FRUITS FOR UTI ARTICLES – Page 2

In this article, we are going to discuss banana and it's effects on the human body, especially when someone has a UTI (urinary tract infection). Banana is considered a rich source of potassium and Vitamin B6. It also contains Vitamin C, sugars, carbohydrates, magnesium, healthy flavonoid and phenolic compounds. In this article, we are going to discuss the effects of each of these ingredients on UTI, and then we are going to come up with an overall conclusion on whether bananas are good for your UTI condition or not, how much of it is good and how much is too much. The various health-promoting effects of banana, in general, really give it an edge in terms of whether it should be consumed by UTI patients or for UTI prevention, not to mention its various positive effects that work directly on UTI, such as having antibacterial and anti-inflammatory properties, and that should really encourage using banana as a UTI remedy. Research not only indicates that banana has antimicrobial effectivity, which can be beneficial for UTI patients in terms of it helping to eliminate UTI-causing pathogens, some pieces of research even go as far as identifying to a certain extent which compounds in banana are responsible for these beneficial antibacterial, antimicrobial effects. Examples of these compounds include flavonoids, terpenoids, alkaloids, phenols and esters. Even parts of banana other than the flesh can be utilized for various medicinal purposes, like the peels, flowers, stems and so on. All of these properties and much more make banana a very helpful fruit for UTI patients, and they just have to know how much bananas they have to consume during the day each for their own individual case. UTI patients might benefit from the mood-stabilizing effects of banana. Compounds found in banana, such as catecholamines dopamine and serotonin play a role in mood enhancement. Banana has a fair amount of neurotransmitters like serotonin, norepinephrine and dopamine, all of which are very important for the body as they prevent neuron degeneration and they are responsible for carrying neurons signals. These compounds are considered mood enhancers, and this quality is kind of important, especially for people who suffer from recurrent UTIs as these people and UTI patients, in general, might experience a lowered morale or some kind of low-grade depression due to their illness. Banana is a great mood enhancer because of these neurotransmitters and because of a compound called tryptophan, which is a precursor for dopamine, and that further contributes to banana's mood-stabilizing effects. See this reference. Banana's flavonoid and phenolic compounds can help treat UTI. Bananas are not just an excellent source of vitamins, minerals and fiber, they are also rich in the antioxidant and anti-inflammatory flavonoid compounds and other types of healthy phenolic compounds. The effects of flavonoid and phenolic compounds found in bananas on UTI patients are highly positive. Namely, with their antioxidant, radical scavenging effects they help protect and keep the urinary tract intact. They also have a direct effect on UTI patients suffering from an ongoing UTI episode which is a reduced inflammatory response. UTI symptoms and severity gets exacerbated with the inflammatory response produced by the body as a reaction to the occurring infection. These flavonoids found in banana has an immunomodulatory and anti-inflammatory effect on the body, which means that they reduce the harmful immune response responsible for creating UTI symptoms, and at the same time, they help empower our immune system's ability to combat infections like UTI more efficiently. See this research. Banana contains a lot of potassium In fact, it's one of the richest sources in nature of potassium, which is a key electrolyte for the human body. Potassium, known by the symbol (k), plays a major role in regulating heartbeats, and it also contributes to bone strength, so a body low on potassium can have fatigue and weakness. Not just that, potassium also decreases the probability of kidney stones by enhancing calcium excretion through the urine before it combines with oxalate to the notorious calcium oxalate kidney stones, and these kidney stones are one of the underlying causes of urinary tract infection. See this reference. By the way, if you think that you need potassium or your body is low on potassium you should add this potassium supplement to your daily regimen. A potassium-rich diet includes eating a lot of salad, vegetables and of course banana. So, in this case, banana is beneficial for UTI, but potassium is not the only compound that banana contains. Fiber content in bananas. Banana promotes healthy digestion and bowel movement through its fiber content, especially through a fiber called Pectin Pectin is a fiber that allows the digestive tract to retain water and absorb as much vitamins and minerals from food into the bloodstream. This positive effect on the bowels will result in reduced pressure on the urinary tract as a bloated intestine can subject the bladder and other parts of the urinary tract to straining, which can lead to so many problems, like accumulation of residual urine, urine flow obstruction and eventually UTI and so many other issues. Also, a healthy bowel means a bowel without harmful bacteria like the E. coli bacteria, who always try to take the opportunity to invade this part of the body. If that happens, it is going to be a major risk factor of developing a UTI in the future, so eat bananas on regular basis to avoid that possibility. The riper the fruit is the more calories it will contain, therefore consuming ripe bananas may not be optimal for diabetic patients, especially those have who UTI, and so for these people, eating bananas that are closer to the unripe green type is better. The caloric content of bananas differs depending on factors, like their ripeness degree, the type of banana and others. So, these factors should be considered because sometimes I see some diets on the internet that say you must eat 6 whole bananas a day "to treat your uti" or eating 6 bananas a day for a week or a month or so is a healthy choice, and I don't think this is good advice seriously. The greener the banana is or the more unripe it is, the more fiber it will contain (including fiber that comes in the form of starch). However, consuming large amounts of fiber on daily basis might lead