D-MANNOSE for BLADDER and KIDNEY INFECTIONS

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D-MANNOSE for BLADDER and KIDNEY INFECTIONS

 

A little girl's parents are told she'll likely need a kidney transplant since

her chronic kidney infections aren't yielding to antibiotics anymore…..

 

Another little girl with a genetic disorder has been on continuous antibiotics

for nearly two years because of kidney and bladder infections….

 

An adult woman gets a bladder infection every time she has sex… And literally

millions of women and girls (and a very few boys and men) each year have at

least one episode of acute bladder infection ( " cystitis " ). Routine treatment of

bladder and kidney infections involves antibiotics and antimicrobials. As the

first three cases (described later) will illustrate, in over 90% of bladder and

kidney infections, antibiotics are actually an inferior treatment choice. The

treatment of choice for initial treatment of most urinary tract infections is

D-mannose.

 

D-mannose is a naturally occurring simple sugar, closely related (in chemical

terms, a " stereoisomer " ) to glucose. Small amounts of D-mannose are metabolized

by our bodies; more than small amounts are excreted promptly into the urine. But

how can even large quantities of a simple natural sugar do anything at all to

cure over 90% of all bladder and urinary tract infections?

 

The answer is found in the interaction between D-mannose and the bacterium found

in over 90% of all bladder infections, Escherichia coli ( " E. coli " ). [No, that's

not the infamous E. coli mutant associated with unsanitary food processing

that's hospitalized and killed people. It's the normal E. coli found as part of

the " normal microflora " in every intestinal tract.] But even normal E. coli

don't belong in the bladder and urinary tract; in these areas it multiplies and

becomes an undesirable infection.

 

But why doesn't the normal downflow of urine from the kidneys through the

ureters into the bladder and thence beyond simply carry the E. coli right along

with it? What allows the E. coli to " stick " to the inner walls of the bladder

and even work their way upward (like " Spiderman " ) in some cases reaching as far

as the kidneys?

 

The " cell walls " of each E. coli are covered with tiny fingerlike projections.

The very tips of these projections are an amino acid-sugar complex, a

" glycoprotein " also called a " lectin " . E. coli " lectins " have the unfortunate

(for us) capability of " sticking " the bacteria to the inside walls of our

bladders and urinary tracts, so they can't be rinsed out by urination.

 

Unfortunately for the E. coli, D-mannose " sticks " to E. coli lectins even better

than E. coli lectins " stick " to human cells. When we take a large quantity of

D-mannose, almost all of it spills into the urine through our kidneys, literally

" coating " any E.coli present so they can no longer " stick " to the inside walls

of the bladder and urinary tract. The E. coli are literally rinsed away with

normal urination!

 

Why is " rinsing away " E. coli with D-mannose superior to killing them with

antibiotics and anti-microbials? When an antibiotic is taken, it kills unwanted

micro-organisms, but it also kills many " friendly " micro-organisms. Every woman

is familiar with " yeast infections " that follow antibiotic use, as the " friendly

bacteria " are killed off along with the " bad bacteria " , leaving the

antibiotic-insensitive yeast to grow " out of control " . Long-term or

often-repeated antibiotic use can lead to major disruptions in normal body

microflora, and sometimes to major disruptions in health, especially immune

system function. [it's suspected that the " killer " E. coli of recent years are

" mutants " caused by persistent antibiotic feeding to animals.]

 

By contrast, D-mannose doesn't kill bacteria, " friendly " or " unfriendly " .

D-mannose simply helps to relocate misplaced E.coli from inside of our urinary

tracts to outside. (Since D-mannose is absorbed in the upper gastrointestinal

tract, it doesn't relocate the " friendly " E. coli normally present in the

colon.) D-mannose treatment of E. coli bladder and urinary tract infections is

ecologically sound treatment. (The very small amounts of D-mannose metabolized

by our bodies and not excreted into the urine are harmless.) As an extra bonus,

D-mannose tastes good!

 

Three Cases, Briefly

 

Our first case is relatively well-known in the Seattle-King County area as this

child's mother provided testimony about her case to the County Council when it

was considering the establishment of a natural medicine clinic within the

taxpayer-funded county public health system.

