One wash a day is enough
Transmitted by the women of the family or influenced by the plethoric supply of the market, the habits of intimate hygiene are supposed to protect us from “nasty” microbes while bringing freshness and comfort. However, many women, “clean on them” moreover, precisely complain of feelings of discomfort, dryness, fungal infections, even infections. Should they wash even more?
“Certainly not,” says Dr Béatrice Guigues. For this gynecologist, it is above all necessary to wash better to preserve the balance of the vulvar and vaginal flora, composed in particular of bacteria which we adapt very well… provided we let the good ones prosper. It is the role of lactobacilli which limit the development of dangerous germs but which too frequent or too aggressive washing destroys. Candidas (name of a fungus) then proliferate, promoting infection and mycosis. Another possible inconvenience in the event of excessive hygiene: irritation caused by drying of the tissues due to the destruction of the protective lipid film.
One toilet per day is enough in normal times, except during menstruation when the operation can be repeated once. Other circumstances where one is tempted to do too much: after bathing in the sea or swimming pool, when it is enough to rinse with fresh water and remove your wet swimsuit without delay. After romantic relationships too, when there is no hurry and a refreshment is enough. As for trips in spartan conditions, such as hiking in the Atlas for eight days… it is better not to fixate on the issue and bring wipes for intimate hygiene which offer a real interest there. Without prolonging its use once returned home. Indeed, for as soft as they are promised, the wipes necessarily (and fortunately) contain preservatives, often even perfumes which remain in contact with the mucous membranes since they are not rinsed.
Wash more easily…
No more soaps that are too strong, in other words too alkaline, vaginal douches and other stripping habits. Unless you change it every day, avoid the terrycloth glove which turns out to be a nest of germs. Wash by hand instead, it’s simple and healthy. Everything external (vulva, labia) but not the vagina which is not a dirty place. Clear water would suffice but it is true that a cleanser that foams a little is pleasant and gives a feeling of cleanliness.
Whether it is a bar of soap, a liquid or a foam, the essential thing is that the acidity of the product, its pH, be compatible with that of our intimacy: the vulvar pH is around 5.5 and the vaginal pH between 3.8 and 4.5. It is this natural acidity that protects against germs causing inconvenience (irritation, vaginal discharge, etc.). Excessive acidity (around 4) promotes the development of mycosis. If the pH is too alaclin, and therefore too high, there is a risk of bacterial vaginosis (a modification of the germs present in the vagina) and therefore “small” inconveniences.
For little girls
A soap without detergent at physiological pH is indicated during childhood, as on the rest of the body. However, if the little girl complains of irritation, the pediatrician, or even the gynecologist, can prescribe pediatric products for intimate hygiene. Scrupulously follow its indications for the duration of the treatment. Later, during adolescence, a mother can recommend a specific product to her daughter, during the menstrual period for example, but not every day. The best service to render him is to transmit to him the good reflexes: a daily external toilet, cotton underwear changed every day, pants not too tight and above all, no deodorant on the pubis.
