Yeast infections can often be avoided with some precautions and minor adjustments to current behaviors. By keeping the vaginal area clean, dry and considering contraception's role in your life, you can, in many cases, avoid them altogether. If you're sure a yeast infection is the culprit of your discomfort, give these home remedy lifestyle suggestions a try.
Stay dry. Yeast organisms like warm, moist conditions, with little or no oxygen. In order to deny them the perfect growing medium, dry your vaginal area thoroughly after bathing or showering.
Stay loose. Avoid wearing panties, pants, or hose that fit tightly in the vaginal area. Opt for "breathable" cotton underwear and loose pants, and, if you must wear nylons, choose those that have a built-in cotton-lined panty. Also, avoid lounging around in a wet swimsuit; change into dry clothing as soon as you're done swimming for a time.
Avoid harsh soaps, "feminine hygiene" sprays, and perfumed products. Not only can the alcohol and other chemicals in these products cause irritation, but they could alter the pH balance of the vagina, allowing yeast to flourish.
Rethink your contraception. Women who take birth control pills appear to be at increased risk for developing yeast infections. While researchers haven't established a cause-and-effect relationship between the Pill and yeast, some studies have shown that oral contraceptives increase the glycogen (the body's storage form of sugar) in the vagina (which provides more food for yeast reproduction).
Have both partners treated. Sexual partners can play "hot potato" with yeast infections, passing them back and forth, even if one of them has gotten treatment. Often, men harbor yeast organisms, especially in the foreskin of an uncircumcised penis, but show no symptoms. So when one partner is treated for a yeast infection, the other should be treated at the same time to avoid reinfection.
Wash up. If you have a yeast infection, you should wash up extra carefully before lovemaking and should ask your sexual partner to do the same.
Use condoms. Couples who make love before a yeast infection has been completely cured should also use condoms during intercourse (even if another form of contraception, such as the Pill or an IUD, is being used) to act as a barrier and prevent passing the infection.
Avoid routine douching. Women who douche frequently in the belief that it's a healthy practice may actually increase their risk for yeast infections by altering the vagina's pH balance. Routine douching is simply not necessary, since the vagina is able to clean itself.
Practice good hygiene. While yeast is usually passed between sexual partners, it can also be passed to others, including children, through activities such as shared baths. To ensure you're not passing yeast, avoid bathing or sharing towels or bathwater with your children; wash your hands frequently -- and always after using the bathroom -- with soap and water; and wash your clothing in hot water. The high water temperature in your washing machine should destroy any yeast organisms on your clothes. But if you want to be sure they're all gone, add a cup of white vinegar during the rinse cycle.
Consider if sponges are for you. Contraceptive sponges seem to be a yeast culprit, too, although no one is sure why. If recurrent yeast infections are a problem for you, consider an alternative birth control method such as condoms, a diaphragm, a cervical cap, or an intrauterine device (IUD); discuss it with your doctor.
Stay calm. Avoid stressful situations. They can bring on infection.
Douche Danger
The advertisements for douching preparations admonish women to "feel fresh." And some women erroneously believe that douching after intercourse will prevent pregnancy (it doesn't). But evidence shows that routine douching may actually do more harm than good.
For instance, routine douching has been linked to an increased risk of pelvic inflammatory disease, or PID, an infection of the uterus, fallopian tubes, or ovaries. PID can cause scarring of the fallopian tubes and result in infertility. If the infection spreads to the circulatory system, it can be fatal.
A 1990 study showed that women who douched three or more times per month were three-and-a-half times more likely to have PID than women who douched less than once a month.
The symptoms of PID include fever, chills, lower abdominal pain or tenderness, back pain, spotting, pain during or after intercourse, and puslike vaginal discharge. In most cases, a woman does not show all of the symptoms listed. If you have any PID symptoms, consult a physician immediately.
Not only has routine douching been associated with an increased risk of PID, some researchers believe it may increase a woman's risk of developing cervical cancer. A study that appeared in The American Journal of Epidemiology showed that women who douched more than once a week were nearly five times as likely to develop cervical cancer as women who douched less often. The researchers suspect that vaginal secretions and normal vaginal bacteria may somehow protect the pelvic area and that routine douching may invite microbes that trigger cancer.
The message is clear: While an occasional douche during an infection might be helpful, don't make a habit of douching.
