The first known use of cranberry juice being used as a natural healing agent is attributed to the Native Americans. They boiled cranberries into a poultice that they used to help keep wounds free of infection. This poultice was also used as a drink to aid in digestion problems. Today, cranberry juice is commonly used in aiding in the treatment of urinary tract infections (UTI’s) but cranberry juice can also help prevent the formation of kidney stones too.
Urinary Tract Infections
Cranberry juice has almost become synonymous with UTI’s but how exactly do they help to clear this infection? The actual infection of a UTI is caused by the E.Coli bacteria. E.Coli has ‘little arms’ that attach to the urinary tract wall allowing it to get close enough to release toxins that cause inflammation and infection. It is a specific phytochemical found in cranberries called condensed tannins that comes to the rescue. These tannins actual encompass E.Coli and cut off its ability to attach to the urinary tract wall. The E.Coli is then safely removed from the body through our urine. The benefits of cranberry juice for helping to clear out UTI’s is so effective that even many Doctors recommended it to their patients.
Cranberry Juice Benefits for Kidney Stones
Most kidney stones are the result of the mineral calcium binding with salts such as oxalates or phosphates somewhere in the urinary tract. However, for this bond to occur there needs to be the correct PH level in the favor of alkalinity (calcium is alkaline mineral) and this is where the health benefits of cranberry juice comes in. Cranberry juice contain a specific kind of acidic substance called quinic acid. What is unusual about this acid is that it makes it through the stomach and into the blood stream to reach the kidneys, the bladder and other parts of the urinary tract intact. This alters the PH environment of the urinary tract more in the direction of acidity therefore reducing the risk of calcium based kidney stones from developing.
One study tested the effects of cranberry juice upon kidney stone development. One group of participants were given cranberry juice everyday and another group was not given any. The group given the cranberry juice were discovered to have 50% less minuscule calcium phosphate bonds in their urine than those who were not given cranberry juice. A strong indication that cranberry juice benefits us by inhibiting the formation of kidney stones in the urinary tract. For more information about natural methods that help prevent kidney stone development visit symptoms of a kidney stone.
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