A urinary tract infection is usually bacterial and may refer to an infection in kidney (kidney infection), bladder (cystitis), or ureters (tubes connecting kidneys to bladder), urethra (urethritis). The cause of infection can be faecal contamination of urethra (the tube carrying urine out bladder). Women tend to be more prone to the infection than men as they have shorter urethra thus making it easier for pathogens to reach bladder and kidneys.
Susceptibility to infection could also arise during pregnancy, kidney stones, use of catheters or weakened immune system.
The infection manifests itself by varying degrees of discomfort like sudden urge to urinate or painful passage of urine with burning sensation, fatigue, pain in lower abdomen, sometime urine in blood, cloudy, smelly urine.
Often the infection, if minor, uncomplicated, will resolve itself. If, however the infection fails to resolve on its own, a medical consultation is recommended which may result in antibiotics treatment.
Alternative to antibiotics are D-mannose sugar and probiotics like certain species of lactobacillus. Cranberry juice is often recommended, but this may be because of its D-mannose content.
D-mannose is like D-glucose a simple sugar and the two are stereoisomers of one another. D-mannose, besides its use in the treatment of UTIs is very important in the glycosylation of certain proteins in the body.
A word of caution. D-mannose supplements should be used with care in diabetes. Very high intake may also affect the kidneys adversely. The recommended dosage regime of the D-mannose should therefore be followed.