Caused by an overgrowth of Candida albicans, a fungus, yeast infections are the most common of all vaginal infections. Yeast infections are not sexually transmitted and are often caused by menopause. Of all vaginal infections, yeast infections are one of the main symptoms of menopause, caused by the fluctuating hormones leading to bacteria in the vagina going out of control. Baths, excess moisture in the vagina, or damp or tight clothes may lead to yeast infections. The signs of yeast infection during menopause, as well as otherwise, are: inflammation, continued itching and irritation, pain during intercourse, frequent urination, and a thick, white discharge from your vagina.
With the drop of estrogen levels during menopause, the walls of your vagina become thinner and weak. During intercourse, the walls become irritated, leaving tiny scars and scratches, enabling bacteria to thrive. Higher levels of estrogen, due to hormone replacement therapy (HRT), also increase the chance of yeast infections. Damp and moist vagina, due to increased vaginal discharge caused by higher levels of estrogen, is a great breeding ground for yeast and bacteria.
Menopause, Yeast Infections and TreatmentYeast infections can be treated by OTC (Over-The-Counter) medication in the form of creams and suppositories. Before using these medications, it is always advisable to have a proper diagnosis of yeast infections. Trichomoniasis, a sexually transmitted infection, and other types of vaginal infections have symptoms similar to yeast infections. This makes it imperative to confirm that you actually have yeast infection before starting medication. Although creams and suppositories are sold as OTC medications, you will need prescription for oral medicines.
Before resorting to strong medications, you could try the following alternate treatments for yeast infections:
You could use a small spoon, a spatula or an old vaginal cream applicator, to apply yogurt at night for three to seven nights to restore the balance of bacteria in your vagina. You may need to put on a sanitary pad to avoid messiness.
Avoiding Yeast InfectionsYeast infections, unfortunately, tend to recur. To prevent recurrence, or to prevent having it in the first place, you could try the following:
Garlic And Yeast Infections
Not everyone can even think about taking garlic in its natural form and having tested it out myself, I have to say that it is most definitely an acquired taste. Of course, if you can bring yourself to have a garlic clove a day, you are almost certain to keep the doctor away along with a few health problems and people as well!
But like I said, the pungent smell is not something that many people can take the thought of stomaching. Having said that I have known some people to submerge whole cloves of garlic in a jar of bee's honey, at which point they let it sit for sometime soaking up the honey into the garlic. Apparently the garlic doesn't taste as bad that way, but it's really all down to your taste buds.
For myself personally I can't stand the thought of eating raw garlic in whatever form it comes in. I do however use it in cooking and that way I can enjoy it, but if it's raw you want then I wish you joy of it! If you do suffer from recurrent yeast infections though you might want to consider having the raw garlic either as a preventative measure to begin with, or as a cure for it.
The problem that comes with soaking the garlic in honey is that if you're trying to cure your infection then adding honey to the mix is just like adding coal to a fire - yeast thrives on sweet stuff. As a preventative taking your garlic that way won't necessarily be a problem, but you might want to stick to the unvarnished raw stuff for curing your yeast infection.
As Juice garlic can taste equally dreadful if you don't like the taste of garlic to begin with. You can either mash the garlic into a pulp and mix with water, or you can be brave and just have the garlic juice pure without any water. I would recommend honey to sweeten things up but we know what can happen by introducing honey into our systems at this point.
Garlic could also be used as a Suppository. When I'm talking about a suppository, I'm talking about the type of thing that you will place inside your vagina, and not in any other bodily cavity. You can think of a garlic suppository as being a kind of yeast cure tampon. Take a whole garlic clove and peel it being careful not to make any cuts in it as these might sometimes sting.
Wrap the peeled clove in cheesecloth or gauze and tie with a suitable piece of string, or dental floss, whatever works really. And remember to keep a length of string dangling so that you can later pull it out. Next you can insert your garlic tampon into your vagina. Depending on the severity of your infection you can leave it in either for a few hours, or you can leave it in overnight.
In this case, then you might also want to think about using one of these in the morning as well. Or you also have the option of changing the garlic suppository every few hours. This works just as well and might in some cases be quite good for you to change it frequently.
If you don't like the thought of raw garlic in any form then you might prefer the convenience you can get from garlic pills and tabs. You'll also find that you can get readymade liquid garlic as well, if you want to go in for that. You just need to make sure that what you're getting is made of natural ingredients. Anything else kind of defeats the purpose of using a natural home remedy. And if you can get the right kind of garlic tabs then you can also use these as a suppository instead of using a fresh clove of garlic. Although sensibly speaking, using a garlic suppository is more helpful and healthy than using a garlic douche. When needs must, I suppose.
Both Cathy Taylor & Muna wa Wanjiru are contributors for EditorialToday. The above articles have been edited for relevancy and timeliness. All write-ups, reviews, tips and guides published by EditorialToday.com and its partners or affiliates are for informational purposes only. They should not be used for any legal or any other type of advice. We do not endorse any author, contributor, writer or article posted by our team.
Cathy Taylor has sinced written about articles on various topics from Yoga Practice, Pregnancy Problems and Food And Drink. Cathy Taylor is a marketing consultant with over 26 years experience. She specializes in internet marketing, strategy and plan development as well as management of communications nad public relations programs for small business sectors. She can be reached. Cathy Taylor's top article generates over 22200 views. to your Favourites.
Muna wa Wanjiru has sinced written about articles on various topics from Recreation and Sports, Birthday Party and Jewelry. Muna wa Wanjiru is a Web Administrator and Has Been Researching and Reporting on Yeast Infections for Years. For More Information on Garlic, Visit His Site at. Muna wa Wanjiru's top article generates over 301000 views. to your Favourites.
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