The meat in your refrigerator, one of the factors explaining the increase in urinary tract infections
Craig Comiter, a urologist at Stanford University, said that farmers give animals intended for consumption drugs to resist 'E. coli.' However, birds develop resistance to these treatments, therefore increasing the possibility of suffering from these ailments.
File image of frozen meat prepared for sale in a supermarket.
UTIs are on the rise. A research published by the National Library of Medicine revealed that, between 1990 and 2019, there was a more than 68% increase in urinary tract-related ailments, with more than 400 million cases diagnosed annually.
What few people know is that one of the causes of this increase is found in the meat we consume. More specifically in the way in which birds are raised before being designated for consumption. According to National Geographic, many livestock farmers are giving medication to the animal in question to avoid Escherichia coli (E. coli).
This prevents them from developing the disease during breeding, but it also poses a long-term problem, as the bacteria that causes this infection is developing resistance to the drugs and, once infected, these remedies are not as effective as before. Craig Comiter, a urologist at Stanford University, stated that "the overuse of these antibiotics in animal husbandry" could be one of the main factors explaining the increase in urinary tract infections.
A statement with which Michelle Van Kuiken agrees. The urologist and urogynecologist at the University of California stated that "eating meat that has been heavily treated with antibiotics may be contributing to increasing rates of antibiotic resistance as the human microbiome is being influenced by meat consumption. This does not mean that if you eat meat, you are going to get a UTI, but it could increase the likelihood that you may end up colonized with a multi-drug resistant organism."
It is true that, resistance or not, a study conducted in 2023 found that almost half a million urinary tract infections diagnosed annually were caused by consuming contaminated meat.
This is a small fraction compared to the more than eight million medical visits, but it is still worrying. More so when you consider that a large number of retail meat products are contaminated, detailed Cindy Liu, a microbiologist at George Washington University's Milken Institute and co-author of the study:
"30 to 70 percent of our retail meat products have been shown to be contaminated with 'E. coli.'"
Other factors driving the increase in urinary tract infections
This is not the only factor behind the increase in urinary tract infections. This ailment, which experts say is more common in women than in men, can also appear after sexual intercourse or failure to maintain proper hygiene.
The increase in urinary tract infections could also be due to demographic growth with an increasingly aging population. It is also associated with an increase in associated conditions such as kidney stones and type 2 diabetes.
These are small factors that could explain these infections which, experts say, can be prevented simply by maintaining good hygiene, especially when handling meat products.
Good hygiene can be easily obtained with the habits that Stanford University urologist Craig Comiter recommends all citizens to adopt: washing hands frequently, wiping from front to back after going to the bathroom, drinking adequate amounts of water, and urinating after sex are among these "efficacious ways to minimize the risk of infection."
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