Can You Treat a UTI Without Antibiotics? - GoodRx (2024)

Antibiotics are the standard treatment for urinary tract infections (UTIs). But you may be wondering: Is it possible to get rid of a UTI without taking an antibiotic? In short, it depends.

Most of the time, people do need to take an antibiotic to treat a UTI. Antibiotics kill the bacteria causing the infection and help your symptoms go away in 1 to 2 days.

But even though antibiotics work well, many people wonder if it’s worthwhile to first try to treat a UTI in other ways. Maybe they can’t see their healthcare professional. Maybe they’re considering natural remedies. Or they might be concerned about antibiotic overuse and are worried about side effects. And many people want to know whether it’s OK to wait and see if the UTI will go away on its own.

About 1 out of 3 UTI cases may go away on their own. But it’s still best to take antibiotics to treat a UTI. If you’re pregnant or in another high-risk group, you shouldn’t wait to start antibiotics.

With this in mind, here’s a guide to the pros and cons of waiting to start an antibiotic as well as other remedies that can help clear the infection.

What is a UTI?

A UTI is an infection in your urinary tract, which is your body’s system for making and removing urine.

This urinary tract includes the:

• Kidneys: These organs filter your blood and make urine.

• Ureters: These tubes carry urine from your kidneys to your bladder.

• Bladder: This organ collects and stores urine until you can go to the bathroom.

• Urethra: This tube carries urine from your bladder to outside your body.

• External opening: This is the opening where urine exits your body.

The bacteria Escherichia coli (E. coli) causes most UTIs. These bacteria normally live harmlessly in your gut and anus (where stool comes out). But if E. coli travels from the anus to the urethra, it can invade the urinary tract and cause a UTI. In rare cases, other types of bacteria or fungi can cause a UTI.

What are the symptoms of urinary tract infection?

Symptoms of a UTI can include:

• Pain or burning while urinating

• A need to pee more often

• A feeling like your bladder is still full after you urinate

• Cloudy or smelly urine

• Blood in your urine

• Pain in your lower belly

• Fatigue or weakness

• Confusion (especially in older adults)

• Back pain

• Fever and chills

• Nausea and vomiting

Who gets UTIs?

Anyone — young or old — can get a UTI. But some people get them more often than others. Your chances of getting a UTI can be influenced by your anatomy, your medical history, and your behaviors.

For example, if you have a vagin*, you’re more likely to get a UTI because the urethra is very close to the anus. The urethra is also short. This can make it easy for bacteria to spread.

On the other hand, if you have a penis, there’s more distance between the anus, urethra, and bladder. So bacteria have to travel farther to start an infection.

You’re also more likely to develop a UTI if you:

• Are pregnant

• Are sexually active

• Have gone through menopause

• Use oral contraceptives

• Use a diaphragm or spermicide for birth control

• Have diabetes

• Have any condition that blocks urine flow (like an enlarged prostate or kidney stone)

• Have a catheter (tube to drain urine) or recently had a catheter removed

• Have undergone genital surgeries

Can you treat a UTI without antibiotics?

Antibiotics are recommended if you have a UTI. Despite decades of research, there’s no definitive proof that alternative treatments work as well as antibiotics for treating a UTI.

Antibiotics for UTIs are also the best way to get rid of a UTI fast. Antibiotics quickly get rid of bacteria and make your symptoms go away. In fact, antibiotics can get rid of a UTI in just 24 hours. Most people with a UTI feel back to normal just 1 to 2 days after starting antibiotics. Without antibiotics, UTIs can last for about 1 week but untreated UTIs can lead to more serious medical conditions like kidney infections (pyelonephritis).

Drawbacks of antibiotics

Antibiotics can have some downsides. They can cause side effects, such as:

• Nausea

• Diarrhea

• Vomiting

• Rash

Some people can have an allergic reaction or a life-threatening complication. And overuse of antibiotics may also increase antibiotic resistance.

And even though antibiotics are good at killing the bacteria causing the UTI, they can sometimes disrupt your gut and vagin*l flora. This is because antibiotics aren’t always selective about which microorganisms they kill. So they can destroy the “good” bacteria along with the bad. This can lead to other health problems, like a yeast infection or severe diarrhea. In fact, 22% of women who take antibiotics for a UTI may develop a yeast infection.

Are there risks to not treating a UTI with antibiotics?

Yes. Most UTIs don’t lead to kidney damage or other long-term problems. But even a mild UTI can cause major pain and discomfort. And UTI symptoms can also get in the way of your personal life or make you miss work.

In some cases, an untreated mild UTI can spread to the kidneys. In people with “normal” urinary tract anatomy, this happens in about 2% of cases. But the kidneys can be damaged if they’re infected, especially if the infection isn’t properly treated. Sometimes the bacteria can spread beyond the urinary tract, infecting blood or other body tissues. This can lead to a life-threatening situation, or even death.

Some groups of people are more likely to have complications with a UTI. These people should talk with a healthcare professional as soon as possible if they have any UTI symptoms.

Complications are more likely in people who:

• Are pregnant

• Are immunocompromised

• Have a penis

• Have an enlarged prostate, or problems emptying their bladder

• Have a history of kidney stones or kidney problems

• Have diabetes

• Have a catheter or ureteral stent

What are your options for UTI treatment at home?

