Uva Ursi

Also known as bearberry (referring to its habitat in mountainous parts of the northern hemisphere), uva ursi is the prime remedy for urinary tract inflammation and infections (UTIs), particularly cystitis, urethritis and prostatitis. 

UTIs are the most frequent occurring infections in women and one of the major reasons for antibiotic prescriptions. Escherichia coli is the most frequent pathogen and first-line drugs include the antibiotic fosfomycin. Bacterial resistance is one of the major limiting factors of antibiotic use and despite fosfomycin’s activity against resistant strains (e.g. multidrug resistant E. coli), fosfomycin-resistance is an increasing problem. The antimicrobial activity of uva ursi extracts, and some of its individual constituents, has been observed in vitro however its efficacy compared with standard antimicrobial therapy has not been assessed yet. The first randomised controlled trial assessing the clinical efficacy and safety of uva ursi in comparison with fosfomycin is ongoing and the results have not yet been published. 

To the late herbalist extraordinaire Dorothy Hall, uva ursi combines the rare blend of astringent and demulcent constituents making it both a tonic and a stimulant, but also soothing and calming. She says “most herbal writers mention its effectiveness against kidney-stone pain, its cleansing and toning of the bladder with swift return to comfortable urination, and its... soothing [of] irritable genito-urinary tract inflammation. I have, in common with many other herbalists, found it equally soothing and tonic when gallstones are the problem to be treated.” When using uva ursi Hall adds dandelion (Taraxacum officinale) and buchu (Agathosma betulina) to mixtures where both liver and kidneys show impeded function due to gall or kidney blockage. 

References

Hoffman D. The New Holistic Herbal. Melbourne:Element. 1990.p. 179

Tóth B, Jávorházy A, Nyirády P, Csupor-Löffler B, Birinyi P, Zhanel G, Naber K, Länger R, Vörhendi N, Gede N, Váncsa S, Hegyi P, Csupor D. Bearberry in the treatment of acute uncomplicated cystitis (BRUMI): protocol of a multicentre, randomised double-blind clinical trial. BMJ Open. 2022 Jun 24;12(6):e057982. doi: 10.1136/bmjopen-2021-057982. PMID: 35750460; PMCID: PMC9234905.

Hall D. Dorothy Hall’s Herbal Medicine. Lothian Publishing Company:Sydney 1988. p291-3