An elegant system
The vagina is not just a pleasant place to possess or visit, nor is it simply a passive space waiting to be satisfied; it is a complex and integrated environment. Your vagina is a dynamic system with inherent protections to maintain a healthy balance despite being susceptible to myriad influences that can alter your state of balance. After all, the vagina is exposed to fluctuating hormones, the consequences of our modern diet, our stressful lives, and numerous artificial products that nature never intended our delicate tissues to endure. And of course, Mother Nature intended for our vaginas to have visitors whose presence and leftovers can stimulate and impact our vaginal ecosystem. The vagina is well designed to handle many of these influences, but it sometimes succumbs and causes imbalance, infection, and general bad mood when off duty.
Vaginal ecology
Vaginal ecology is the study of the environment and its interactions. By understanding ecology, you can better manage your vagina and keep it happy and healthy by supporting natural systems. When, despite your best efforts, the normal balance is upset and you have a vaginal infection (vaginitis), knowing how your ecosystem works can empower you to remedy the situation and restore your environment.
Nice and normal
A normal vagina is constantly kept moist by its natural slippery, slippery and tasty discharge. The smell and taste of a healthy vagina is mild, earthy and slightly pungent with a pleasant musky aroma. It certainly doesn’t smell fishy or have a strong foul odor. A healthy vagina does not smell or taste bad! In fact, it’s packed with a sexy scent plus fabulous pheromones, the alluring chemicals we don’t consciously smell. Her vaginal juice is a scented and naturally compelling treat.
Juicy goodness
Vaginal fluid comes mainly from the cells that line the walls, which act in a similar way to the sweat glands, producing moisture from the inner surfaces of the mucous membrane. The rest of the juice is made up of a small contribution from various types of glands, located on the cervix and near the vaginal opening. Normal vaginal fluid ranges in color from clear to white, although when dry it may appear yellowish.
The amount varies from woman to woman, as well as for the same woman at different times, and ranges from low to moderate. Some women are naturally wetter or drier than others, just as some people have oily skin or dry hair or sweat more or less profusely.
The most important thing for you is to know what is typical for you in quantity, color, texture and smell. Vaginal fluid reflects where you are in your cycle, your age, your sexual arousal, your use of hormonal contraceptives, even your diet and fluid intake. For women who have normal fertility cycles, the pattern of change should be similar each month. In general, most women are juiciest during the week leading up to and including ovulation day. Most women are driest the week before their period. Girls before puberty, breastfeeding mothers, and postmenopausal women are drier and less changeable.
The vaginal garden
A healthy vagina is full of beneficial bacteria, primarily one particular strain of Lactobacillus acidophilus. These good bacteria protect the vagina and keep it healthy in multiple ways. Their job is to control the population of harmful microbes such as yeast and “bad” bacteria. They do this by first filling the space, like a garden that is profusely filled with flowers, leaving no room for weeds. Acidophiles then maintain the proper vaginal environment by producing two important chemicals: lactic acid and hydrogen peroxide, a liquid form of oxygen. Lactic acid maintains an acid-alkaline balance (known as pH) in the vagina that is acidic. Its helpful bacteria also produce hydrogen peroxide to create an aerobic (oxygenated) environment that discourages harmful microbes. Beneficial bacteria are the essential engineers and workers of your vagina’s ecology. When something causes a change from the ideal, they go to work to put their ecology back in order.
Flow and flow
There are a variety of things that can change the vaginal balance and throw the system out of balance. For starters, there are the regular changes in the fertility cycle. The vaginal environment normally fluctuates slightly throughout the month. Just before menstruation, there is a normal reflux in the good bacteria population due to hormonal influences that make the vagina less acidic. This premenstrual week is usually a time when the vagina is drier, more sensitive, and more prone to irritation and infection. During your period is another time when the environment is at risk of becoming unbalanced. Blood is alkaline (the opposite of acidic) and its presence can promote imbalance. Semen is another alkaline influence that impacts the ecosystem. Ideally, you have a large population of good bacteria, so your body can easily adapt to these factors and quickly return to an acidic state.
Hostile takeover
If your beneficial bacteria die, your ecosystem becomes fragile and susceptible to being absorbed by hostile bacteria or yeast. There are many influences that can induce a decrease in the population of good microbes. Sometimes the imbalance seems to happen for no reason, but factors such as high stress, poor diet, wrong “hygiene” practices, or other factors that affect the vaginal environment often play a role. And when you kill all the flowers in your garden, you can be sure the weeds will take over.
