This post is in partnership with Utiva. They’re devoted to safeguarding us from the pain and danger of UTIs through effective, clinically-proven urinary tract health products, and we’re honored to work with them. ~ ed.

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Sunburn isn’t the only burn that’s more common in the Summer.

You’re probably familiar with and dread what I’m talking about here; it’s the burn that happens when we pee—when we have a UTI.

Roughly 150 million UTIs occur each year globally, costing more than 6 billion dollars in health care expenditures (1)—and they happen more frequently in the summer.

It’s like a hot trend that’s so not cool—one that we should all know about—especially as the summer months come earlier and earlier with climate change, and 80-degree temperatures grace our springtime days.

To make matters worse, the World Health Organization (WHO) has declared that antimicrobial resistance (AMR) is one of the top 10 global public health threats facing humanity (3). And how do you treat UTIs? With antibiotics.

So, it’s not an understatement to say that this is a time when we really need preventative medicine and health maintenance to shine—particularly as the temps start to rise.

Take UTI-causing bacteria down—even as the temps go up (& take 25% off while you’re at it) >>

Hunk o’ Burning…Ugh!

Studies have shown a 15% increase in diagnosed UTI cases when temperatures climb to about 80 degrees (2). So, as things start to heat up, that painful feeling when we pee can increase down there.

I learned this the hard way when I moved to Hawai’i in the late summer of 2020 and was diagnosed with a surprise UTI despite none of my usual triggers being present.

According to Utiva, a company devoted to safeguarding people from the pain and danger of UTIs through effective, clinically-proven urinary tract health products, there are at least three theorized reasons we’re more likely to get UTIs as our surroundings heat up:

>> Bacteria and germs thrive in warmer and humid temperatures,
>> Dehydration causes us to flush our systems less, meaning more bacteria, and
>> Hot girl summer. No, really. As we experience more summer lovin’, we disperse vaginal and other bacteria nearer to our urethra, where the not-so-good times start to roll.

Stop UTIs before they even get the chance to start >>

And so, with the warm island temperatures and humidity, and more regular sex with my formerly long-distance partner, my first Hawai’ian “welcome UTI” resisted a round of antibiotic treatment and (after I finally beat it) was followed by three more within six months—a fantastic new feature I didn’t know my body had in it. WTF!?

And voila! I was sent to get an abdominal ultrasound to be sure everything was alright in there.

As a lifetime UTI sufferer, this was the first time that a medical treatment like this had ever been recommended for me, and I was both uncomfortable and terrified.

People can die from UTIs.

That’s why Derek Oh and Faraz Nomani created Utiva. The ultimate consequences of poorly managed UTIs are something the two founders know intimately.

Faraz’s grandmother lost a kidney due to an untreated UTI, and later died due to complications because of it. Derek’s wife was once sent to an emergency room to treat an antibiotic resistant UTI—something I vividly remember experiencing myself in my early 20s.

Personally, between the IV, the unforgettable feeling of pain meds coursing through my veins and causing me to vomit violently, and the anti-nausea medicine knocking me into a virtually 12-hour blackout (while on vacation, mind you), a kidney infection became the last thing in the world I ever wanted to experience again.

Utiva wants to eliminate all of that as much as possible by helping manage UTIs so that we don’t have to rely on antibiotics to treat them.

As we go through life, taking antibiotic after antibiotic, our bodies can become resistant and our infections and illnesses can become more and more difficult to treat.

Ditch the antibiotics and grab preventative probiotics (25% off for new peeps) >>

Enter the three different Utiva UTI maintenance regimens I’m so excited to add into my daily healthcare routine. They’re like…

Kryptonite for UTIs—before they even happen.

The three key players in our fight against the onset of UTIs are cranberry proanthocyanidins (PACs), D-Mannose, and specialized probiotics.

Let’s break down why you might want all three of these guys in your line of defense—and four other tips to help you avoid the unique torture that is a UTI.

Pills that make an imPACt

If you’ve ever had a UTI, you’ve probably forked out some cash for cranberry pills at some point, only to notice they don’t do much (if anything) at all.

That’s because it’s not cranberries that really help us; it’s a single ingredient they are home to—kinda like how marijuana is home to THC and CBD. Extract those two elements from the plant and you’ve got two very different experiences that the body processes in different ways.

The tiny UTI crime-fighters found in cranberries are called proanthocyanidins—PACs for short—and they’re included in Urology Guidelines as something that can help to maintain a healthy urinary tract. So, they’re not just some woo-woo way of wishing away a legitimate and potentially life-threatening health condition; they’re an actually supported medical method of prevention—at least in Canada; we can’t make that claim in the States yet.

Basically, if you take enough PACs, they serve as the bladder’s version of a slip-and-slide for bacteria that like to colonize in our urinary tract. The bacteria just can’t seem to stick to our bladder walls with this stuff, and thus, their power just slips away—right through our anatomical drain.

Get Utiva’s Cranberry PACs here & make a PACt to protect yourself >>

And while most of the cranberry supplements out there offer 5mg of PACs per serving, that’s not nearly enough to do what we need it to do.

Studies show that we need at least 36 mg of PACs for it to be worth our while, and that’s what Utiva’s Cranberry PACs has; one Utiva cranberry PAC capsule is equivalent to nine regular cranberry pills.

Take that! Hands to the sky, UTIs!

Wham, Bam, Thank you, D-Mannose!