 

This mother brought her daughter to Tahoma Clinic in the 1980s. She also brought

with her a very detailed set of notebooks in which she'd recorded descriptions

of her daughter's numerous hospitalizations and extensive tests for nearly

continuous urinary tract infections. By actual count, her daughter (not yet five

years old) had been seen by 72 different physicians, and had been on antibiotics

the majority of her life. Mother and father had been told the doctors were

" running out of effective antibiotics " , and that their daughter would likely

need a kidney transplant during the next few years, as her kidneys were

beginning to fail from the chronic infection. Extensive tests showed " normal

kidneys, ureters, and bladder " , with no discoverable reason for all the

infection.

 

Fortunately, Mom also had records of many urine cultures. They were always the

same: E.coli. At the end of our consultation, I advised her to give her daughter

¼ to ½ teaspoon (approximately 1 to 2 ½ grams) of D-mannose powder stirred into

water every three to four hours while awake. Despite being a bit dubious that a

simple sugar prescribed by a natural medicine doctor (remember, this was the

1980s) would do anything, mother tried it. Within 48 hours, the infection was

gone. Her daughter remained infection free for over two years until the

D-mannose was temporarily forgotten; resumption cleared the infection once more.

She's had no urinary tract infection since, and has of course retained her own

kidneys.

 

The County Council was impressed by the simple natural solution to a serious

health problem. They were equally impressed with the difference in cost between

D-mannose treatment (even long-term) and the cost of several hospitalizations,

extensive testing, and nearly continuous antibiotics, as well as the potential

cost of the predicted kidney transplant.

 

Our second case is that of a another little girl with galactosemia (a genetic

disease) who when first seen in 1996 was on antibiotics because of chronic

recurrent E. coli urinary tract infections. She'd been on antibiotics for most

of the prior two years. As part of her overall treatment, I advised her parents

to switch her from antibiotics to D-mannose (at the quantities noted above). The

switch was made uneventfully; no further urinary tract infections occurred. When

they last saw their daughter's urologist in 1998, her parents were told to

" check back in the year 2000 " .

 

Our last case is that of a married woman who was avoiding sex because " I get a

bladder infection every time " . Needless to say, this caused some degree of

marital discord. As cultures had shown E. coli, she started taking ½ teaspoon of

D-mannose one hour prior to and just after intercourse, and had no further

infections.

 

There also have been many women who've been advised to take D-mannose ½ teaspoon

every two to three hours to treat single episodes of bladder infection. Nearly

every time, the treatment has been successful. However, since a small proportion

of bladder infections are not caused by E. coli but by some other

micro-organism, women are also advised to call back for a " regular " antibiotic

prescription if their infections are not substantially better or completely gone

in 24 hours.

TRY D-MANNOSE FIRST

 

D-mannose is very safe, even for long term use, although most women (or the very

occasional man) with single episodes of bladder or urinary tract infection will

only need it for a few days at most. Although D-mannose is a simple sugar, very

little of it is metabolized. It doesn't interfere with blood sugar regulation,

even for diabetics. It creates no disruption or imbalance in normal body

microflora. It's safe even for pregnant women and very small children. In the

less than 10% of cases where the infection is a bacteria other than E. coli,

antibiotics can be started in plenty of time. (Many physicians will likely

advise collecting a urine specimen for culture, if possible just before starting

D-mannose, so that the bacteria can be identified as rapidly as possible in the

few cases when D-mannose doesn't work.)

 

Since D-mannose is naturally occurring, many of you may have guessed that

cranberry juice (as well as pineapple juice) contain more D-mannose than most

other foods. However, the amounts found in these juices are substantially less

than in the ½ teaspoon (approximately 1 gram) adult dose, and are substantially

less effective.

 

SO WHERE'S THE D-MANNOSE?

 

If D-mannose is so safe and effective, why isn't it in your natural food store?

Your editor has been frustrated by it's absence also, particularly as he has

spent several years trying to convince one or another supplement company to put

D-mannose into wider distribution. D-mannose may be obtained from the Tahoma

Clinic Dispensary (425-264-0051) with which your editor is of course connected.

 

 

 

 

 

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