Contents:
- Medical Video: How to keep Your Vagina Clean during Pregnancy
- Why should the vaginal area be more concerned when pregnant?
- How to maintain the vaginal area to stay healthy while pregnant
- Can pregnant women use vaginal cleansers?
Medical Video: How to keep Your Vagina Clean during Pregnancy
During pregnancy, many hormonal changes occur. Besides being able to change mood, hormonal changes during pregnancy can also affect the condition of your vagina. Pregnant women may experience vaginal discharge more often and vaginal itching due to these hormonal changes. Well, to overcome this, is it possible for pregnant women to use vaginal cleansers?
Why should the vaginal area be more concerned when pregnant?
Do you know? It turns out that pregnant women are more susceptible to vaginal infections, such as bacterial vaginosis. This can occur because of an increase in the hormone estrogen during pregnancy, which can then cause vaginal discharge and odor in the vagina.
Increased estrogen hormones cause pH levels in female sex organs to change. So, there is a change in the number of good bacteria in the vagina (but still within normal limits).
Changes in the vaginal area make pregnant women more susceptible to bacterial attacks that can cause infection and irritation. Vaginal infections are not only dangerous for the mother, but can also harm the fetus. For this reason, it is recommended that pregnant women be more hygienic in their female organs during pregnancy.
How to maintain the vaginal area to stay healthy while pregnant
Some ways pregnant women can do to keep the vaginal area clean and healthy, and prevent excessive vaginal discharge during pregnancy. Here's the way, reported from American Pregnancy Association:
- Clean the vaginal area regularly, not often, at least twice a day. Cleaning the vaginal area too often is also not good because this can disrupt the balance of good bacteria that protect the vagina.
- Keep the vaginal area dry, especially after bathing or from the toilet
- Clean the vaginal area from front to back to prevent bacteria or fungus from spreading to the vagina or urethra
- Simply clean the vagina with warm water
- Avoid using pants or tight clothing, this can make the vaginal area become moist so it is more susceptible to bacterial infections
- Wear cotton pants that absorb sweat easily
Can pregnant women use vaginal cleansers?
Now many vaginal cleansing products have sprung up, making women and pregnant women interested in using them because of the benefits that may be immediately felt. However, is it permissible for pregnant women to use vaginal cleansers?
This may depend on the type and content in it. Some vaginal cleansers may have ingredients that can disrupt the balance of good bacteria in the vagina. This is certainly not good because it can actually cause infection to be more vulnerable.
For example, such as the use of fluids douching which is used by spraying. Douching fluid contains various chemicals that can interfere with vaginal pH balance. Douching fluid can get rid of natural bacteria in the vagina and replace it with new bacteria that can cause infection. This infection can then spread to the fallopian tubes, cervix and uterus.
In addition, you are also not recommended to use bath soap to clean the vagina. Bath soap has a pH level that is not the same as the vagina, so it is not suitable for cleaning the vagina.
We recommend that you choose a vaginal cleansing product that can help restore your vaginal pH balance. For example, vaginal cleansing products containing Povidone-Iodine. Povidone-Iodine is a broad-spectrum antiseptic substance capable of controlling the spread and development of topical infections, overcoming various pathogenic germs, and not causing resistance to antiseptics.
However, also pay attention to the frequency of use. Not too often because the vagina actually has its own mechanism to clean itself. The vagina produces fluid that can protect it from bacterial attacks. And most importantly, just clean only the outside of the vagina.
