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Page 24
thing pertaining to UTIs can be reduced simply to a matter of pH. There are some clinical studies to support this practice.
In a study reported in Pizzorno and Murray's Textbook of Natural Medicine, women presenting with symptoms of a urinary tract infection were given a 4 g dose of sodium citrate every 8 hours for 48 hours. Of the 64 women evaluated, 80 percent had relief of symptoms, 12 percent had deterioration of symptoms, and 91.8 percent of the women rated the treatment as acceptable.
One teaspoon of baking soda in one-half cup of water once or twice a day will also alkalinize the urine.
What about Cranberry juice?
The effect of cranberry juice on urinary tract infections has been investigated sporadically for the past 35 years, with increasing evidence that it can and should be used as an aid in the prevention of the more common alkaline-urine UTIs.
The earliest investigations into the mode of action of cranberry juice focused on its effects on the acidity of the urine and increased concentration of hippuric acid in the urine. However, it was found that the increase in acidity was in fact minor, with little apparent effect on infection. In addition, although hippuric acid is known to possess bacteriostatic properties, the levels in the urine are unimportant, except in helping to maintain that peculiar nitrogen acid charge of healthy urine that is so important in supporting the mucous membranes.
More recent studies have clearly shown that cranberry juice and cranberry juice with fructose can inhibit the adherence of E.coli to human urinary tract mucus cells. The next step was to identify the constituents of cranberry juice which contribute to the anti-adherence activity.
It has been found that the juice contains at least two adherence inhibitors; the first is low molecular weight. The

 
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