We are all concerned about our overall health, from our heads down to our toes. Some may agree that they are guilty of prioritizing some parts more than the others. For instance, thinking more about our medical concerns than our dental issues. Let us remember that taking care of your oral health should be part of your daily routine. Maintaining a proper personal hygiene on a regular basis can improve our appearance that can affect our self-esteem and outlook in life. For women, no matter how healthy you are and how diligent you are when maintaining your personal hygiene, some questions still linger in your head, right? Like, ‘what is the normal smell down there?’, ‘do I smell normal?’, or ‘how can I make sure I don’t smell awful?’ Here are some facts and tips on how to maintain a healthy female hygiene routine.
Tips on how to maintain healthy female hygiene routine
Personal feminine hygiene
Nothing will beat bathing every day as a number one tip on how to maintain the cleanliness of your body. Washing your whole body regularly keeps bacteria and other disease-causing germs away from your body. Make sure to use hypoallergenic bath products that would not harm or make our bodies dry.
Keep it clean down there
Making sure that you use feminine washes that are pH-balanced so as not to ruin the normal flora of our vagina is essential in maintaining the natural defense of our genitals from infections. Wearing breathable, and well-fit cotton underwear can also help in keeping our private parts clean and dry. Wearing skimpy, tight-fitting undies can cause friction and irritate our skin, a good source of skin irritation and yeast or bacterial infection.
Avoid douching
Our vaginas are made perfectly – they know how to take care of their own health. Our genitals work in such a way that they self-clean and naturally produce vaginal discharges that help get rid of germs and bacteria from our bodies. So, using a douche or any harsh cleanser or soaps can disrupt your natural pH balance and can irritate your vagina and wash away good bacteria. Plus, douching will only mask the smell and not cure what’s going on, making it difficult for your gynecologist to know what your problem is should you consult her for a reproductive problem. For example, if your vagina smells fishy, you may have bacterial vaginosis which is a common vaginal infection. It is still better to use warm water and mild soap on the genitals.
Eat right and healthy
Maintaining a healthy diet can do your body and your vagina good. Foods like yogurt with live cultures contain good and healthy bacteria that help promote good reproductive and genital health. If you’re prone to urinary tract infections, some doctors would suggest it may be helpful to drink cranberry juice or take a supplement daily.
Practicing safe sex
This tip is not just part of a regular female hygiene routine, this is for everyone. And it is not just for our reproductive health, but it is also more importantly for our overall health. The Centers for Disease Control & Prevention declares that the consistent and correct use of latex condoms can reduce the risk of any sexually-transmitted diseases transmitted by genital fluids such as gonorrhea, chlamydia, and trichomoniasis. However, using condoms would not do the job alone. So maintaining clean bodies and avoidance of practicing premarital sex may still be recommended, even in this day and age.