US Medical Publications Need Better Research On D-Mannose

The fact is that the authors of articles in US medical publications don’t spend a lot of time looking at the science and safety of dietary supplements.

There have been several articles about D-Mannose published by online sources, such as this piece in WebMD, which suggest that there is not yet enough research to support its use for treating urinary tract infections (UTIs). We would disagree.

We’ve documented the extensive number of studies published by the National Institutes of Health (NIH) on this supplement over the past 22 years in the “Medical Research” tab on this blog site.

Furthermore, naturopathic and integrative medicine doctors have been prescribing D-Mannose for UTIs for years.

The key argument against its more widespread use by the US medical establishment is that they do not yet know what the long-term effects of using this supplement might be. Well now we do know.

This month a team of scientific experts published a review in Biomedical Reports that debunks this theory and more.

D-Mannose Is Safe For Long-Term Use

The review, published in August 2022, includes research on D-mannose for the past 32 years: “In this paper, we systematically reviewed the published data on the effect of D-mannose, alone or in association with other compounds, on the typical symptoms of UTI/cystitis. PubMed/Medline and EMBASE databases were searched, from 1990 to January 2022.”

Here are the facts from the review:

First, D-Mannose is a natural product that our system produces on its own.  “D-mannose is a monosaccharide naturally produced by the body from glucose. It is present in the body cells and in some foods.” 

As the illustration shows, D-Mannose is chemically identical to glucose.

Second, there is no effect on human metabolism after long-term use of D-mannose.  Here is the technical explanation as to why: “At least 90% of ingested D-mannose is absorbed in the upper part of the intestine. Its peculiarity is that despite it being a simple molecule, this sugar is not metabolized by the organism. Consequently, it is not stored in the liver or other organs, but it is excreted unconverted into the urine via the kidneys. About 60 min after ingestion, it arrives unchanged in the urinary tract. D-mannose also has no effect on human metabolism after long-term use.”

Third, because of the natural way that D-Mannose works with bacteria, it does not negatively impact any other part of our system. “The anti-adhesive effect of D-mannose cannot be considered as a pharmacological effect: it interacts with bacterial constituents to promote (E Coli) washing out, but inducing neither a direct and measurable response in the microorganism, nor in the human beings.  All these characteristics underline the fact that the long term use of D-mannose is safe.”

D-Mannose Does Not Interfere With Antibiotics

Another key finding from this review is that D-Mannose can be taken with antibiotics to produce faster results.

Here’s why: “D-mannose… inhibits the adhesion of bacteria to the urothelium (bladder lining). Binding free D-mannose, bacteria are blocked in the urine and then eliminated by the urinary tract… This effect is also present in the case of concurrent antibiotic therapy. In fact, D-mannose has no bacteriostatic and/or bactericidal activity and does not modify the bacterial cell, thus it does not interfere with the action of antibiotics.”

UNDERSTANDINGUTIS.COM IS SPONSORED BY:

Learn About Goodbye UTI

D-Mannose Originally Known as A Preventative, Now Proven To Quickly Relieve UTI Symptoms

D-Mannose has been most frequently documented as a treatment for long-term recurring UTIs. And now this review has also verified the use of D-Mannose as a solution for “cystitis symptoms”. Cystitis is the medical term for “inflammation of the bladder”, which we call an “acute” or “active” UTI with symptoms such as burning when urinating and pressure to urinate frequently.

D-Mannose Is Known for Protecting Against Recurring UTIs

The fact is that 40% of patients who have taken antibiotics for a UTI are back in their doctor’s office with another UTI within a month. Scientists have proven that when D-Mannose is taken regularly it continues to flush out any invading bacteria that may arrive in the bladder and acts as defense against new UTIs. This is why D-Mannose is seen as a viable alternative to antibiotics.

D-Mannose Also Delivers Fast Relief From UTI Symptoms

Until now, the D-Mannose research did not address how D-Mannose works to relieve the symptoms of cystitis.

This review has now confirmed that D-Mannose also delivers fast relief for cystitis: “All studies reported that symptoms decreased after treatment with D-mannose” and “The fact that D-mannose interacts with bacteria to promote UPEC (E. Coli bacteria) excretion may explain a faster resolution of (cystitis) symptoms.”