What Does A Clean Vagina Look Like

The signs of a healthy vagina and what yous should be doing to keep it that manner

This article was medically reviewed past Sherry A. Ross, MD, OB/GYN, a women's wellness expert in Santa Monica, California, and author of she-ology and she-ology. the she-quel.

All vaginas are different — yours should have it's ain familiar scent.

Melanie Dawn Harter/Getty Images

• Your vagina is good for you if y'all take articulate, whitish discharge and no fishy or foul scent.
• The inside of your vagina should too feel forgiving and elastic.
• But yous should run into a doctor if you have itchiness, painful urination, or pain during sex.
• Visit Insider's Wellness Reference library for more advice.

If you lot're not familiar with your vagina, information technology'south time to get acquainted. Just like how yous keep tabs on the residual of your body, it'south of import to pay attention to what's going on "downwards at that place" to brand sure you're healthy. This way, you'll have a baseline to reference when something feels off.

Here are signs of both a healthy and unhealthy vagina, besides equally ways to maintain vaginal health.

Signs of a good for you vagina

There are three signs of a healthy vagina, according to Alyssa Dweck, Dr., FACOG, gynecologist and host of the Business of the 5 podcast.

1. The presence of clear or whitish discharge. The "normal" corporeality of discharge varies from person to person. Some people just have a tiny fleck, while others have more. You will have discharge throughout your cycle, but information technology may become more notable during ovulation.
2. Moist and supple elastic mucosa (which is the internal vaginal tissue). This ways that the within of the vagina should experience forgiving and elastic.
3. A familiar scent. It is normal for your vagina to have some kind of scent. "There should exist no foul aroma, just rather a familiar odour unique to each adult female that also may vary slightly through the cycle," says Dweck.

Signs you should run across a gynecologist

You lot should exist on the picket for whatsoever new or unusual symptoms that may exist a sign that your vagina is non healthy.

Some problems that could ascend are:

• A yeast infection: Symptoms include thick white cottage cheese like discharge, itchiness, and irritation.
• A UTI: Symptoms include frequent and painful urination, and pain during sexual activity.
• Painful sex: This could be a sign of many conditions such as a UTI, yeast infection, STI, endometriosis, or fibroids.
• A sexually transmitted infection (STI): Symptoms of STIs vary based on the infection, simply you may experience belch that is green, grey, or bloody (unrelated to menstruation). You might too accept a fishy or foul odour, itchiness, discomfort during sex, or bleeding after sexual activity.

If you experience any of these symptoms, it'due south important to come across your OB-GYN every bit soon every bit possible to determine what could be causing the problem and go you proper treatment.

How to maintain proper vaginal wellness

Vagina owners are lucky –– there isn't much you demand to practise to keep your vagina make clean. Dweck says all you need to do is wash the vulva (the external part of your genitalia) with mild soap and water each day in the shower.

Yous practise not demand to clean within the vagina, every bit it is self-cleaning. "The vagina has a natural ecosystem or microbiome with a delicate residue of yeast and bacteria present," that keeps it healthy, says Dweck.

Some more than dos and don'ts include:

• Avoid douching as information technology tin can change the frail pH balance in your vagina and increase your risk — by 21% co-ordinate to one estimate — of infection like bacterial vaginosis.
• Use a safety to prevent STDs, STIs, and bacterial vaginosis (if y'all're prone to it).
• Urinate before and after sex in order to flush away bacteria and prevent urinary tract infections, says Dweck.

Insider's takeaway

Your vaginal health isn't something to mess around with, so if you think your vagina may not be healthy, it's important to run into a md. Plus, even if your vagina does feel fine, you lot should still see your OB-GYN every year for your annual wellness exam. Some weather may have no symptoms, and then information technology's important to always attend your cheque up to make sure your vagina is healthy.

Ashley Laderer is a freelance author from New York who specializes in health and wellness. Follow her on Twitter @ashladerer

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Source: https://www.insider.com/healthy-vagina

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