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Diuretic herbs for cystitis

, medical expert
Last reviewed: 17.06.2022
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Urinary retention in the body, incomplete emptying of the bladder is not only the risk of edema and congestion, but also the soil for the formation of bacterial colonies, which in no way contributes to recovery.

How to optimize the excretion of urine in cystitis? First, you need to start taking formulations based on diuretic herbs. So did our ancestors and passed on many recipes to us. The action of plants with diuretic properties is based on increasing the rate of formation and excretion of urine, as well as inhibiting the absorption of fluid and salts in the tubules of the kidneys.

From a physiological point of view, urine is formed in 2 stages, with many times more primary urine than secondary. Urination is the act of excreting secondary urine from the body after most of the fluid and nutrients from the primary in the tubules of the kidneys have been absorbed back into the blood. Such serious filtration is necessary to maintain the water-salt balance, maintain the rheological properties of the blood, screen out useful and harmful substances, as well as remove the latter and excess fluid from the body.

Excretion of excess fluid through the kidneys and cleansing of the bladder are interrelated processes, given the direction of urine flow and the location of the organs of the urinary system. Diuretic herbs help cleanse not only the bladder, but also those organs of the urinary system that are located above and below it. Thus, the infection becomes much less likely to spread. The more intense and more frequent such cleaning takes place, the less likely microbes are to move to the kidneys or linger in the urethra, causing an inflammatory process there.

Such well-known medicinal herbs as knotweed (highlander) and horsetail (pusher) have diuretic properties. It is these plants that are most often used as diuretics for inflammation of the bladder, kidneys, and urethra. These plants contain substances that irritate the urinary tract mucosa and thereby stimulate their contractile function (silicon) and stimulate urine secretion (equisetin, found in horsetail).

Horsetail is a plant that can have a toxic effect on the kidneys, so when using the herb for cystitis, you must strictly adhere to the recommended dosages. To prepare the infusion for a glass of boiling water, you need to take no more than 50 g of grass. Infuse the composition for 20 minutes, filter and take 3 tablespoons three times a day. [1]

This amount of liquid, of course, is not enough for effective urination. But it is also impossible to overdo it with horsetail. Therefore, the rest of the liquid must enter the body with food, in the form of water, drinks, as well as decoctions and infusions of other herbs.

As a drink for acute and chronic cystitis, you can use a weaker, and therefore less toxic decoction of horsetail. To prepare it, take 2 tablespoons per liter of water. Dry raw materials (you can buy at a pharmacy), bring to a boil and leave to cool at room temperature. Strained broth can be drunk during the day instead of tea. You can drink up to 3 glasses of this drink per day.

In acute cystitis, the decoction can be diluted in equal proportions with chamomile infusion (3-4 tablespoons of inflorescences per glass of water, leave in a water bath for a quarter of an hour). This will help ease the painful process of urination.

Compositions based on horsetail are not used during pregnancy, lactation, severe kidney disease.

Knotweed is a non-toxic plant. This infusion can be used in large doses. [2]A medicinal composition is prepared at the rate of 1-2 tbsp. Herbs in a glass of water. Infuse it in a water bath for 10-15 minutes, after which it is removed from the fire and left for another 1-2 hours. Strained composition is recommended to take but 1 tbsp. Before breakfast, lunch and dinner.

During the day, you can drink an infusion diluted with clean boiled water or a weak decoction of chamomile, and outside meals. But with acute cystitis and inflammation of the kidneys, it should not be abused.

During pregnancy, myocardial infarction or stroke, knotweed infusions and decoctions are not recommended at all.

Knotweed and horsetail are considered the most powerful diuretics, therefore, in the acute form of cystitis, care must be taken with them, taking mostly as part of herbal preparations that also contain anti-inflammatory herbs with an analgesic effect (for example, in combination with chamomile, plantain, St. John's wort, tansy, nettle). Valerian, lemon balm, kidney tea (stamen orthosiphon) also have an antispasmodic effect.

But in chronic cystitis, these herbs can be used actively, as they will prevent congestion and thereby reduce the risk of exacerbations. Knotweed can be used regularly as a tea, and horsetail can be taken in courses when the condition worsens and the first unpleasant symptoms appear.

Other plants can also be used as diuretics for acute and chronic cystitis: bearberry, corn stigmas, goldenrod, lingonberry, angelica. The effect of taking these plants is more modest, but they act softer, which reduces pain.

Bearberry grass  (popular names:  bear ears, bearberry, tormentor) is used  for cystitis, pyelonephritis, inflammation of the prostate gland due to its healing effect on the genitourinary system. But at the same time, the indicated doses must be observed in order to avoid fever and vomiting, which are characteristic of an overdose. [3]

A diuretic decoction of bearberry is prepared as follows: 10 g of dry grass is taken per glass of boiling water, kept in a water bath for a quarter of an hour, then cooled, brought to 200 ml with cold boiled water and taken half a glass three times a day.

In addition to the diuretic, bearberry also has some bactericidal and sedative effect, which makes it possible to use a decoction of the plant in the treatment of acute cystitis. But bear ears have an unpleasant property - the grass increases the acidity of urine, so it is recommended to include foods and drinks with an alkalizing effect in the patient's diet.

Corn silk is a diuretic that is perfectly acceptable during pregnancy, when some happy mothers have an increased risk of inflammation of the bladder, especially if she has previously suffered from this disease. [4]

A decoction is prepared from 3 tsp. Dry raw materials and a glass of water. The stigmas are poured with cold water, brought to a boil and kept on medium heat for 10 minutes, after which the fire is turned off and the composition is left to infuse for an hour. The cooled broth is filtered and taken three times a day before meals, 2 tbsp. Within 1-2 weeks. After that, a break is made for 4 days, and the treatment is continued for another 1-2 weeks.

Future mothers from cystitis can also take an infusion of corn stigmas. Take 1 tbsp for a glass of boiling water. Vegetable raw materials and insist for an hour. Take an infusion of half a cup before meals.

Means based on corn stigmas are not recommended for patients with thrombosis, thrombophlebitis, varicose veins, increased blood clotting, as well as for those who have reduced appetite and low body weight.

Many medicinal herbs are valued for their complex action: diuretic, anti-inflammatory, antimicrobial, analgesic, promote the dissolution and removal of stones in the bladder, if the disease is caused by damage to the walls of the bladder stones. Using such herbs for cystitis, you can achieve good results without bothering to prepare a medical collection in order to provide a comprehensive treatment for the symptoms of the disease.

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