Facts vs. myths about urinary tract infection

UTI›Facts vs. myths about urinary tract infection

MYTH:

My urine is cloudy and smells bad. It means I have UTI¹

FACT:

Your urine colour or odour cannot alone be used to determine if your have UTI. Your doctor will run a few tests to determine if the cloudy and foul urine is due to bacteria related to UTI

MYTH:

UTI will go away on its own²

FACT:

Although some UTIs can go away on their own, the risk of not treating a UTI can be high. For example, untreated UTI can lead to more serious health consequences, such as permanent kidney damage

MYTH:

If my UTI returns, it means my antibiotic treatment didn’t work³

FACT:

People who are overweight produce more uric acid and their kidneys have a more difficult time eliminating uric acid

MYTH:

Drinking cranberry juice can treat and help prevent UTIs⁴

FACT:

Although cranberry contains tannin which might help prevent E. coli bacteria from sticking to the walls of your bladder, research has not found that it works in reducing the risk of UTI

MYTH:

Only adults get UTI⁵

FACT:

Although less often than adults, children can get UTI. Girls, particularly those between ages 4 and 8 are more likely to have UTI than boys

References

1 – Miami Health News. UTIs: Myth or facts. Available at: https://news.umiamihealth.org/en/utis-myths/. Accessed 14 June 2021.
2 – National Kidney Foundation. Urinary tract infections. Available at: https://www.kidney.org/atoz/content/uti/. Accessed 8 June 2021.
3 – Schulz L, et al. J Emerg Med 2016;51:25–30.
4 – WebMD. Urinary tract infections. Available at: https://www.webmd.com/women/guide/your-guide-urinary-tract-infections. Accessed 8 June 2021.
5 – GoodRx. What are the risks of leaving a UTI untreated? Available at: https://www.goodrx.com/blog/untreated-uti-risks-dangers/. Accessed 15 June 2021.