Women who douche are more likely to develop pelvic inflammatory diseases, which can lead to infertility.
A douche is a device that releases a mixture of water, baking soda, vinegar, and/or fragrance into the vagina. There are advantages and disadvantages to using a shower. The main advantage of the hygienic douche is that it temporarily cleanses the discharge and unpleasant odor from the vagina. Some women also believe that douching will help them avoid contracting a sexually transmitted infection (STI) and reduce the risk of pregnancy. Contrary to these beliefs, douching actually increases a woman’s risk of STDs, while also increasing her risk of pelvic inflammatory disease, bacterial vaginosis, and irritation.
A douche can be used to clean the vagina.
Most women bathe to reduce odor and remove discharge from the vagina. After menstruation, douching also cleanses the vagina of any remaining blood. The main benefit of hygienic showering is that it makes women feel clean. Some women find that douching leaves them feeling cleaner than washing their external genitalia.
Some women also believe that using a douche after intercourse will reduce the risk of getting an STD or getting pregnant. These are two common but dangerous misconceptions. Using a douche that contains vinegar, artificial fragrance, baking soda, or iodine will make your vagina more vulnerable to infection. Douching after intercourse can push semen further into the vagina, increasing a woman’s chances of getting pregnant. Women who become pregnant are more likely to experience complications such as an ectopic pregnancy.
Douching during pregnancy can cause complications.
While many women are aware of the benefits of douching, its side effects are less well known. In addition to increasing your risk of getting pregnant or getting STDs, douching can cause other problems. Women who shower frequently are more likely to develop bacterial vaginosis. This is because using a vaginal douche compromises the balance of bacteria in the vagina. Bacterial vaginosis often causes women to develop a strong fishy odor and produce large amounts of abnormal discharge, which is exactly what women hope to eliminate with hygienic douching.
Douching cleanses the vagina of any remaining blood after menstruation.
Research has shown that women who bathe are also more likely to develop pelvic inflammatory disease. Pelvic inflammatory disease can cause pregnancy complications, bleeding, chronic pain, and infertility. Women suffering from this disease may also start to produce an unpleasant smelling discharge.
To reduce the risk of negative side effects, women who insist on using hygienic douches should do so safely. One way to practice safe showering is to avoid filling it with anything other than water. This will clean the vagina without killing beneficial bacteria. Women should also make sure their douching supplies are clean and should also avoid forcefully pushing water into the vagina. Although douching is not necessary to keep the vagina clean, following these steps will help women avoid negative side effects.