitivity of bacteria. Culture test would determine which antibiotic would work accurately to kill the bacteria.
Antibiotic treatment is the only way to cure UTI caused by bacteria therefore visit to the doctor is must. However you can use home remedies to ease out the symptoms. A pinch of baking soda (not baking powder) in a half glass of water 2-3 times a day can give some relief.
Precautions- As they say,” Precaution is better than cure”, by following some basic hygiene measures we can avoid UTI.
- Keep yourself hydrated, adequate amount of water will flush out the harmful bacteria automatically.
- Don’t hold urine for long time, empty the bladder regularly.
- Avoid using common toilets, if necessary avoid direct contact with the toilet seat and never touch private parts after using toilet. Teach your kids to follow proper hygiene in school toilets.
- Clean the private parts using normal soap and water, from front to back.
- Clean the private parts after sexual intercourse.
- Don’t use over the counter medicines or from the previous prescription.
