Put the carton of juice down!

Whether it came from your mam, a pal or a google search, chances are someone has told you at some point that cranberry juice cures all sorts. For a very long time, people have been using cranberries, cranberry juice, and even supplements to cure their urinary tract infection as well as other bladder problems, but it turns out it might be a bit of a waste of time and money. A recent study examined the effect cranberry products had on UTIs and whether they were worth using. Researchers examined elderly women for this study, they gave half these women a cranberry capsule, which is the equivalent of 20 oz (half a litre) of juice and gave the other half a placebo. The two groups of women were examined for over a year and had their blood and urine tested in the process for the presence of signs of UTI. The end result showed very little difference between the two groups. So there may be no point spending money on special cranberry capsules, but if you enjoy a glass of cranberry juice, it won't do you any harm. If you do suffer a lot with UTIs it's recommended you drink loads of water instead, and possibly go on a course of antibiotics if your doctor recommends it.