UTI’s! Potential causes of UTI’s & how to naturally treat them!

We’ve probably ALL experienced a UTI at some point in our lives and let’s be honest… they really suck. In the past when I wasn’t getting my period regularly (I didn’t know at the time that this could be a cause of a UTI) I got them a few times in one year and it literally felt like I was peeing out screws. SO painful! Of course, they don’t always have to be that painful but if you’ve had ones like that before, you completely understand what I’m talking about!

Thankfully I haven’t had a UTI in a while! I’ve had about 1 or 2 in the last 5 years and got rid of it within 2 days naturally with the protocol I’m going to share with you today!

But first things first…

What causes a UTI?

Here are some of the major causes...

1. Low estrogen

This is one of the reasons why I personally experienced a good amount of UTI’s in my later high school years, (but obviously had NO idea about it at the time). Just like our gut has a microbiome of good & bad bacteria, so does our vagina. Estrogen, one of our sex hormones, helps the naturally occuring good bacteria within our vagina to flourish and thrive. This good bacteria also lowers the pH in our vagina which helps control infection causing bacteria to show up. SO if you have low estrogen levels (from not regularly getting your period/ovulating &/or not consuming enough healthy fats that produce cholesterol which produces estrogen) the bad bacteria in your vagina multiply, increasing your risk of getting UTI’s.

2. Your or your partner having dirty hands before sex

I mean… this one is pretty self explanatory. If either of your hands are dirty, haven’t been washed recently & they go in your vagina, this can of course cause an imbalance of bacteria in your vagina leading to infection. (This tends to happen more with new partners than with recurrent ones).

Obviously if you’re in the heat of the moment, you’re not going to want to pause to wash your hands LOL. But, it can cause a UTI so just something to be aware of! This is also why peeing after sex is super important (see below). PS. If you notice the next day it feels like one may be coming on, start the protocol below ASAP and it will knock it right out.

3. Not peeing after sex

This is how I got my most recent UTI. Anyone else ever experienced this? When you’re having sex, obviously there are lots of fluids, hands, bacteria, etc going in your vagina. When you pee after sex, you help flush out any bacteria that got up in there in the midst of all the fun. So, do yourself a favor, and pee as quickly as you can after to avoid UTI’s.

4. Dehydration 

Just like I mentioned above, when we pee, we help flush out bacteria that could be in our urinary tract. But if you’re dehydrated, you’re obviously not going to have to pee as much which means you won’t be excreting as much bad bacteria as you could be.

5. Overuse of antibiotics

Antibiotics are the exact opposite of probiotics. They kill the good and bad bacteria in our microbiome. When our microbiome is off, it lowers our immune system because about 70% of our immune system lives in our gut! If your immune system is lowered, it’s going to make you more susceptible to infections- such as UTI’s.

Plus, it also alters the good/bad bacteria in your vagina which again, can lead to infections.

6. Sweating in tight yoga pants

This one again is pretty self explanatory. If  you’re working out, walking outside when it’s 80+ degrees out, or doing anything that involves a lot of sweating- including sweat around your vagina, AND you’re wearing real tight yoga pants, it’s going to cause some issues.

Now obviously this doesn’t mean you can’t sweat & wear yoga pants- my life would be over lol- BUT what does help is changing out of that sweaty pair of underwear & yoga pants as soon as you can so your vagina isn’t sitting in that, creating bacteria to form & leading to a UTI.

7. Chemical/fragrance filled soaps/scented tampons/wipes

Now, this is a NO GO for me for WAY more reasons than just a UTI. Anything with the word fragrance that isn’t a natural essential oil is a NO for me. The word “Fragrance” on any label can mean that there are HUNDREDS of synthetic chemicals in there to get you that scent. Chemicals that have been directly linked to reproductive disorders, cancer & infertility but UNFORTUNATELY are NOT regulated so they’re allowed to be in products (eye ROLL).

One of the best things you can do for your hormones is to swap any conventional beauty & household cleaning products to non-toxic ones! Check out ewg.org/skindeep for some awesome resources.

On top of that, fragrances are not meant to be in our vagina, can cause irritation & can lead to UTI’s. Throw out any scented tampons, soaps etc that you have and get unscented, non toxic versions! (I normally just say to wait until your product runs out and then get a non-toxic one, but when it comes to fragrances & your vagina, it’s an immediate swap suggestion from  me). I have an entire podcast on feminine care products you can check out to get you started.

Early signs of a UTI:

This is important! If a UTI goes untreated it can lead to a kidney infection which we DON’T want to happen because then antibiotics are necessary. And of course, we want to avoid the use of antibiotics as MUCH as possible! Especially for something like a UTI that is so easily treated naturally when you catch it early enough.

The early signs are:

• bladder twinges before or after peeing
• a more frequent urge to pee
• pressure in the bladder
• slight burning in the urethra
• slight dull ache in the lower back

Again, when your UTI is only in the bladder, it’s considered mild and can be treated naturally. We want to avoid it spreading to the kidneys so if you ever feel any of these sensations, start the below protocol ASAP to knock that shit right out!

How to naturally treat a UTI

OF COURSE always listen to your doctor and do what is best for you and your particular situation. This protocol I’m going to share with you is one that I’ve personally used & recommend to clients & have seen awesome results.

1. Cranberry Juice

The infamous cranberry juice. We’ve probably ALL heard about this & here’s why it’s so popular and effective for treating UTI’s.

Cranberries have a substance called proanthocyanidins. This substance prevents bacteria from sticking to the walls of the bladder and other urinary tract linings. So if the bacteria can’t stick to the walls of the bladder, they get flushed out when you pee, getting rid of the infection.

BUT, NOT ALL CRANBERRY JUICE IS CREATED EQUAL! Always purchase it organic without any added sugars. You want it to just be organic cranberry juice. Nothing else in there!

I recommend having 4-5 glasses of this a day- for about 2 days (depending on your level of UTI).

2. HYDRATE

Like we talked about above, dehydration is a cause of UTI’s. So when you have one, aside from drinking cranberry juice, I recommend drinking a lot of *filtered water to increase the flushing out of the bacteria. Squeezing some fresh organic lemon in the water is a bonus because it adds vitamin c to it, which of course supports immunity. Which brings me to my next step…

*the filters I recommend are the reverse osmosis system, the Berkey & zero water filter.

3. Vitamin C

Vitamin C has been known to support immunity for YEARS. It’s something I personally take daily & also recommend to clients to support progesterone production.

When you have an infection, you want to boost your immune system so it can fight off the infection. I recommend 3,000-5,000 mg of Vitamin C in divided doses with meals for about 2 days, or until symptoms subside.

Vitamin C is a water soluble vitamin and is not stored in the body so you will pee it out which is why I recommend taking that dosage each day when you have a UTI.

Everyone can tolerate vitamin C, & supplements in general, differently. If this is too much Vitamin C for your body, you’ll know because your poop will be looser. If you notice this, just reduce your dosage.

Of course not all supplements are created equal. Head to my dashboard for the professional grade ones I use & recommend.

4. Double dose of Probiotic

As we covered a bit above, the ratio of good and bad bacteria in your gut and vagina play a major role with UTI’s. When you’re working on treating one naturally I recommend a double dose of The Booster Probiotic from GutPersonal. This specific probiotic is amazing for boosting up that good bacteria strain that’s really going to work wonders in knocking this UTI out.

I recommend taking 1 in the morning with breakfast and 1 at night with dinner for about a week.

That’s it! This protocol has worked wonders for me in the past and I hope it does the same for you! Cheers to natural healing, peeing after sex and staying hydrated!

As always trust the process & Mind Your Hormones!

Xx Corinne