If you’re like me, after hearing those stats, you’re probably a little more serious about taking your urinary tract health into your own hands and out of the throes of the growing antibiotic resistance (possibly) raging inside you.

Utiva’s D-Mannose takes things to the next level (while helping you through an easy transition as you take your relationships there as well).

While PACs help to stick to a wide range of bacteria so they cannot irritate your urinary tract, D-Mannose helps to target E. coli (a common bug for UTIs) and helps to flush that out of your bladder.

Get Utiva’s D-Mannose & flush UTIs down the drain. PS: Take 25% off your first order >>

Playing with the Pro(biotic)s

And then, of course if you’ve taken a crap ton of antibiotics throughout your lifetime for anything—but especially UTIs—these puppies are essential.

A quality probiotic replenishes the good bacteria that antibiotics kill along with the bad stuff (sorry, casualties of UTI war). Most probiotics contain between 1 and 10 billion colony forming units (CFU), but Utiva’s probiotics contain 30 billion at the time of manufacturing to be sure there is an effective guaranteed amount of the important stuff—even near the end of shelf life.

Don’t take just any probiotic; take one that helps protect against your UTIs >>

Plus, one of the strains in their probiotic blend (Lactobacillus Rhamnosus GG if you’re really into these things) has the support of numerous studies that show it helps reduce antibiotic side effects. As someone who gets rashes a week after I take antibiotics these days, this is what I want to see!

So, what about those other things I can do to protect myself?

When it comes to helping to reduce UTI occurrence in our lives, Utiva is committed. Beyond their three maintenance powerhouses, they’ve created an entire prevention-centered eBook chock full of information and tips that we can use to help us avoid infection at any cost.

Here are the four things I didn’t know about UTIs and the practical tips to help us avoid them:

UTIs care about fashion.

What we wear really does matter—as far as UTIs are concerned, at least. Unfortunately, the looks you love most might be part of your UTI problem. Pretty panties, lululemons, and skinny jeans? They’re all out of style for a healthy urinary tract—but they are super en vogue for the bacteria that cause our infections.

Avoid synthetic panties that trap moisture, and steer clear of thongs that shift positions throughout the day, bringing E. coli super close to your urethra. And reduce how often you wear tight clothing and underwear that restrict airflow and keep our southern bits swampy.

Download Utiva’s UTI Prevention eBook here >>

UTIs are lazy buggers who don’t like exercise.

Studies have found that people who practice low-to-moderate activity decrease their chances of a UTI by 21 to 32 percent.

Know what part of exercise the bacteria that cause UTIs like? The part where peeing is an inconvenience so you don’t do it. So, make sure you go before you get on the road, runner. And if the urge strikes during your active deed, make sure to sprint off to the restroom as soon as you sense it.

Pump up your urinary tract health with this Utiva trio—& bring your price down by 25% with your first purchase >>

UTIs are cock-blockers that don’t want you to have sex.

So, if you’ve read this far, you probably know a decent amount about the role that sex plays in creating UTIs. Mostly, you probably know how it kills the mood to jump out of bed and pee right after, or how it kills all action altogether when you have a UTI.

But here’s a fun way to prevent bacteria from taking hold in your system: have more sex! Yep! There’s something called honeymoon cystitis, and it’s where a woman will contract a UTI after a period of abstinence (this is one of my triggers). At the same time, going at it like rabbits can also cause honeymoon cystitis. So, it’s all about balance.

Get protection—from honeymoon cystitis >>

Pro Tip:

Take 2 capsules of Utiva Cranberry PACs on the day of sex and take 2 capsules the day after. On the third day, go back to one capsule per day at the normal time. Sounds kinda like a morning after pill for UTIs!

UTIs love your period.

UTI bacteria are exceptionally gross little dudes. We already knew that, though. Specifically, they’re gross little dudes that dig our menses.

That’s because our pads and tampons hold excess moisture that serve as a cheap motel “vacancy” sign for UTI-causing bacteria. So, change them often, avoid tampons altogether if you have a UTI, and splurge on quality cotton pads if you use them.

And while we’re talking about that bloody thing called our period, changing hormones are another crush of UTI-causing bacteria. So that’s an extra reason we UTI-prone women should do things that make us feel calm and at peace when approaching and on our periods. Fold Utiva’s UTI-fending trio into your self-care routine to help yourself feel a sense of extra security against UTIs.

This trio will be the end of your passive UTI treatment. Period >>

So, listen up, my fellow chronic UTI sufferers: it might not sound fun to spend some of your monthly coffee cash on a trio of UTI maintenance products, but I can guarantee you that it’s way more fun than actually having a UTI, or developing a resistance to an antibiotic from treating so many of them.

It’s also likely to be less expensive than what you’ll spend on UTI doctor, urgent care, or ER visits, antibiotics, and any missed work for all that nonsense. Plus, think of all the sex you get to have instead of being sidelined by a burning hoo-hoo.

And when our actual lives could one day be at stake, the price of learning to fold preventative health practices into our self-care costs and daily routines earlier on in life is priceless.

You could say it’s time for a urinary tract intervention. Are you ready to take control?

Tell UTI bacteria to back off with this trio of Utiva’s powerhouse products. Get 25% off your first order >>

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Resources:

1. https://academic.oup.com/jid/article-pdf/183/Supplement_1/S1/6463288/183-Supplement_1-S1.pdf
2. https://www.urologygroup.com/4-tips-to-prevent-summer-utis/
3. https://www.who.int/news-room/fact-sheets/detail/antimicrobial-resistance