Drinking More Water May Reduce the Risk of UTI in Women

Urinary Tract Infections or also known as UTI is an infection from microbes that may affects the urethra, urinary system, bladder and even the kidneys. The most common symptoms include pelvic pain, increased urge to urinate, burning sensation during urination and blood in the urine. The infection can be treated with antibiotics but a new study has found that drinking more water on a daily basis may help in reducing the risk of contracting UTI all-together. 

According to the National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases, 40 to 60 percent of women will develop UTI at least once during their lifetimes and one in four have a repeat infection unless proper precautions are taken.The study suggests that drinking water helps in reducing the opportunities for the bacteria to spread. 

The team of researchers surveyed about 140 women and discovered some significant revelations. They found that women tend to have a shorter urethra than men. Urethra is a tube that connects the urinary bladder with urinary meatus and helps in removing the fluids from the body. This enables the bacteria to travel from the rectum and vagina to the bladder, making women more vulnerable to UTIs than men. 

Therefore, researchers suggest that drinking more fluids increases the rate of flushing out the bacteria from the bladder and reduces the concentration of bacteria that enter the bladder from the vagina, at the same time. Previous studies have also linked drinking cranberry juice or buttermilk as remedies for UTI and that may work on the same principle. 

Their findings showed that women who increased their water intake on an average suffered UTIs 1.6 times, while those with low intake were 3.1 times more affected with UTIs. "It's good to know the recommendation is valid, and that drinking water is an easy and safe way to prevent an uncomfortable and annoying infection," concluded lead author Thomas M. Hooton, Clinical Director of the Division of Infectious Diseases at the University of Miami. 

Inputs from IANS