By: Joe Graedon December 22, 2024 88 Comments
    Would You Ever Use a Bidet to Clean Your Bottom?

    Have you ever seen a bidet in a fancy hotel or while traveling? Many Americans are puzzled by these bathroom fixtures. They have no idea what they are for or how to use them. Traditionally, there were…

    By: Terry Graedon November 7, 2024 0 Comments
    Show 1407: Battling Superbugs with Nature’…

    This week, we consider whether viruses might be able to overcome bacterial infections that resist all antibiotics. We start with a thrilling story from a few years ago in which a scientist saved her h…

    By: Joe Graedon July 24, 2023 11 Comments
    Should Pharmacists Be Able to Prescribe Behind t…

    Many countries give pharmacists the authority to prescribe a substantial number of medications. The pharmaceuticals they can offer patients are labeled BTC for “behind the counter” drugs. They inc…

    By: Terry Graedon April 27, 2023 33 Comments
    How to Use Cranberry Juice for UTIs

    Urinary tract infections (UTIs) are common and painful. When people suffer recurrent UTIs, they are exposed to a number of antibiotic prescriptions. Striving to reduce bacterial resistance to antibiot…

    By: Joe Graedon May 5, 2022 96 Comments
    What Can You Do to Prevent Recurrent Urinary Tra…

    Have you ever had a urinary tract infection (UTI)? The symptoms are unpleasant, to put it mildly. First, you may feel a tremendous urge to pee. And when you do urinate, the burning sensation can be un…

    By: Terry Graedon January 17, 2022 33 Comments
    Will D-Mannose Help Urinary Tract Infections?

    What do you do for urinary tract infections (UTIs)? When bacteria invade the ureter or bladder, the results are extremely painful urination, along with a feeling of urgency. Doctors usually prescribe …

    By: Joe Graedon November 29, 2021 244 Comments
    FDA Warning For Popular Cipro and Levaquin Antib…

    They're called fluoroquinolones (FQs) or quinolones for short. Tens of millions of prescriptions have been written for Cipro and Levaquin antibiotics. That's despite FDA warnings that doctors should o…

    By: Terry Graedon August 5, 2021 0 Comments
    Men With UTI Do Fine With Shorter Course of Anti…

    When women came down with urinary tract infections that cause frequency, urgency or pain on urination, the standard antibiotic course used to be 7 to 14 days. Now, doctors more often prescribe a short…

    By: Joe Graedon January 7, 2019 37 Comments
    Why Was the FDA So Slow to Warn About FQ Disaste…

    We would be the first to admit that the Food and Drug Administration has a LOT of responsibilities. The agency is supposed to ensure that our food supply is safe. It monitors those never-ending prescr…

    By: Terry Graedon December 31, 2018 6 Comments
    Will Therapeutic Frankincense Help You Sleep?

    In the Christmas story found in the Gospel of Matthew, wise men come from the east seeking the newborn king. They bring him presents: gold, frankincense and myrrh. This part of the story with these pr…

    By: Joe Graedon December 27, 2018 63 Comments
    Toilet Seats Are a Touchy Topic

    Did you know that there is a medical condition called TP (toilet phobia). An article in the German medical journal Klinische Pediatrie (Jan. 2017) notes that "...toilet phobia (TP) is a rare disorder …

    By: Terry Graedon November 5, 2018 38 Comments
    Will Pumpkin Seed Oil Help Your Urinary Problem?

    How often do you have to get up at night to visit the bathroom? Some people sleep through the night with no difficulty but others have their sleep disrupted because they need to urinate every few hour…

    By: Joe Graedon July 15, 2018 24 Comments
    Antibiotic Plus BP Medicine Led to Deadly Drug I…

    We have been writing about the dangers of drug interactions for over 40 years. We assumed that when computers entered the scene doctors would check for dangerous drug combinations before prescribing a…

    By: Joe Graedon July 12, 2018 52 Comments
    A New FDA Warning About Serious Fluoroquinolone …

    We can hardly believe that once again the Food and Drug Administration is warning about fearsome complications from antibiotics like Cipro and Levaquin. Serious fluoroquinolone side effects have been …

    By: Terry Graedon March 19, 2018 18 Comments
    Should You Drink Cranberry Juice to Avoid Cystit…

    Sometimes it can be difficult to determine whether simple approaches often dismissed as "old wives' tales" are helpful or useless. New scientific findings often tend to support such wisdom as "eat you…

    By: Terry Graedon August 8, 2016 14 Comments
    How to Prevent UTIs by Choosing Laundry Products…

    A urinary tract infection is a torment: a feeling of desperate urgency to urinate and then searing pain during the act. Most UTIs are caused by organisms that flourish without problems in the digesti…

    By: Terry Graedon June 30, 2016 17 Comments
    How to Prevent a UTI with Cranberry Juice

    It is estimated that 60 percent of women experience one or more urinary tract infections during their lives. Such UTIs are among the most common bacterial infections, accounting for over 10 million do…

    By: Joe Graedon September 21, 2015 11 Comments
    Cranberry Pills Prevent Urinary Infections

    Years ago, we were excited when a placebo-controlled trial substantiated the "old wives' tale" that drinking cranberry juice could ward off urinary tract infections (UTIs) that kept recurring in elder…

    By: Joe Graedon April 27, 2015 18 Comments
    Garlic Keeps Her Bladder Infections at Bay

    Recurrent urinary tract infections can be very hard to fend off, so we are interested in this reader's success with a simple supplement. Women who are susceptible to this problem will recognize the in…

    By: Terry Graedon July 12, 2012 8 Comments
    Cranberry Juice and Urinary Infections

    The idea that drinking cranberry juice could help prevent urinary tract infections was once considered an old wives' tale. Over the years, however, some research has supported this idea. Now a meta-an…