Effects of antibiotics
One of the most common causes of death for your normal flora is taking antibiotics, which can kill your ‘good guys’ as they do their job of killing the bad guys that were causing infections elsewhere. Every time you take antibiotics, you run the risk of yeast overgrowth, which can lead to vaginal yeast infection (a yeast infection) and gastrointestinal problems like indigestion and diarrhea. This is one of many reasons to be careful about taking antibiotics and using them only when you really need them.
Sweets for my sweet
Normal vaginal discharge also contains a very small amount of natural sugars. The usual low level of sugar helps discourage yeast overgrowth, while a high level promotes it. The level of sugar in vaginal fluid increases in diabetics and during pregnancy. Some women are sensitive to a high sugar diet and may need to be careful about their intake.
Keeping it cool
Although the vagina is usually quite moist, at or slightly above normal body temperature (which is quite warm at almost 100 degrees), it is best if it does not get much hotter than that. Anything that generates and maintains heat can contribute to yeast overgrowth and lead to a vaginal infection. A wet swimsuit on a hot day, pantyhose, lycra or spandex workout clothes, synthetic panties or leggings, plastic-backed pantyhose, even skinny jeans can create an overheated slit, risking disruption. Wear cotton panties, natural fiber leggings or tights, cotton menstrual pads, and nothing at all at night (or when you can get away with it!) Keep your crotch fresh and you’ll be glad you did.
Contraceptive concerns
Certain forms of contraception can affect the vaginal system, directly or indirectly. Any product that contains Nonoxynol 9, the chemical found in all spermicides, can be problematic. Many women are very sensitive to this chemical and will have inflammation as a result of its use. This includes condoms with spermicide, the jelly used with diaphragms, and all other types of spermicidal creams and suppositories. It is best to avoid this irritating chemical that kills sperm in all its forms.
Hormonal birth control methods (birth control pills, depo injection, implants, IUDs containing progesterone, the ‘patch’, the ‘ring’) all work by tricking your body into thinking that you are already pregnant and therefore not you need to ovulate. So, just like in actual pregnancy, there may be slightly higher amounts of natural sugars in your vaginal discharge, hormonal changes, and changes in pH that can promote vaginal imbalance and infection.
Feminine hygiene shit
Exposure to synthetic chemicals and cleaning products can also change the balance and cause a reduction in supporting bacteria. Vaginal infections are commonly associated with what can be called “excessive American hygiene,” which includes the use of douches, vaginal deodorants, sprays, wipes, washes, powders, antibacterial soaps, deodorant soaps, body soaps, bubble baths, and all of the so-called feminine hygiene products. These products are the main culprits of vaginal infections! Avoid them all. You don’t need them! Don’t fall for the lies of mass marketing that tell you you need to be “fresh” using their chemical concoctions. You are fresh and delicious without that synthetic crap.
Keeping it clean
Your healthy vagina does not smell bad and you do not need artificial hygiene products to irritate it and kill your normal flora. Clean with clean, clear water. That’s all you need. You can use your fingers to help rinse the cracks. A handshower is great for cleaning your crotch (and it’s also helpful for indulging yourself). A mild soap can be used on the outer areas, such as the outside of the outer labia, but should be avoided on the inner lips and around the vaginal opening. It is never, ever necessary to clean the inside of the vaginal canal. You have a self-cleaning vagina!
Trouble signs
By knowing what is normal, you can often catch a problem early before it becomes a full-blown infection. The imbalance exists before an infection fully manifests itself. By understanding the early signs and symptoms of a change, then you have the power to get the ecology back in a healthy direction and prevent most problems. If there is a heavy or heavy discharge, if it smells bad, tastes bad, or looks strange, that is abnormal and is usually a sign of imbalance or infection. Be on the lookout for any changes, including a fun color, if it is thicker or thinner than usual, clumpy or milky. Your vaginal juice should never itch or burn, and swelling and irritation are also warning signs of a problem. So be sure to check your own vaginal fluid regularly, to recognize any changes early.
Happy healthy haven
Now that you understand the basics of your vaginal ecology, you have the means to make good decisions to protect and care for your delicate environment. You can support your healthy system and avoid things that could disrupt your natural defenses. By knowing what’s normal for you and paying close attention, you can spot the first signs of a problem and often fix it before it becomes a full-blown infection. When signs of imbalance occur, you can take steps to correct the system yourself, or get help from your healthcare provider, before things get really bad.
Essentially, your genitals are a self-regulating, self-cleaning ecosystem, and the less you disrupt the natural balance, the better off. Don’t mess with a good thing. Appreciate your sleek system with its natural resilience and self-sustaining ability. Respect and support your vaginal ecology and you will have a happy and healthy feel good haven for you, your vagina and your friends to have lots of fun.
