[Fwd: How about this?]

[Guest guest]

Hi Gang;

Does anyone know of this supplement.Docs here in Canada are doing

research adding it to antibiotics when people are having to take long

dosage.It seems like it is particularly helpfull for people that are

very prone to bladder infections,most notably parapelegics.I am

wondering if it migh be useful for those of us that have bad yeast

infection due to AP..Lynne G./SD

--- How about this?

Date: Sat, 21 Apr 2007 02:04:08 -0400

From: " Mark Guimond " <mark.guimond@...>

Reply- " Mark Guimond " <mark.guimond@...>

Organization: TextImage

" Lynne Guimond " <lynneandsantos@...>

Herbal extract could treat bladder infections

Updated Sun. Apr. 8 2007 7:51 PM ET

Associated Press

WASHINGTON -- An herbal extract that is sold in health food stores and

promoted as an allergy and fat loss aid may improve treatment of bladder

infections when it is taken with antibiotics, research suggests.

Some 90 percent of bladder infections are caused by E. coli bacteria.

They affect women four times more often than men, sometimes recurring

over and over.

The bladder is lined with small pouches that allow it to stretch as it

fills. Researchers at Duke University reported in Sunday's online

edition of Nature Medicine that some bacteria were able to hide in those

pouches, escaping the antibiotics used to treat the infection.

In tests in mice, the extract forskolin can cause the pouches to kick

out the bacteria, allowing antibiotics to kill them, said the lead

researcher, microbiologist Soman N. Abraham. Forskolin is derived from

the Indian coleus plant.

" If we combine this with antibiotics we would be in a very good position

to eradicate urinary tract infection, " he said in a telephone interview.

In the experiments, forskolin was injected into some mice and placed

directly into the bladders in others, Abraham said.

The extract is available in health food stores and some people take it

by mouth as a supplement, he said. It is promoted as a treatment for

allergies, breathing problems and even fat loss.

That availability does " absolutely not " mean people should attempt to

treat themselves for bladder infections, Abraham said.

Urinary tract infections must be treated with antibiotics because they

can quickly spread to the kidneys, so infected people needed to see

their doctor, he said. But the fact that forskolin is being used by some

people does help indicate it is safe, he said.

Abraham said the next step for the researchers is to experiment in

larger animals to see if they can completely eliminate a bladder infection.

" If we can show an impact in combination with antibiotics it should not

be too long before we can go to clinical trials " in people, he said.

Extracts from the Indian coleus were used in ancient Asia to treat a

variety of diseases including urinary tract infections, Abraham said.

" So, we have come full circle, " he said.

Walter Hopkins, a scientist in the Division of Urology at the University

of Wisconsin School of Medicine and Public Health, said the research

shows " forskolin may provide a means to interrupt the

infection-reinfection cycle " and lead to a quicker resolution of the

illness.

" If these results could be duplicated in human studies, forskolin could

offer a new treatment option for recurrent " urinary tract infection said

Hopkins, who was not part of the research team.

Dr. Gregor Reid of the Lawson Health Research Institute in London,

Ontario, said the research was interesting.

" In some patients, such augmentation may be beneficial. Once human

studies are done, we'll have a better idea, " he said. " For now, this

concept is a long way from being used in patients, " said Reid, who was

not part of the research team.

The research was funded by the National Institutes of Health.

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