Vaginal Health & Natural Medicine
For anyone who has dealt with recurrent yeast infections, bacterial vaginosis, pain during sex, vaginal dryness, vulvovaginal atrophy, chronic vaginal pain or vulvodynia - you know just how much vaginal health affects your quality of life. WNHN offers holistic relief utilizing oral formulations, local vulvovaginal remedies, and evidence-based nutrition.
Keeping a Healthy Vaginal Ecosystem is Key.
The vaginal microbiome is a dynamic variable system, represented by an array of bacteria, the vital activity and balance of which provides vaginal “homeostasis” or balance, to protect against disease. Just like any other organ, the vaginal microbiome is influenced by diet, hormones and lifestyle factors.
The dominant constituent of the vaginal microbiota was once thought to be lactobacillus spp. While this may remain true for many women, this varies quite a bit across different ethnicities where lactobacilli are less dominant. Interestingly, the microbiota composition of healthy women is typically low in diversity when compared with the rest of their body, and the vagina is sensitive to shifts in these populations.
Production of lactic acid, as a result of the vital activity of Lactobacilli, ensures the maintenance of the optimum low pH of the vaginal fluid and protects against infections of the urogenital tract. But not all lactobacilli species are beneficial for the vagina. Research is unfolding which bacteria provide the most benefit for maintaining a healthy vaginal microflora, and what we do know is that unfavourable shifts in the vaginal ecosystem can increase a woman’s risk for issues such as:
Chronic pelvic pain
Yeast infections
Bacterial vaginosis
Vulvodynia
Vulvovaginal atrophy, or atrophic vaginitis
Preterm birth
Endometriosis
Are you looking to become a new patient? Visit our What to Expect page to become familiar with WNHN’s process.
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Integrative Care
Patients may also integrate care with pelvic floor physiotherapist Julia Cowan to get the most out of treatment.
Julia Cowan, Registered Pelvic Health Physiotherapist, takes a biopsychosocial approach to post-partum health and pelvic pain, providing highly effective treatment of pelvic floor muscle dysfunction, pelvic organ prolapse, lower back and pelvic pain.
Julia can be found at Generations Sport & Spine Physiotherapy in Welland, Ontario.
A Spotlight on Recurrent BV.
There are 3 general categories of vaginitis: hormonal, irritant, and infectious.
Bacterial vaginosis (BV) is arguably the most common cause of vaginal infections affecting nearly a 1/3 of women and can be quite resistant to treatment.
BV results from an alteration or a shift in the vaginal ecosystem that cause irritation, inflammation, and discomfort.
We generally see a reduction or elimination in the lactobacilli population, which helps maintain a healthy pH, a healthy mucus membrane and vaginal epithelium. We also typically see an overgrowth of anaerobic bacteria along with a loss of vaginal acidity, odour, and increased vaginal secretions/discharge. But sometimes women with BV don’t have any symptoms at all. And again, it’s important to note that many women with healthy vaginas don’t necessarily have lactobacilli as the dominant species, so it is very individual.
Typical findings include:
A thin, frothy, greyish white or yellow discharge
A fishy odour
Vaginal pH greater than 4.5 with pH paper
A positive culture (obtained through pelvic and swab)
Associations with BV include:
Cigarette smoking
Being pregnant
Decreased estrogen levels such as with menopause
Increased androgens, like testosterone, such as in patients with PCOS
Oral contraceptive or IUD use
Hormonal cycles
Menstruation
Ethnic background
For those coping with recurrent or stubborn BV, addressing the most likely causes & aggravating factors is an important part of your workup and treatment program, and may include addressing:
A chronic low-grade antibiotic resistance
An imbalanced or unstable vaginal microflora connected to digestive health
Use of personal hygiene products that disrupt the normal mechanisms of the vagina and shift the vaginal ecosystem
Dietary factors
Douching, which depletes lactobacilli
Broad-spectrum antibiotic use
Intercourse without condoms since sperm alkalinizes the vagina and tends to deplete lactobacilli