Uqora Interview

I get chronic UTI’s…

Or should I say “used to”. Whether it be from drinking alcohol, not hydrating my body properly or not peeing after sex. If I wasn’t careful, I’d get one EVERY WEEK -that’s crazy! There were times I would call in sick to work, and just sit at home drinking cranberry juice and hating my life. Until I saw an ad on Facebook for Uqora, a revolutionary urinary tract health supplement. It almost seemed too good to be true, but despite my disbelief, I contacted the company about trying their product.

They sent me the whole combo; Target, Control and the Cleaning Wipes. I take a Control every day -like a daily vitamin- to assist in preventing UTI’s. But if I feel one coming on, I quickly add a Target pack into a glass of water and drink up. The Target reminds me of those Crystal Light packages, but surprisingly better. It’s pink lemonade flavour!

After having a chance to try these products, I sat down with Jenna Ryan -the creator of Uqora- and asked her a few questions.

How did Uqora come to be?

Uqora was inspired by my own personal journey. In 2014, I had 8 UTIs. I was doing everything right (peeing after sex, trying cranberry, wiping correctly, and doing every precautionary measure) but I kept getting them. My doctor told me I was going to need to start daily antibiotics, and that just didn’t sit well with me. This inspired me and my now fiance, Spencer, to start Uqora.

Spencer has a background in biochemistry and we were both committed to creating better options for urinary tract health—so we started to build Uqora. Uqora was built in collaboration with physicians and urologists, using science-backed ingredients, and is dedicated to tackling urinary health in a new way, with products that work. At this point, we’ve helped more than 60,000 people get proactive about urinary tract health, and that’s just the beginning! 

Why don’t you use cranberry in your products?

Generally, there’s a ton of conflicting studies on cranberry—In 2016, the American Medical Association (AMA) released findings naming cranberry as ineffective for UTI prevention. CNN Health summarized these results, coining the findings as “The Cranberry Myth”. We’re all for more research, period, as long as it’s well-designed and substantial. That’s why we’re happy to provide an alternative for the millions of women who have been unsuccessful with cranberry products and still need urinary tract support.That said, if you’ve found that cranberry works for you, that’s great! Our number one goal is helping people stay healthy. 

Uqora has 4 products. Tell me a little about each and their role.

We started out with our first product, Uqora Target, which is a drink mix that people can drink after sex or exercise the flush the urinary tract. Uqora Target is still a key part of our product offering, but now we have three different products that all come at urinary tract health from a different angle. Uqora Control is a daily product that regularly cleanses the urinary tract and breaks down biofilm, the tool that bacteria can use to hide in the urinary tract. Uqora Promote is a specialized probiotic with two specific strains of “good” vaginal bacteria. Research has shown that a healthy vaginal microbiome can help maintain the entire urogenital system, making the vaginal microbiome a key part of urinary tract health. Most people take all three of our products together.In addition to our Complete System (all 3 products), we have pH-balanced Cleansing Wipes — our customers love these as a quick tool to freshen up down there after a workout, intimacy, travel, you name it. We’ve also started thinking beyond proactive care. We’re thinking through better ways to tackle UTI symptoms and treatment, and are excited to bring the same level of research and customer focus to every step of the process.  

Why is taking a probiotic to one’s health?

It’s important to note that our probiotic, Promote, is a vaginal probiotic. It’s not the same as a digestive probiotic for gut health. A vaginal probiotic is important because research has shown that the vaginal microbiome is a key component of urinary health. The vagina has a mix of good bacteria and bad bacteria coming in, and our vaginal probiotic works to keep the good bacteria in balance. Especially if you’re sexually active, it’s important to know that keeping your vaginal microbiome happy will really make a big difference for your urinary tract health (you can read more of the research here).  

Do you need to use all 3 prevention products?

It really depends on each person’s unique situation. We typically recommend taking all 3 prevention products together as our Complete System to ensure maximum support. However, many customers have found success just using Target (primarily if you’re mostly looking for urinary health related to sexual activity) or just Control & Promote to continually cleanse biofilm and promote healthy bacteria.If you’re not sure what is best for you, we have a quick quiz on our site! 

I've tried Uqora and I’m obsessed! Do you use it yourself?

Yes—I love hearing that! One of my favourite parts of my job is hearing our customers’ success stories. They are all so inspiring and it just feels so good to be making a difference. I read our customer reviews almost daily—it’s an instant pick-me-up.  And you know it—I’ve been taking our products since 2015 :)  

What make Uqora different than other urinary health products out there?

We’re taking a big-picture approach to urinary tract health. Keeping the urinary tract health is nuanced—it’s not just about sex, it’s not just about vaginal imbalance or daily maintenance—it’s the fact that all of those factors are distinct but related. We’ve stayed on top of the very best research, and are contributing a lot of research ourselves. We are in the midst of conducting clinical trials to be a contributor to the industry and hopefully learn more about the complexities to continuously evolve.  

On average, how many women deal with chronic UTI’s?

It turns out that UTIs are the second-most common infection, second only to the common cold. UTIs affect half of all women.Before I started Uqora, I didn’t know these numbers. Urinary tract health can feel like an isolating, lonely journey. But once you start talking about, you realize how many other women out there are experiencing the same thing as you. It’s important to speak up and stick together, and we feel proud to be contributing to that conversation.