More and more natural intimate hygiene methods are being rediscovered to bring the environment in the vagina into the right balance. But are garlic, yogurt and lemon juice really good therapies for your vagina? We clarify.
Alternative treatments to keep your vagina healthy or to remove existing problems are all the rage. There is a lot to read, from introducing a cucumber to rinsing with oregano oil. But not everything that comes from nature is also good for intimate hygiene of the vagina.
You can find out which mistakes lead to you smelling unpleasant below in the video above!
What does a healthy vaginal flora mean?
Our vagina is provided with a thick mucous membrane which fulfills important properties and also offers protection against fungi and bacteria. In order to create the right balance in the vagina , “good” bacteria are again required, which are known as the vaginal flora. The balance is achieved when an acidic environment, i.e. a pH value below 4.5, is present. In an acidic environment, fungi, viruses and bacteria have only a small chance of survival and cannot spread any further.
Millions of germs in a healthy vagina
There are more than 100 million bacteria in a healthy vagina. Most of these germs are lactic acid bacteria and so-called sugar cells, which in turn produce the hormone estrogen. A real cycle is created, because the estrogen in turn is the nutrient for the lactic acid bacteria and these then produce sugar, hydrogen peroxide and important antibiotic active ingredients. These fight the unnecessary and bad bacteria.
These natural methods are not good for your vagina
On wellness websites and in the social networks of naturopaths and alternative doctors you will find more and more tips for the intimate care of your vagina – with foods that are supposed to be good for your vaginal flora. Such therapies are also supposed to protect against infections and improve your sex life.
Most of the time it involves inserting foods like yogurt, garlic, or lemon juice into your vagina . Now, if it occurs to you that this might be strange, then your common sense will not be wrong.
It will be obvious to everyone that dirty underwear and wet bikini panties are bad for genital health. But putting garlic cloves and oregano oil in the vagina also sounds very adventurous. Therapies with natural substances are often touted. But these are mostly neither ancient nor effective, just plain nonsense.
Why Are Natural Therapies Not Good?
You cannot acidify the environment in your vagina with lemon juice. You cannot achieve the right balance of the vaginal flora with yogurt, because conventional milk does not contain the right lactic acid bacteria. Cleaning the vagina with a sea sponge is also recommended. But we strongly advise against this, especially as a hygiene method during your period. Even more unwanted bacteria can settle in the sponge and spread further.
Science is state of the art
Even if one or the other home remedy may have been used in the past, this does not mean that they were always good. The book author Dr. Jen Gunter does not believe in these natural methods of intimate hygiene for the vagina. She is a gynecologist and obstetrician and has her medical practice in San Francisco, California.
She told the online edition of the ” New York Times ” that this advice about vaginal care should be taken with caution , especially when questionable therapies are proven, products should be bought, homeopathic remedies are touted, methods are based on experience reports and foods to keep the vagina healthy should be introduced.
Dr. Gunter recommends consulting a doctor in the event of problems, who can make a professional diagnosis and then suggest a sensible medical treatment method.
What can you do for a healthy vagina?
It’s actually very easy because you don’t even have to spend money on a healthy vagina. Shower gels, intimate hygiene products and soaps destroy your vaginal flora. Vaginal douching and hip baths are also harmful. It’s best to clean your vagina daily with only lukewarm water.
Use a clean towel and change your underwear every day. In addition, you should eat healthy foods (but please do not insert them into the vagina, eat them!) Such as nuts, olive oil, avocado, leeks, onions, sauerkraut or yoghurt. If you also do without sugar (namely, bacteria love sugar) and drink a lot of water, you are declaring war on bad germs in your vagina.