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Make sure your child is maintaining personal hygiene. Teach your child how to keep his/her bottom clean. It is very important that your child knows to wash his/her bottom and genitals when taking a shower. If you have a daughter, teach her to wipe from front to back to avoid infection. In girls, bacteria from the colon readily colonize the area around the vagina and urethra, and then need to travel only a short distance through the urethra to the bladder to cause infection. Bathwater can quickly become contaminated with bacteria from other parts of the body, so your child should take showers rather than baths, especially if she has trouble with recurrent UTIs. Bubble bath liquid can also irritate the area around the urethra, increasing chances of a UTI. Frequently emptying the bladder of urine can help it to remain bad bacteria-free. This is because urinating regularly can wash out bad bacteria that is trying to make its way to the bladder. Staying hydrated will help to keep your child urinating regularly. You should try to teach your child to go to the toilet when he has to urinate, rather than ‘holding it in’ for a long time. Bacteria grows really well in urine, so emptying his bladder regularly will keep him UTI-free. If your child has recurrent UTIs, you should buy her cotton underwear that allows for airflow. Synthetic fabrics tend to not ‘breathe’ as well, which can cause moisture and irritation to occur. If you think your daughter may be sexually active, or may become sexually active, it is important to discuss safe health practices, including ways to avoid getting a UTI. It is important to talk to her about how spermicidal agents can kill good bacteria that can protect her against UTIs, which makes it more likely that bad bacteria will grow in that area. Make sure that she also knows that it is a good idea to urinate promptly after intercourse. Talk to your daughter about getting a prescription for antibiotics if she is experiencing recurrent UTIs caused by sexual activity. Antibiotics are generally the best treatment in this situation so it is a good idea to discuss this option with her. The most commonly prescribed antibiotics for this purpose are nitrofurantoin (50 mg), trimethoprim-sulfamethoxazole [TMP-SMX] (40 to 200 mg), and cephalexin (500 mg).
. Avoid having your child take bubble baths if UTIs are an issue. Help your child stay hydrated and teach her or him that he/she should not hold in her urine if she has to go. Buy cotton underwear for your child. Talk about the link between intercourse and UTIs with your teenage daughter.