Bacterial vaginosis (BV) is a condition in which the balance between good and bad bacteria in the vagina changes. If BV is present, the population of harmful bacteria outnumbers the good bacteria. These bacteria can live even in the absence of oxygen and usually produce unpleasant odors and discharges. The cause of this medical condition is still unknown. However, there are ways to ensure that once you have BV, the disease will never appear again, it all starts with Step 1 below.
Step
Part 1 of 3: Changing Your Lifestyle
Step 1. Finish your medication
It is mandatory for you to finish the medication prescribed by your doctor, if you have already sought doctor's care. If you've had BV before, the disease can come back again and again. However, if the disease has been diagnosed, and you have been taking medication according to your doctor's orders, the chances of the disease reappearing are smaller.
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If your doctor says you should take metronidazole or clindamycin for one week (two weeks are also often prescribed) then you should take them for one week. Even if your symptoms go away in just a few days, stopping or not taking your medication will increase your risk of getting BV again.
During treatment, you should not drink alcohol because it can cause adverse effects such as nausea, vomiting, skin redness, tachycardia (heart rate increases to above 100 per minute at rest), and difficulty breathing
Step 2. Add probiotics to your diet
Probiotics are known to have live and active cultures of microorganisms that can help normal flora in the stomach and vagina. Probiotics help increase the population of good bacteria and fight harmful bacteria.
Lactobacilli are a common type of normal vaginal flora. Therefore, eating foods that contain probiotics such as yogurt (preferably labeled “live and active cultures”), soy milk, kefir, sauerkraut, milk, pickles, and olives promote the growth of vaginal flora. You can eat 5 ounces of food containing probiotics every day to help the vagina maintain its acid-base balance
Step 3. Put on cotton underwear
Avoid wearing jeans or tight underwear -- really, avoid "anything" that's too tight. It is recommended to wear cotton underwear and avoid nylon underwear. This is because cotton is a fabric that allows breathing and air to circulate as opposed to nylon which retains moisture and heat which makes you susceptible to vaginal infections.
Avoid thongs too. Experts believe that wearing a thong increases the chances of transferring germs from the anus to the vagina and consequently causes vaginosis
Step 4. Wipe from front to back
This process can help prevent the accumulation of harmful bacteria in the vagina. It is a good habit to, after urinating or defecating, wipe with toilet paper from the front of the vagina to the back of the vagina. This will prevent the transfer of bacteria from the anus to the vagina.
Part 2 of 3: Know What to Avoid
Step 1. Avoid having sex
Absolutely no sex is best, but if you can't do that, make sure you're in a monogamous relationship, and avoid having more than one sex partner. Although there are very few cases where men infect women with BV, practicing safe sex using condoms is still important to avoid transmission of various sexually transmitted diseases.
Transmission of BV is more common in women who have sex with women because of the exchange of vaginal discharge and cervical mucus during sex. There's no best way to prevent this unless you give your BV time to fully heal first or you don't have sex at all
Step 2. Do not do vaginal douching
Douching is a procedure that washes the inside of the vagina using water and vinegar or other drugstore douching products and actually removes the "good" bacteria. Douching can cause more infections and can increase the harmful bacteria in your vagina that severely affects the normal flora, increasing bad odors and your risk of infection. Douching is an ancient practice that is scientifically no longer common.
The vagina has a self-cleaning activity. The natural acidity of the vagina helps eliminate harmful bacteria. External vaginal cleaning with water and mild soap is preferred
Step 3. Avoid using strong detergents when washing your underwear
Strong detergents contain chemicals that can come into direct contact with your vagina, causing disruption of the normal flora. This alters the acid-base balance of the vagina which will change the normal pH level. Use a mild detergent to wash your underwear and wash it properly.
Step 4. Avoid using scented and strong soaps and bath oils
These can change the normal flora in your vagina. Using strong soap has the same effect as douching. In other words, strong soap will also increase the number of harmful bacteria and there will be a rapid production of these bacteria because there will be no good bacteria to fight them. Anyway just avoid it!
