1. < Women's Health

My doc's tip to prevent urinary tract infections: Unscented soap

Posted by ainsleigh @ainsleigh, Apr 11, 2018

FYI- This may or may not be helpful but to prevent urinary tract infections my doctor advised me to shower only (no baths) and to use unscented soap. I use Dove. Have not had a UTI since following her suggestions.

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Parus | @parus | Nov 19, 2019

@merpreb Same here. No one listened until the symptoms were obvious that I was then diagnosed with bladder cancer. I finally did get help-after first being sent to infectious diseases. Still quite annoyed over that and now going to the primary doctor that sent me to infectious diseases. Sorry to say I have more than a chip on my shoulder. GRRRRRR...

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Retired Teacher | @retiredteacher | Nov 19, 2019
In reply to @retiredteacher "@ainsleigh What's old is new again. My urologist told me this 48 years ago. He also..." + (show)
@retiredteacher

@ainsleigh What's old is new again. My urologist told me this 48 years ago. He also added to wear cotton underwear, no fancy silky lingerie, and no skintight slacks like leggings. He also said no hot tubs, no warmed leather seats. He said use perfume behind the ear or on the wrist for fragrance. He explained that taking a bath is sitting in water that has germs, bacteria, and dirt, and you wash yourself with dirty water. So I have not had a bath in 48 years and won't for the rest of my life. I have followed his directions and never missed it knowing I was preventing UTI's. He also was a great believer in cranberry juice, so that has been my morning juice since. I have had UTI's, but that's from teaching and not going to the restroom as needed. Can't leave 30 kids alone so just have to hold it and that is not healthy.
Carol

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@ansleigh HA! HA! Yikes!I made a big mistake by saying I haven't had a bath in 48 years. That is true. I take only showers!!!!!
Carol

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JK | @contentandwell | Nov 19, 2019
In reply to @merpreb "@contentandwell- I'm just finding this and nothing irritates me more than a doctor telling me that..." + (show)
@merpreb

@contentandwell- I'm just finding this and nothing irritates me more than a doctor telling me that I probably have a UTI because it's most common in older women.

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@merpreb When I first had an HE episode they thought it was from a UTI. Apparently UTIs in older people can be a cause for confusion. My PCP was pretty skeptical about that though, he didn't think I was old enough for that to be the cause.

That being said, @parus I too have that chip on my shoulder since I had so many obvious symptoms of cirrhosis but they were not added up by any of the doctors up here until the neurologist said he thought it was a liver problem.
JK

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7continents | @7continents | Nov 2, 2020

I went quite a long time without any infections, stopped drinking so much cranberry juice and now I have recently had two infections in the last year. I have had a hysterectomy and wear a pessary which I clean every night. I read that diaphragms are bad for you which are a lot like a pessary but much more short term. My doctor seems to have no idea why this sudden uptick in infections. I have always been treated with antibiotics. I would appreciate advice.

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1 reply
Kelly Hahn, Connect Moderator | @kellyhahn1 | Nov 3, 2020
In reply to @7continents "I went quite a long time without any infections, stopped drinking so much cranberry juice and..." + (show)
@7continents

I went quite a long time without any infections, stopped drinking so much cranberry juice and now I have recently had two infections in the last year. I have had a hysterectomy and wear a pessary which I clean every night. I read that diaphragms are bad for you which are a lot like a pessary but much more short term. My doctor seems to have no idea why this sudden uptick in infections. I have always been treated with antibiotics. I would appreciate advice.

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Hello, @7continents and welcome to Mayo Clinic Connect. You’ve come to the right place to talk with people who have similar experiences with health and to get support from members who understand what you are going through. It sounds like you were able to eliminate UTIs for a while, and using cranberry juice might have helped. I would like to invite @contentandwell @lisalucier @misssassy into the conversation. You mentioned that you clean your pessary nightly, and I know they can be the cause of UTI’s (https://urologyaustin.com/female-urology/pessary/). Did your provider mention a relationship between the two?

I also wanted to let you know that Connect has a group called Kidney & Bladder. There are a few discussions you might want to check out. Here is the link: https://connect.mayoclinic.org/group/kidney-conditions/

Are you planning on going back on cranberry juice, or what did you and your provider decide?

Looking forward to reading more of your posts,
Kelly

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1 reply
JK | @contentandwell | Nov 4, 2020
In reply to @kellyhahn1 "Hello, @7continents and welcome to Mayo Clinic Connect. You’ve come to the right place to talk..." + (show)
@kellyhahn1

Hello, @7continents and welcome to Mayo Clinic Connect. You’ve come to the right place to talk with people who have similar experiences with health and to get support from members who understand what you are going through. It sounds like you were able to eliminate UTIs for a while, and using cranberry juice might have helped. I would like to invite @contentandwell @lisalucier @misssassy into the conversation. You mentioned that you clean your pessary nightly, and I know they can be the cause of UTI’s (https://urologyaustin.com/female-urology/pessary/). Did your provider mention a relationship between the two?

I also wanted to let you know that Connect has a group called Kidney & Bladder. There are a few discussions you might want to check out. Here is the link: https://connect.mayoclinic.org/group/kidney-conditions/

Are you planning on going back on cranberry juice, or what did you and your provider decide?

Looking forward to reading more of your posts,
Kelly

Jump to this post

@kellyhahn1 @7continents I'm sorry that I can be of no help. I have had three real UTIs in my life. One was just that, a UTI, cause unknown. The other two were from having Botox injections for urinary incontinence. All were cleared up by antibiotics so were not a big problem.
JK

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