Women’s guide to a healthy vaginal microbome
Did you know your vagina has it's own microbiome of friendly and (sometimes) not-so-friendly bacteria.
Like your gut, everyone’s microbiome contains beneficial (“good”) and opportunistic (“bad”) bacteria; and it is when there is an imbalance to the good vs bad bacteria that issues arise. With your your gut microbiome this is what contributes to things like bloating, constipation, diarrhoea, abdominal pain etc. With your vaginal microbiome an overgrowth of bad bacteria results in various vaginal symptoms such as itch, discomfort, foul odor, urinary symptoms, discharge (from feta-cheese like to green-snot like). Generally speaking these symptoms may be a UTI, thrush or bacterial vaginosis (BV).
Another important element to this picture is the pH of your vagina; your vaginal should be acidic. It is when your vaginal pH is too alkaline that the pesky bad bacteria has the opportunity to flourish… cue the above symptoms no woman wants.
What causes an imbalance to the gut bacteria?
There are various triggers for vaginal infections:
Your gut and vagina are anatomically very close; lots of women experience vaginal symptoms following an incident with their gut. This may look like a gastro bug, bali belly, a couple of rounds of antibiotics
Antibiotics have been overused in the past, but they certainly of course have a time and a place for use. Sometimes the use of antibiotics to treat another infection eg gut parasite or even mastitis can significantly throw out the balance of your vaginal microbiome and result symptoms
A lot of women experience these symptoms during pregnancy due to hormone changes; symptoms can continue afterwards if they are not addressed and it can become a recurrent (or even ongoing) vaginal infection. Lots of women come to see me reporting of symptoms for many months.
In peri- and post-menopausal woman your vagina is significantly impacted by the significant hormone changes. In this hormonal stage, estrogen naturally declines and this can result in vaginal dryness and change the PH allowing opportunistic bacteria to thrive. Estrogen is a moisture-loving hormone; it lubricates the vaginal so as this lubrication reduces some women experience general discomfort and pain during or following sex.
What can you do about it?
The good news is, there is a lot you can do about it! There is a lot of much-needed research happening in this area and it will only continue to grow and expand.
If you have an ongoing infection I highly recommend doing a vaginal microbiome test. You receive a kit in the mail, take a swab in the comfort of your own home and pop it in the post! This is processed by the functional testing lab I use and we receive a detailed report; this takes the guess work out of what is happening as the treatment is very different depending on what you have going on.
If you have a low-grade infection, perhaps the first time there are some products I love that are very effective; these include:
Probiotics with strains specific for vaginal health; they can be taken orally and inserted vaginally (if indicated)
Specific herbs to reduce infection, provide soothing and reduce the alkalinity of your vagina (to reduce the bad bacteria)
Some general tips to implement at home
You need to replace your underwear every 6 months
Day-to-day wear underwear made of natural fibre eg bamboo, 100% cotton for breathability
If you are prone to infection, don’t spend hours in your activewear tights. Do you work out and change your underwear and tights so you are wearing something more breathable. If you can have a shower after training, take one.
Optimise your gut health, as this heavily influences the health of your vaginal microbiome
Limit refined sugar intake; you may have heard of candida in your gut.. it is also possible to have an overgrowth of candida in your vagina.
I hope this intro to your vaginal microbiome has helped! If you need some support in this area or have some questions, reach out to me via instagram msg or book a free 15-minute intro chat