to some problems associated with bloating and the gastrointestinal tract. On the other hand, UTI patients should not consume overripe bananas as this will make them lose most of their health benefits, especially in terms of fibers like pectin getting converted into sugars, and as you may know, too much sugar in the diet can cause a lot of trouble to UTI patients as this can impair their immune response in multiple ways. See this research. Bananas also contain an extremely important prebiotic compound called fructooligosaccharide. From its name, you can deduce that this compound acts as a food source for the friendly probiotic bacteria living in the colon area of the body. This is a major upside for bananas in terms of UTI as these probiotic bacteria help the body and the immune system prevent dangerous bacteria like E. coli from taking over the intestines. Invading the urinary tract from the colon and the intestinal area is the most common route for the occurrence of urinary tract infection. Banana is also a rich source of vitamin B6. In fact, banana has 20% of our daily need for Vitamin B6. Vitamin B6 supports the immune system by decreasing the transcription of glucocorticoids (the process of making glucocorticoids). These glucocorticoids are steroids that play a role in reducing some of the aspects of the immune function. So, by decreasing the amounts of glucocorticoids in the body the immune system can function well and can fight the bacteria that causes the urinary tract infection a little bit harder. Vitamin B6 also supports the immune system in another way, according to Shamala Pulugurtha a medical microbiologist "Vitamin B6 is another water-soluble vitamin that helps the immune system produce proteins known as antibodies to fight the pathogens responsible for urinary tract and other infections." Vitamin B6 has another benefit that can indirectly improve your UTI condition, which is its role in glucose metabolism. Vitamin B6 side effects include neurological problems of which The primary symptoms are pain and numbness of the extremities. However, all of these side effects are noticed with Vitamin B6 supplements when someone takes more than the daily requirement of this Vitamin but has never been noticed with food sources, like the banana. In general, vitamin B6 is very good for urinary tract infection sufferers. Banana contains Vitamin C Vitamin C is a water-soluble vitamin which means it gets excreted through urine. This means that Vitamin C can make the urine slightly more acidic, which is something that is not favored by UTI-causing pathogens, who sometimes turn the pH of urine slightly more alkaline, especially at the beginning of a urinary tract infection. Also, there is this indirect benefit to Vitamin C on UTI, which is, according to some researches, Vitamin C helps the immune system fight against bacteria because it enters the immune cells in high amounts, and helps increase the immune cells numbers by promoting its proliferation. So, Vitamin C plays a major role in helping the immune system and this has been confirmed scientifically. Helping the immune system means that it can fight better against the bacteria that causes your UTI condition which leads to improving your condition. Also, vitamin C has a lot of other benefits to the body like preventing common colds, and some research suggests that it has a role in preventing cancer because of its strong antioxidant activity, and others suggest that it has a role in reducing the risk of Alzheimer's disease. One banana has about 15% of the body's daily requirement for Vitamin C. Side effects of taking a large dose of vitamin c include: indigestion (especially when taken on an empty stomach), nausea, abdominal cramps, and diarrhea Note: all of these side effects are also noticed from taking a large dose of Vitamin C supplementation, not from consuming bananas. All in all, Vitamin C is very good for UTI and this gives more points to banana. Magnesium Iron, Copper, Manganese are also found in banana. Preserving your body's store level of these minerals is a good thing for your overall health, but there is no direct benefit from this on urinary tract infections, although these minerals can prevent anemia and participate in various biological activities. How much banana should people consume to prevent and treat UTI? It should be obvious that eating too much banana is not good for neither UTI patients nor for anyone, in general. I would recommend that UTI patients eat 1 or 2 bananas on a daily basis so as to help with their UTI condition. For people who are afraid they might get a UTI, 1 or 2 bananas is also optimal. Diabetic patients should also follow the same regimen but with the simple change of consuming bananas that are greener in color. It differs depending on the individual case, but, in general, taking bananas in moderation is the best choice. going crazy and eating 4, 5,6 bananas a day is not advisable. What about banana stem? Is the juice extracted from the banana stem good for uti? Well, yes to some extent. According to the author daiwik, banana stem acts as a diuretic so the best advice is to take it with a lot of water so that it washes your urinary tract from the bacteria and kidney stones also. Daiwik says that it also has a healing effect on gallstones. You should consume at least 1/4 cup of banana stem extracted juice a day that's according to the search herbal remedy website. But, I don't think that banana stem is "the thing" on curing the urinary tract infection, so you should not have high expectations of it curing your urinary tract infection, but it's a good thing to try. All in all Banana contains compounds that are good for urinary tract infection, which can, directly and indirectly, improve UTI, like potassium, Vitamin B6, Vitamin C, Flavonoids, catecholamines, fiber, and some other compounds that are not so good for UTI, such as sugars and carbohydrates. However, the overall benefits of banana, especially for UTI patients greatly outweigh the drawbacks. So, banana is good for urinary tract infections (UTI) and it's best taken in moderate amounts. If you need to know about other kinds of fruit and how good they are for UTI, then please check our Fruit for UTI article. Also If need any more help with your UTI, feel free to contact us or check the multitude of articles we have about this subject on our website KNOW & TREAT UTI. Stay healthy and have a wonderful rest of your day.