If you choose to treat your UTI at home for a couple of days, take steps to help your body stay healthy and fight the infection. Here are some home remedies that may help with your bladder infection:

• Stay hydrated. Drinking lots of fluids helps your body make urine. This can flush bacteria out of the urinary tract. Fluids also keep you hydrated, which is helpful for fighting off an infection. Avoid fluids that might irritate your bladder, like alcohol and caffeine.

• Urinate frequently. Going to the bathroom frequently can help clear the bacteria from your bladder and urethra.

• Use heat. Gentle heat can reduce abdominal pain and discomfort. Consider using a hot water bottle or heating pad on your lower belly.

Over-the-counter (OTC) medications can also help improve your UTI symptoms. Though none of these medications will cure a UTI, they can help you feel better while your body is clearing the infection (either on its own or with antibiotics). Options include:

• NSAIDs: Nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs), like ibuprofen (Advil) and naproxen (Aleve), can reduce pain and inflammation. NSAIDs don’t kill bacteria, but they can help reduce inflammation — just like antibiotics. A 2020 meta-analysis found that NSAIDs might be a reasonable alternative to antibiotics — as long as you have only a mild to moderate UTI and no other risks or complications. Antibiotics seemed to work better than NSAIDs in the first 3 to 4 days. By day 7, there was no significant difference. In other words, after a week, antibiotics and NSAIDs worked equally well — though antibiotics were better at getting rid of symptoms quickly.

• Phenazopyridine hydrochloride (Azo, Uristat): These medications, like Azo, soothe the walls of your urethra and bladder, which can reduce pain, burning, and discomfort. Note that these medications should not be used for more than 2 days without talking with your healthcare professional. Using them for longer could cover up symptoms of a more serious infection.

• Acetaminophen (Tylenol): This medication can help to reduce UTI pain.

Remember, if your symptoms are getting worse (or aren’t improving after 2 to 3 days), consider talking to a healthcare professional about starting antibiotics. Though home remedies can help you feel better and might even help the UTI to go away on its own, none of them are a cure for an active UTI.

If you do take an antibiotic, these remedies can still be helpful — especially while you’re waiting 1 to 2 days for the antibiotic to take effect.

6 natural remedies for UTI treatment

Many people are curious about whether foods and supplements may be a natural treatment for UTIs. Though not all of these remedies have evidence to support them, many are relatively low-risk. So if you feel like they’re helpful for you — or you’ve had a positive experience in the past — it might be safe to go ahead and try them. You can also try these natural treatments for UTIs along with antibiotics.

Keep in mind that the FDA doesn’t regulate vitamins and supplements. So it’s worthwhile to check with an independent lab to help you choose a product that’s safe and effective. You should also check with a healthcare professional before taking any supplement on a regular basis, especially if you’re pregnant, take other medications, or have any health conditions.

1. Cranberry juice and products

2. Lactobacillus probiotics

3. Vitamin C (ascorbic acid)

4. D-mannose

5. Uva-ursi (bearberry)

6. Canephron N

Can a UTI go away on its own?

If you have a mild UTI, it might go away on its own over a few days.

If you’re not pregnant or at higher risk of developing a complication from a UTI, you may be able to hold off on antibiotics for a couple of days to see what happens.

Get medical care if your symptoms don’t start to improve after a couple of days. This is a sign you need to start antibiotics.

Of course, there are situations where you shouldn’t wait to start antibiotics. It can be dangerous to delay treatment if you have a severe infection. Get medical care right away if you have any symptoms that mean the UTI has spread to your kidneys, including:

• Fever

• Chills

• Nausea

• Vomiting

• Back pain

• Blood in your urine

• Severe pain when urinating

• Changes in your urine color

• Changes in how much you’re urinating

Don’t wait to get care if you’re pregnant, have a weakened immune system or are at risk for complications from a UTI. If you’re at high risk, you need to start taking antibiotics as soon as possible.

Remember that UTIs are common. A healthcare professional can help you figure out whether an antibiotic makes sense for you. Consider calling your primary care professional for support. Or make a same-day virtual appointment with a healthcare professional at GoodRx Care.

How long will a UTI last without antibiotics?

In several studies of women with UTI symptoms, 25% to 50% got better within 1 week — without antibiotics. But, it’s hard to predict how long it will take for your UTI to go away and if it will go away completely. For many people, the symptoms are just too uncomfortable to wait and see.

How can you prevent UTIs?

If you’ve had a UTI, there’s a chance that you’ll have another one in the future. In fact, about 1 in 3 women with a UTI will have another one within 6 months. So, what can you do to help prevent UTIs? Fortunately, there are many nonmedication strategies that may help prevent UTIs from recurring.

Here are some ideas that may help prevent UTIs:

• Stay hydrated.

• Reduce how much coffee, alcohol, and sugary drinks you have.

• Avoid douching.

• Avoid using perfumed menstrual products.

• Use mild (or no) soap when cleaning your genital area.

• Wipe front to back when using the bathroom.

• Change menstrual and incontinence pads often.

• Empty your bladder after sex.

• Only use clean hands or sex toys on your genitals (especially if they have touched your anus or anal area).

• Avoid using spermicides.

• Maintain a healthy body weight.

Taking a daily supplement may help, such as:

• Cranberry

• Probiotics

• Vitamin D

• D-mannose

In some cases, your healthcare professional may actually suggest antibiotics to prevent UTIs — especially if you get them frequently. In people who have gone through menopause, hormone therapy (estrogen) may also help to protect against UTIs by encouraging Lactobacillus to flourish.