Uva ursi (bearberry leaf)

Arctostaphylos uva ursi, also known as bearberry leaf, is another name for uva ursi, a herbal treatment for UTIs that has long been utilized in traditional and folk medicine. It comes from a particular kind of untamed flowering shrub that grows all throughout North America, Asia, and Europe. Bearberry leaf is a plant whose leaves are used to manufacture herbal medicine and whose berries are a favorite feast for bears. Following harvest, the leaves can be dried and infused to produce tea, or leaf extracts can be taken as capsules or tablets.

Although there is no current evidence to support the use of uva ursi to treat UTIs, numerous chemicals found in the plant have shown strong antibacterial properties in trials conducted in test tubes. Due to its antibacterial impact on E. coli, one of the most prevalent causes of UTIs, arbutin is the primary chemical credited with uva ursi's UTI-healing ability. Uva ursi supplementation with dandelion root was found to significantly prevent UTI recurrence when compared to a placebo in an older trial including 57 women. When administered as a therapy for active UTIs, uva ursi and a placebo showed no difference in a more recent trial including over 300 women.

According to the available evidence, uva ursi is generally considered to be safe at dosages of 200–840 mg hydroquinone derivatives, computed as anhydrous arbutin, per day. However, due to the possible danger of liver and renal damage, its long-term safety has not been demonstrated, and it should not be used for more than 1-2 weeks at a time.