Vaginal care is one of the most important things for every woman. The fear of recurrent yeast infections, Bacterial Vaginosis, and nasty germs can push many women to choose the wrong products for their vaginal care. Furthermore, many myths surrounding vaginal hygiene make it difficult for the average person to filter through them.

What Makes A Vagina Healthy?

Many times, a definition of a healthy vagina is one without odors, a specific type of discharge, and so many more assumptions. A healthy vagina has a balanced PH, but except you plan to rub vaginal fluids over litmus paper, you can’t tell. A simple guide to knowing the state of your vaginal health is:

• The color of your discharge matters, but it sometimes changes with your cycle. However, for brown, green, or any color that isn’t clear, creamy, or white, your vaginal health is poor.
• There’s a particular odor that accompanies everyone’s vagina. When this odor becomes strong, unpleasant, or foul, your vagina is unhealthy.
• Finally, like a self-cleaning organ, the vagina naturally lubricates itself. This moisture is essential. So, if your vagina is dry, itchy, or uncomfortable, it means it isn’t healthy.

Now that we know what a healthy vagina means, let’s look into how to keep it healthy.

7 Ways To Keep Your Vagina Healthy

Vaginal health is not a complicated matter, and this is because the vagina is a self-cleaning organ, so it doesn’t require much work to keep it in good form. However, not everyone knows these little tidbits I’m about to share. 

Use Water, Not Wash

The vagina is a self-cleaning organ (pretty sure I’ve already reiterated this a few times). This means that using soaps to clean it is a no-no, even the dermatologically approved ones. This is because the chemicals used to create these soaps can cause a PH imbalance resulting in bacterial infections or yeast infections. The best way to clean your vagina is with warm water and mild/unscented soaps (if you insist). Also, ensure that you protect yourself with intimate pads during periods.

Treat Every UTI Like a Potential Virus

Why? Because every single UTI can cause more complicated issues such as pyelonephritis, serious yeast infections (which can be extremely itchy and smelly), and a myriad of other problems. The solution is to see a gynecologist as soon as you notice an issue. This brings me to the next point.

Regular Gynecological Exams 

Routine visits to the gynecologist have many benefits. They help you learn proper ways to care for your vagina, prevent infections, and know your PH levels and what you need to do to maintain a healthy balance. They help you detect any discrepancies with your vagina before the problem makes you uncomfortable. Regular exams are also the easiest way to do a pap smear which is one of the ways to test for HPV, an incurable virus responsible for several things that can affect your vagina and your person as a whole. 

Eat Healthier

Eating substances that enrich your body is vital to the health of your vulva. When you eat healthily and your body’s immunity is boosted, you are less prone to UTIs. Furthermore, eating healthy encourages blood circulation and hemoglobin production, which is good for your vagina.

Check With Your Gynecologist Before Taking Any Supplements

It is important to make sure that supplements you are taking for vaginal health aren’t actually causing more harm than good. Some substances when ingested can improve PH balance, while others, not so much. It is important to first consult the gynecologist before taking any medication. 

Drink Lots of Water

Water helps your body stay hydrated and this helps your vagina a lot. As an organ that stays moist more often than not, dehydration can lead to dryness which can be uncomfortable and can also encourage the yeast in your vagina to go out of balance resulting in a yeast infection. 

Having A Prolapse is Not a Cause For Panic

Except your gynecologist says otherwise, most times a prolapse is not dangerous or a reason to begin to panic. If you ignore it and it doesn’t make you uncomfortable it will go away on its own.

From what we’ve gone through so far, you can see that vaginal healthcare is a pretty easy process that will definitely leave you happy, balanced, and itch-free. So try out these tips and remember to drink water.