Avoid using feminine commercial products because they contain harmful chemicals -- instead, you can use a milder soap like Dove or Johnson products. And remember to avoid cleaning too often; once a day is sufficient, and twice a day if you are menstruating
Step 5. Avoid commercial tampons, pads, and liners
Tampons support bacterial growth, damage the vaginal walls, and keep blood in contact with the vagina (blood and vagina have different pH levels). If you can avoid using tampons, do so.
Using pads and liners constantly prevents air from entering the genitals thereby making the area warm and moist; This becomes a very inviting environment for bacteria to breed. Don't use pads and liners unless you "really" need them
Step 6. Avoid foods that are high in sugar and salt
Excessive intake of foods high in sugar and salt can increase the population of bad bacteria. These are foods that are eaten by bad bacteria. Also, consuming too much salt will keep water in the body (better known as fluid retention) thereby increasing the chances of developing urinary tract infections. Eat fruits, vegetables, lean meats, low-fat dairy products, and whole grains.
High-sugar foods are mostly anything white -- think cakes, pastries, chips, and rice. All fast food and canned foods are high in salt
Part 3 of 3: Understanding Bacterial Vaginosis
Step 1. Know what causes bacterial vaginosis
The cause of bacterial vaginosis is not clearly known or precisely understood but can be related to the following factors:
- Vaginal surgery. Some procedures performed on the vagina can change its structure which can cause an imbalance in the vaginal bacteria content.
- Douching. Women who traditionally practice vaginal washing or injection of certain types of fluids can alter the bacterial content.
- Inserting unnatural and unsterile objects into the vagina. Inserting any object into the vagina can bring harmful germs into the vagina which in turn can penetrate the vagina's defenses against unwanted bacteria.
- sex. Bacterial vaginosis often appears immediately after sexual intercourse, for no apparent reason. This may be due to unhygienic sex practices.
Step 2. Know the symptoms of BV
Most women who have bacterial vaginosis do not show any symptoms. The signs and symptoms of bacterial vaginosis can vary from person to person but are generally characterized by:
- The discharge is grayish, whitish, or yellowish. This is caused by the overgrowth of bad bacteria which multiply very rapidly in the vagina, thereby disrupting the normal flora of the vagina.
- The discharge smells bad. It is most often described as a “fishy smell” and usually gets worse after sexual intercourse.
- There is no sign of pain or itching.” Bacterial vaginosis doesn't show any symptoms in most cases -- that's why there's no itching or pain. If it itch, it's not BV.
- Pain when urinating.” Bacterial vaginosis may be asymptomatic but in rare cases, there is pain that is described as burning and sometimes stinging.
Step 3. Know who is at risk
All women are at risk for this disease -- especially those who are sexually active. This disease often appears after sexual intercourse and is said to often occur at the beginning of sexual intercourse. Bacterial vaginosis is rare in virgin women.
There is already a debate about whether the disease is contagious. Some groups believe that the disease is not contagious while others believe that it is contagious. However, there is a type of inflammation at the tip of the male penis that seems to be related or related to the germs found in bacterial vaginosis (though this irritation is not common)
Step 4. Know how the disease is diagnosed
Bacterial vaginosis is “diagnosed” by looking at your vaginal discharge. The disease is also analyzed from the results of the following tests:
- Check the pH or alkalinity of vaginal secretions. Healthy women usually have vaginal secretions that are only slightly acidic. But once they are exposed to BV, their secretions become more alkaline causing a pH greater than 5.
- Potassium Hydroxide Test/Odor Test. This procedure begins by adding a 10 percent solution of potassium hydroxide to the vaginal discharge specimen. The result is positive for bacterial vaginosis if there is a characteristic odor. But recently, this test is not recommended because of its effects which can be harmful because the compound used is a caustic liquid.
- Microscopy examination. On examination of vaginal discharge using a microscope, unusual cells will be seen to indicate the presence of bacterial vaginosis. The cells have a strange mottled appearance due to the presence of germs attached to them.
Tips
- The patient's sex partners are usually not treated, but in cases of recurrent bacterial vaginosis, the doctor may consider it.
- Use a female condom or Femidom. This condom covers the entire vagina during sexual intercourse and can prevent an imbalance of bacterial content in the vagina.
